KNATZ BECOMES CHAIRMAN OF AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF PORT AUTHORITIES
Port of L.A. Executive Director To Chair International
Trade Organization of 160 Port Authorities
SAN PEDRO, Calif. – October 8, 2008 – Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Geraldine Knatz, Ph.D., has assumed chairmanship of the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA). Knatz was installed as board chairman for 2008-09 at the association’s annual convention in Anchorage, Alaska last month.
In addition to serving as AAPA’s board chairman, Knatz will chair the organization’s U.S. Legislative Policy Council and U.S. Delegation of Ports. The AAPA represents more than 160 public port authorities in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean and Latin America.
“Dr. Knatz has the experience, leadership skills, dedication and industry respect to advance our association’s mission of connecting port communities throughout the Western Hemisphere with the global marketplace,” said AAPA President and CEO Kurt Nagle. “We look forward to her chairmanship in the year ahead.”
“It’s an honor to chair AAPA in the coming year,” said Knatz, member of the AAPA Executive Committee and former chair of the AAPA South Pacific Delegation and Harbors, Navigation and Environment Committee. “We have a remarkable opportunity to educate policymakers as a new administration comes into office and the next surface transportation funding legislation begins to take shape. We’ll also continue to forge international alliances in the port community to affect change on critical environmental and free trade initiatives.”
Knatz is very active in the international port community. She chairs the Environmental Committee of the International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH), is on the IAPH Executive Committee, and represents IAPH on international maritime treaties at the United Nations’ International Maritime Organization. In 2007, she was appointed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to the California Ocean Protection Council, which oversees and coordinates statewide policy for the protection and management of California’s ocean and coastal resources. She is a member of the Alameda Corridor Board of Directors and past chair of the National Academy of Sciences Marine Board.
Knatz oversees the daily operations and internal management of the nation’s number one container port. Her agenda at the Port of Los Angeles has focused on responsible growth and environmental leadership. Among her top priorities are reducing port emissions, eliminating health risks and expanding capital development programs to accommodate the Port’s future growth as a premier Pacific gateway and national economic engine. Knatz began her career as an environmental scientist at the Port of L.A. before moving to the neighboring Port of Long Beach, where she spent two decades and rose to the Number 2 executive position. She returned to the Port of L.A. as executive director in January 2006.
Knatz is the recipient of numerous recognitions and awards over the past several years. She was a recent recipient of The Compass Award at the Women’s Leadership Exchange West Coast Summit. In 2007, she was named Woman Executive of the Year by the Los Angeles Business Journal and one of the Outstanding Women in Transportation by the Journal of Commerce.
About AAPA
Founded in 1912, AAPA today represents 160 of the leading public port authorities in the United States, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean. In addition, the Association represents more than 300 sustaining and associate members, firms and individuals with an interest in the seaports of the Western Hemisphere. AAPA port members are public entities mandated by law to serve public purposes. They facilitate waterborne commerce and contribute to local, regional and national economic growth. These ports are gateways to world trade and are critical components to their nation’s economic health, national defense and growing cruise industry. In 2007, commercial seaport and marine cargo operations in the U.S. generated $3.2 trillion of total economic activity and provided jobs for 13.3 million Americans, whose earnings and consumption totaled nearly $650 billion.
About the Port of Los Angeles
The Port of Los Angeles, also known as “America’s Port,” has a strong commitment to developing innovative strategic and sustainable operations that benefit the economy and the quality of life for the region and the nation it serves. A recipient of numerous environmental awards, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 2007 Clean Air Excellence Award, the Port of Los Angeles is committed to innovating cleaner, greener ways of doing business. As the leading seaport in North America in terms of shipping container volume and cargo value, the Port generates 919,000 regional jobs and $39.1 billion in annual wages and tax revenues. A proprietary department of the City of Los Angeles, the Port is self-supporting and does not receive taxpayer dollars. The Port of Los Angeles - A cleaner port. A brighter future.