Summit 2019 Programme
This event was held in asscoiation with:

Our Ocean Wealth Summit is Ireland’s flagship event for the marine sector. From engineering to shipping, from aquaculture to energy, from technology to biosciences, this Summit brings together Irish and International organisations working to create innovative, sustainable solutions with global impact that drive our blue economy.
As an island nation, the 2019 Summit acknowledged the role of islands in Our Ocean Wealth with it's theme of Shared Voices from Small Island Nations. The Summit featured global leaders including environmental activists and former US Secretary of State John Kerry and a host of world leaders of island nations as well as researchers, entrepreneurs and academics.
Session 1: Harnessing Our Ocean Wealth

Peter Heffernan
Session Moderator

John Sheehan
Lord Mayor of Cork

Declan McDonald
Partner, PwC

Michael Creed
Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

Damien English
Minister of State for Housing and Urban Development

Ngedikes Olai Uludong
Permanent Representative of Palau to the United Nations

Elizabeth Thompson
Permanent Representative of Barbados to the UN
Message from Young Ocean Ambassador

Alicia O'Sullivan
Young Ocean Ambassador
Address by Simon Coveney

Simon Coveney
Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs & Trade
Keynote Address

John Kerry
United States Senator
Sky Ocean Ventures and CuanTec
Session 2: Island States - Our Shared Journeys, Challenges and Opportunities

Tara Shine
Session Moderator
Island States in a Global Ocean - Our Shared Maritime Journeys

José Luis Fialho Rocha
Permanent Representative of Cabo Verde to the UN

Peter Heffernan
CEO, Marine Institute

Carmelo Abela
Minister of Foreign Affairs & Trade Promotion, Malta

Ngedikes Olai Uludong
Permanent Representative of Palau to the United Nations
Opportunities and Challenges in Key Maritime Sectors

Courtenay Rattray
Permanent Representative of Jamaica to the UN

Jim O’Toole
Chief Executive Officer, Bord Iascaigh Mhara

Jim Gannon
CEO, Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland

Piera Tortora
Coordinator of the OECD Initiative on Sustainable Ocean for All

Odo Tevi
Permanent Representative of Vanuatu to the UN
Keynote Address

Máiread McGuinness
First Vice President, European Parliament
Session 3: Empowerment Through Ocean Knowledge

Tara Shine
Session Moderator
Ocean Wealth Panel: Creating the Right Environment for Ocean Enterprise

Satyendra Prasad
Permanent Representative of Fiji to the UN

Susan Steele
Chair & CEO, Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority

Stephen Hughes
Manager; Construction, Cleantech, Timber and Consumer Retail; Enterprise Ireland

Niall Gibbons
CEO, Tourism Ireland

Inga Rhonda King
Permanent Representative of St Vincent and the Grenadines to the UN

Elizabeth Thompson
Permanent Representative of Barbados to the UN
Short High-Level Presentations on Enablers for Sustainability

Gerard McCarthy
Lecturer and Principal Investigator, Maynooth University

Koen Verbruggen
Director, Geological Survey Ireland

Eoghan Linehan
Senior Manager, PwC

Yvonne Shields
Chief Executive, Commissioners of Irish Lights
Message from Tomorrow’s Leaders

Alicia O'Sullivan
Young Ocean Ambassador, Ireland

Selina Neirok Leem
Young Ocean Ambassador, Marshall Islands
A New Era for Ocean Island Partnership

Álvaro Mendonça e Moura
Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Portugal

Peter Thomson
UN Special Envoy on the Ocean

Geraldine Byrne Nason
Ireland’s Permanent Representative to the UN

Walton Alfonso Webson
Permanent Representative of Antigua and Barbuda to the UN

Lois Michele Young
Permanent Representative of Belize to the UN
Closing Address

Simon Coveney
Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs & Trade