Oceantic Network founder to receive 2024 Maritime Person of the Year award

Oceantic Network Founder and CEO Liz Burdock will be honored with the Emery Rice Medal from the Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA) in October, recognizing her as Maritime Person of the Year. The award, which honors a civilian or military leader with a distinguished career of excellence, innovation, and service to the maritime industries and other related industries, will be presented at an event on the MMA campus.

The Emery Rice Medal is named for an 1897 Academy graduate and WWI hero. Captain Rice was twice recognized by President Theodore Roosevelt for his maritime skill and bravery. Past honorees have included admirals, captains, CEOs, and leading maritime executives from around the globe. MMA will honor Burdock at its 2024 Salute to the Maritime Person of the Year, taking place on October 26 at the MMA campus in Buzzard’s Bay, Massachusetts.

“Massachusetts Maritime Academy has been an invaluable partner in the development of a skilled, domestic maritime workforce,” said Burdock. “I’m honored to receive this recognition from an organization that dedicates itself to training men and women for careers in the maritime industry, including its intersection with renewable energy. Through its symbiotic relationship with offshore wind energy, the American maritime industry is experiencing a host of new opportunities while enabling a revolutionary clean energy transition. Thank you to MMA for recognizing the importance of offshore wind energy for our nation’s clean energy future and working to empower U.S. mariners with the skills to support it.”

The Academy has shown its leadership in offshore wind by being one of the first schools to offer courses in offshore wind energy. MMA’s Maritime Center for Responsible Energy is one of just a few locations where workers can enroll in the globally recognized Global Wind Organization (GWO) Basic Safety Training (BST) and Basic Safety Training Refresher (BST-R). By the end of 2024, MMA will have trained more than 1,000 people to work in the offshore wind industry.

Burdock co-founded the Baltimore-based Oceantic Network in 2013. With a deep background in policy, she has led Oceantic, launching the International Partnering Forum, the largest offshore wind conference in the Americas; delivered created critical offshore industry products and services, including Supply Chain Connect, the Offshore Wind Market Dashboard, and Foundation 2 Blade training; and remains a thought leader advancing the development of the U.S. offshore wind industry and domestic supply chain.

“We are thrilled to present the Emery Rice Medal to Liz Burdock, recognizing her remarkable impact on the offshore wind industry as she is embodiment of the core values we instill at the Academy – leadership, integrity, business acumen, and a deep respect for the ocean,” said Rear Admiral Francis X. McDonald, USMS, president of Massachusetts Maritime Academy.