Ocean Innovation Conference

Organized by: UNCW Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) and the Alliance for the Blue Economy (All Blue) “Preserving, protecting, and restoring our waters are tasks for many lifetimes, and sometimes the effort can seem overwhelming. But as long as we stay connected with all of the many, many blessings that water provides, and continue to keep that love in the forefront of our minds and hearts, as long as we remind ourselves to hope, then our stories will help connect others to water and encourage them to do what they can to help care for this beautiful Blue Marble world.”
― Wallace J. Nichols, Blue Mind: The Surprising Science That Shows How Being Near, In, On, or Under Water Can Make You Happier, Healthier, More Connected, and Better at What You DoThought leaders, innovators, and change makers will gather at the Ocean Innovation Conference to learn, explore, and vision new solutions for our ocean and waterways.From climate change to overfishing to pollution, many problems must be addressed to protect our ocean. Entrepreneurs, universities, and governments are focusing on “what’s next” in protecting the ocean.

But even greater than that, we must protect our ocean and waterways to protect our community and the happiness, creativity, and romance that water provides for us as individuals.

Attend this conference to explore how those in Southeast North Carolina and others are embracing the opportunity to protect our ocean. We will reflect on current ocean trends and challenges, grow the local economy and improve livelihoods by protecting the ocean and increasing innovation. Throughout the day, there will be discussions of our blue ecosystem in the region, advancements in ocean-based innovation and technology, opportunities for investment in these innovations, and endeavors to preserve the precious resources of our oceans.

Conversations will touch on our region’s efforts to build our blue ecosystem, policy and infrastructure challenges and opportunities, new ocean-related innovation and technology and how to fund these innovations. You’ll have a chance to meet startup founders, nonprofits, and support organizations first hand at the Innovation Fair.

An optional second day is available (at no cost!) this year for those who want to delve into issues related to living along the coast.

CIE is excited to offer the Ocean Innovation Conference in 2024! If you had a chance to participate in our SOLD OUT 2023 Ocean Innovation Conference, these are some of the changes that you will see:

• More Innovation Fair participants – so you can meet more innovators
• More time to ask panelists questions – ask and explore each of the topics
• More networking time – meet new people and potential new partners
• More days – second optional day for a deep-dive into Coastal Resiliency! (space is limited; for info, scroll down this page)
• More sustainable event – as a champion for sustainability, Ocean Innovation Conference is now a “Gold Talon” UNCW Sustainable Event.

At CIE, we deliver “more” so you can do more innovating and changemaking!

At the Ocean Innovation Conference, hear from diverse and inspiring speakers providing actionable insights. Two keynote speakers will be featured:

Mark Huang

Mark Huang is a co-founder of SeaAhead, an early mover innovation platform focused on ocean sustainability, led the effort to stand up General Electric’s cleantech corporate venture efforts and was a founding partner of Novus Energy Partners, a 2008 vintage US-European cleantech VC fund.  Mark has also worked in shipbuilding as a naval architect and he is currently an advisor to Fathom Science, a recent NC State meteorology and oceanography (metocean) digital twin spin-out.  In the public service sector, Mark served a term as the Economic Development Director for Providence, RI.  Here, he deployed an urban food strategy and introduced the concept of a bluetech economic cluster for the Ocean State.  Mark also served for 13 years as an officer in the US Army Reserves and was mobilized in 2003 to Baghdad where he focused on nation-building.   He is a US director of Alfanar, the only venture philanthropy non-profit focused on the Arab world, and Tern, a Taiwan-based urban mobility company.  Mark is also on the  Board of Visitors for UNC’s Institute of the Environment in Chapel Hill, NC.

Mark holds an MBA and Masters of International Affairs from Columbia University and a BS in Naval Architecture & Marine Engineering from Webb Institute.

Susan Casey

Susan Casey, author of New York Times bestseller’s Voices in the Ocean, The Wave, and The Devil’s Teeth: A True Story of Obsession and Survival Among America’s Great White Sharks and is the former editor in chief of O, The Oprah Magazine. She is a National Magazine Award-winning journalist whose work has been featured in the Best American Science and Nature Writing, Best American Sports Writing, and Best American Magazine Writing anthologies; and has appeared in Esquire, Sports Illustrated, Fortune, and Outside.