Seaworthy Conversations: Blue Economy Leadership & Policy

Seaworthy Collective is thrilled to be bringing together experts who have had a hand in developing and implementing policy and thought leadership to guide the future of the Blue Economy. From working with the White House to the UN, we're excited to take a deeper dive into the future of the field! Additionally we'll connect the dots with Seaworthy's own vision for what the Blue Economy should be as we take tangible steps forward launching our first cohort of startups this month!

About Our Panel:

Christopher Coyle

Founder and CEO, Futurist at TAO: Tethra Advisors and Officers

Chris Coyle is an accomplished Executive with diverse cross-functional experience spanning multiple industries over the last 20 years. In March 2017 he began consulting Exocetus Autonomous Systems in CT (Business Development/ Strategic Partnerships/XPRIZE) and after launching TAO (Tethra Advisors and Officers-the Blue Economy and Technology Consultancy) in July 2020, he added clients SeaTrec in CA (Commercial Sales), Nonvoice in FL (Partner Agent for 5G/AR/VR Apps & Distribution) and the Blue Institute Labs in RI (Bus. Dev./Strategy/Partnerships). In addition, he advises TTDNY (Tech Transfer) and NYMIC (Maritime Innovation Center) in NYC, Tech United in NJ, Ocean Exchange in FL and the Stone Soup Leadership Institute in MA. He is also a member of NASEM”s (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine) US National Delegation to the UN’s Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development and UNDOS’ (United Nations Decade of Ocean Science) Artic Ocean Action Plan Group.

On May 8, 2018 he was asked to testify before the U.S. Congressional House Subcommittee on Transportation and Infrastructure in Washington, D.C. on the use of Blue Technology to Improve Efficiency, Performance, Duration and Cost for the Coast Guard. House Resolution (HR 6206): Coast Guard Blue Technology Center of Expertise Act was introduced and passed by the 115th Congress in June 2018. HR 6206 was part of The Save Our Seas Act of 2018, which President Trump signed into law on October 11, 2018.

He is a highly sought after speaker on Blue Technology, the Blue Economy, Ocean Data and Analytics.  Chris has presented at the Consortium for Ocean Leadership in Washington, D.C, the NJ Tech Council’s Climate Change Forum in Hoboken, NJ, the UN’s Ocean Data Challenge in NYC, the Coast Guard’s Blue Tech Expo at the Department of Homeland Security in Washington, D.C., The Maritime Alliance Blue Tech Week in San Diego, CA., the Army Capability Accelerator's Challenge Summit in Brooklyn, NY, the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute (SWFI) Investor Forum in Santa Monica, CA, the World Ocean Council’s SOS Summit in Halifax, CA and G-STIC’S (Global Scientific, Technology Innovation Conference) Inaugural Conference in Europe

Prior to this, he spent 18 years in various executive management roles exceeding revenue goals and delivering growth through sales/biz dev/strategic partnerships, helping take two companies public (Mobile Streams on AIM & MCY Music World on NASDAQ) and selling Muze to Macrovision (acquired by TIVO and then ROVI).

Chris has extensive experience licensing IP and content across multiple media platforms supported by various business models around the world (Comcast NBC, Universal Music, Sony, Warner Bros, Walt Disney/ESPN, Viacom/CBS, Verizon, T-Mobile, Vodafone, Telefonica, Telcel) His reach spans search engines, television/cable operators, mobile carriers and social media platforms. He prides himself on trying to stay ahead of the curve and is constantly pushing himself to learn about emerging technologies and new user behavior.

Sheri Schwartz

Program Associate, Integrated Ocean Observation Committee (IOOC) at Consortium for Ocean Leadership (COL) 

Sheri Schwartz is the Program Associate for the Integrated Ocean Observation Committee (IOOC) at COL. In her role, she supports federal coordination of the Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS), which is the U.S. contribution to the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS), as well as post OceanObs’19-related activities, such as communications, community building, and administrative support for the Observing Air-Sea Interactions Strategy (OASIS), now a programme within the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development. She holds a Master's degree in Marine Biology from Nova Southeastern University's Halmos College of Natural Sciences and Oceanography, where her research focused on assessing environmental risks of microplastics among filter feeders. She also holds a Bachelor's degree in Biological Sciences and Media Production from Florida State University.

Daniel Kleinman

Founder & CEO, Seaworthy Collective

Growing up in South Florida, Daniel was surrounded by & captivated by the Atlantic Ocean. Daniel received his Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Florida, focusing on ocean technology. During his time as an undergraduate, Daniel interned with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution as an Engineering Assistant and became a University Innovation Fellow. After graduating in 2015, Daniel spent two years as a Pilot & Test Engineer for Bluefin Robotics' Bluefin-21 unmanned underwater vehicles in Boston. Daniel spent the following three years in San Diego as a Contractor for the Navy contributing to mechanical engineering research & development for maritime systems.

After five years in the ocean technology industry, Daniel saw a missed opportunity in the lack of infrastructure to support the development of solutions to positively impact the ocean. Combining his passions for ocean science & exploration, innovation & entrepreneurship, & mentorship, Daniel founded Seaworthy Collective in 2020 to empower current & aspiring oceanographic changemakers. Daniel is thrilled to foster a community facilitating the growth of startups in the ocean science & exploration field. Daniel is also pursuing his Master's degree in Exploration Science at The University of Miami's Rosenstiel School for Marine & Atmospheric Science, & was recently recognized as a Miami Global Shaper.