Miltiadis Varvitsiotis has graduated from Athens College and the Athens Law School. He holds a Masters degree from Harvard University. He has worked as a shipping and business lawyer. Since 2000 he has been elected 11 times as a member of Parliament. He has served twice as Minister of Shipping, as Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs for European Affairs, and as a vice Foreign Minister for international economic relations. He has served in several parliamentarian position including twice as chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Standing Committee.

In 2024 he resigned from parliament and now he is the Chairman of the Skaramangas Shipyard under the new ownership after privatization.

Theodoros Vokos joined Posidonia Exhibitions SA in 2003 and is the company’s Managing Director since 2017. He is responsible for the international shipping exhibition Posidonia and launched the Posidonia Sea Tourism Forum in 2011, which has become the most important event for the cruise industry in the East Med region.

Since 2022, Mr. Vokos is the President of SOKEE, the Greek Exhibition Industry Association, representing exhibition organisers, stand contractors and exhibition centers in Greece.

Mr. Vokos holds an M.A. in International Relations & European Studies from the University of Kent at Canterbury and a Bachelor’s in Business Administration from the Athens University of Economics and Business. Prior to joining Posidonia Exhibitions he served as a Special Advisor to the Secretary General for Industry at the Ministry of Development and as the Public Relations Manager at Unisystems SA Information Technology. Mr. Vokos was a member of the team that launched the “Panorama of Entrepreneurship and Career Development” exhibition and conference in 2008, at Zappeion Megaron, in cooperation with the Athens University of Economics and Business (AUEB). He speaks Greek, German and English.

Captain Iro Gidakou is the Fleet Operations Manager at Maran Gas Maritime Inc., bringing over 18 years of experience in the shipping industry, with a focus on LNG transportation. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Marine Transportation from a Greek Merchant Marine Academy and an MSc in Shipping and Finance from the Cyprus University of Technology. She is currently pursuing an MBA in Shipping.

Since joining the Angelicoussis Group in 2007, Captain Gidakou has achieved several milestones, including becoming the first female Captain at Maran Gas and the first woman to command an LNG vessel in Greece and Cyprus. 

In 2021, she transitioned from a seafaring career to a shore-based role, joining the Angelicoussis Group's headquarters in Athens as a Fleet Operations Manager of Maran Gas Maritime Inc. Being a role model in the industry, she has received multiple awards, including the Young Leader Award by Young Ship Cyprus and was a finalist in the ExxonMobil Power Play Awards.

Aiming to promote women in the maritime industry, and especially career at Sea, Captain Iro Gidakou regularly participates as a guest and speaker at conferences and mentors young professionals in the Shipping sector.

George Youroukos is the Founder and the Managing Director of Technomar Shipping Inc. He has been involved in shipping since 1993 when he joined a shipping Company in Greece. A year later he founded Technomar Shipping. He has been involved in the Container and Dry bulk sectors for more than 30 years.

Technomar today manages a fleet of 97 ships consisting primarily of container as well as dry bulk ships.  

Mr. Youroukos holds a Bachelors degree in Marine Engineering from University College of London University (UK) and a Masters degree in Engineering from Brunel University (UK). He has been appointed chairman of RINA Hellenic committee since 2011.

Leonidas Dimitriadis-Evgenidis, originally from the Cyclades, was born in Athens in 1958. After graduating from a public high school in Attica, he received his first degree from the Department of Economics at the Law School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA). He then pursued postgraduate studies in Transport Economics (MSc in Transport Economics) at the then Polytechnic of Central London (now the University of Westminster) in the United Kingdom.

Since 1976, he has worked as an executive at the Evgenidis Group, where he has served as President and CEO since 1995. In addition to the Group’s shipping activities, he has also been active in Greek coastal shipping, as well as in the fields of industry, tourism, and modern technologies. In 1996, he was elected a member of the Board of the Union of Greek Shipowners, and from 2003 to 2012 he held the position of Treasurer of the Union.

Following the death of Nikos Vernikos-Evgenidis, the second President of the Eugenides Foundation after Eugenios Eugenides himself, he assumed the Foundation’s leadership in 2000 and continues to hold the unpaid position of President of the Administrative Committee of the Foundation to this day. In 2015, he received an award from the Academy of Athens for the exemplary operation of the Eugenides Planetarium, one of the largest and best-equipped digital planetariums in the world.

He served as a member of the Supervisory Council of the National Library of Greece from March to December 2013 and was among the first signatories supporting the creation of the original Triangle of Maritime Libraries, which has since evolved into a much broader national network of Maritime Libraries.

Internationally, he has served as a representative of the Union of Greek Shipowners at UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development). He is a member of the Chartered Institute of Transport and Logistics (M.C.I.T.) and the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers (ICS).

Since May 2018, he has held the position of IMO Goodwill Maritime Ambassador, representing Greece in this initiative of the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The goal of this role is to attract young people to maritime professions and to promote awareness of the IMO’s contribution to global maritime affairs, safety at sea, and the protection of the marine environment.

In his various capacities, he participates in lectures and seminars, including in postgraduate university programs, and supports initiatives for the advancement of technical and vocational education. For his work in this field, he has been awarded the title of Honorary Doctor by the University of Piraeus.

Panos Dikaios is the CEO of ATTICA GROUP, one of the leading ferry operators worldwide, based in Greece. He joined the Group in 2012 and from 2013 until 2023 he served as the Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Dikaios is also a member of the Board of Directors of ATTICA GROUP as well as its subsidiaries.

He has more than 20 years of experience in shipping finance and investment banking. Prior to joining ATTICA GROUP, he held the position of Shipping Manager at the Investment Bank of Greece, responsible for financing and investment banking services to the maritime sector.

Mr. Dikaios is also an elected member of the Hellenic Chamber of Shipping, Board of Directors.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in maritime studies from the University of Piraeus in Greece, and an MBA from the RSM Rotterdam School of Management, in Netherlands.

John Dragnis was appointed as Chief Executive Officer of Goldenport Holdings Inc. in 2012. He also co-founded Oceangold Tankers Inc. a product and chemical tankers specialist that focuses on LR2, LR1 and MR2 type vessels and he was actively involved in setting up and running Golden Yachts, a super yachts construction, management and chartering business. In 2016, he successfully managed to de-list and re-capitalize Goldenport Holdings Inc. which was absorbed by the Goldenport Group.

Today, among other activities, the Group operates a fleet of forty-six ocean-going vessels, nine new Product and Oil Tankers under construction, eleven mega-yachts, three mega-yacht building and refit shipyards in Perama, Greece and one of the largest commercial yacht management platforms in the Mediterranean. John is a Member of the American Bureau of Shipping, Det Norske Veritas, Lloyd’s Register and Bureau Veritas Committees. He is a Member of the Skuld P&I Club Committee. He is also a member of SYBAss, Superyacht Builders Association. He holds a BSc in Business Administration and an MSc in Shipping, Trade and Finance from CASS Business School, London.

Apostolos is an equity Partner with McKinsey & Company with more than a decade of experience in the sector. He advises leading shipping and energy Groups across Europe, Middle East, North Africa and Asia on strategy, transformations and new business development. Moreover, he serves institutional investors and sovereign wealth funds on shaping their strategy and driving transactions. Throughout his career he has led more than 50 engagements across 13 countries and 4 continents.

Apostolos leads the shipping service line globally and has authored several articles focusing of cost excellence and overall transformation of shipping companies.

He holds a Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Patras (1999) and a postgraduate degree (MSc) in Engineering Business Management from the University of Warwick (2000). He is an experienced executive in the maritime sector with knowledge of Mechanical Engineering and Safety Management.

For more than a decade (2002-2015), he served in Ships’ Inspection Directorate of Ministry of Mercantile Marine as a Coast Guard Officer (Engineer), gaining expertise in Flag/Port State controls and inspections (SOLAS, MARPOL, ISM/ISPS, MLC 2006). He participated as a Technical Advisor in the meetings of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), representing Greece in the sessions of the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) and its Technical Sub-Committees.

He possesses in-depth knowledge of the requirements of the International Safety Management (ISM) Code for ships and Offices and has extensive experience in audits of ships and Organizations within the framework of the ISM Code.

In 2015, he transitioned to the private sector, joining Tsakos Shipping and Trading S.A. ιinitially as a Quality and Regulatory Compliance Officer, he was promoted to Deputy DPA in 2017 and has held the dual role of DPA and HSQ Manager from October 2018 to the present day.

Leonidas Karystios embarked on his career journey in 1998 in maritime and been on assignments in United Kingdom, Finland, Greece, South Korea, and China. Most of his work was around  on newbuilding projects for Gas Carriers (LNG and LPG) in Asia.

He joined DNV in 2017, at Piraeus Office where he held various management roles with focus on business development and customer relations.

Currently, Leonidas Karystios is DNV’s  Global Fleet Technology Director for Gas Carriers and member of a team of experienced colleagues driving the developments of the evolving gas carrier segment.

In terms of his educational background, Leonidas holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Naval Architecture and a Master's Degree in Marine Technology from the esteemed Newcastle upon Tyne University.

Vassilis Kikilias is the Minister of Maritime and Insular Policy of the Hellenic Republic. Prior to his current role, he served as Minister for Climate Crisis and Civil Protection (2023– 2025), Minister of Tourism (2021–2023), Minister of Health (2019–2021), and Minister of Public Order and Citizen Protection (2014–2015). He has been an elected Member of the Hellenic Parliament since 2012. Vassilis was born in 1974 in Athens. He is a graduate of Leonteios School of Nea Smyrni. He studied at the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. He is a surgeon specializing in orthopaedics. Alongside his studies where he earned his MSc in Health Care Services Management from the National School of Public Health and later his PhD in Medicine (Magna Cum Laude) by the Faculty of Medicine in the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, he built a notable career in sports, particularly in basketball, playing for teams such as AEK, Panionios, Ionikos, and Apollon Patras, with his participation in the Hellenic National Basketball Team being a particularly distinguished honor. He is married to Jenny Balatsinou and has one son Panagiotis.

Konstantinos Koronakis, was born in 1965 in Athens. He attended the Moraitis School and studied Business Administration at Deree College. While still a student, he joined his family’s company, D. Koronakis S.A., which specializes in synthetic ropes and wire ropes. He was involved in production and advanced his expertise through training across Europe. Leveraging his engineering and R&D knowledge, he developed Kapa Ropes, a pioneering mooring line for the shipping industry. In 2003, he was awarded by the Industrial Property Organization for his invention, the “easy-splice-aid” . Under his leadership, the company expanded into fishing, aquaculture, offshore, yachting sectors and entered the electric cable industry, with the acquisition of Kalodia Xanthis factory. Today, he serves as CEO of D. Koronakis S.A. and President of the Manufacturing Sector at the Piraeus Chamber of Commerce. He is married to Nicoletta Pavlou and has two sons, Dimitris and Pavlos.

Dimitrios Koukas is the Group CEO of Optima Shipping Services Group, a globally recognized maritime leader offering a full spectrum of shipping services and solutions as a trusted, one-stop partner for the industry’s stakeholders.

With over three decades of executive experience across the shipping, logistics, and supply chain sectors, he has consistently delivered strategic growth, operational excellence, and transformative leadership on a global scale.

 Known for his pragmatic and relationship-driven leadership style, he has built long-standing partnerships across the maritime ecosystem, with a focus on operational reliability, responsible innovation, and service excellence.

 He is also a long-standing panelist of the Baltic Exchange, contributing his expertise to one of the industry’s most respected institutions.

 Since the inception of the Greek Shipping Shipbroking Companies Association (GSSCA), he served as Vice President for consecutive years. As of March 2023, he holds the position of President, where he continues to champion transparency, advancement, unity, and social responsibility within one of the world’s most respected maritime communities

Captain George Koumpenas has been with Celestyal Cruises since the company’s inception in 2014.  As Chief Operating Officer, Captain Koumpenas oversees the day-to-day operations of the company’s fleet.

He started his career in the cruise industry in 1987 working on several cruise vessels as deck officer and captain. In 2000, he stepped ashore as Director of fleet operations for Festival Cruises, and in 2004 he joined Louis Cruise Lines as Fleet Operations Manager.

He has served as General Secretary of Hellenic Cruise Ship Owners and Associated Members’ Union (EEKFN) since its founding and has been President of the union since April 2021.

Mr. Evangelos KYRIAZOPOULOS assumed the duties of Secretary General of Ports, Port Policy and Maritime Investments of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy since 08-05-2019 and remains in charge after the issuance of the Presidential Decree 77/2023 according to which the General Secretariat of Ports, Port Policy and Maritime Investments was renamed to General Secretariat of Maritime Affairs and Ports, with extended responsibilities.

He holds a BSc in Economics and Master from the Maritime Studies Department of the College of Cardiff (Wales). Furthermore, he holds a PhD on the general topic of "Ports, Spatial Planning and Regional Development", as well as having authored a post-doctoral dissertation on "Marine Spatial Planning - Blue Economy" at Panteion University. He has served as lecturer at the Hellenic Army Academy and the Panteion School of Public Administration, and has participated as a lecturer in three postgraduate programs (Panteion, University of Crete, NCSR). He has taught maritime, logistics and spatial-strategic planning at the Institute of Public Administration, as well as in public and private higher education institutions, faculties and colleges.

He has worked in the private sector in the fields of maritime research, shipping, banking and maritime journalism. He has furthermore worked as a special scientist in the Department of Planning of the Ministry of Environment and as scientific adviser to ministers in the Ministries of Environment and Maritime. He participated in various committees and working groups of the European Commission, the OECD and Greece on issues related to spatial planning, maritime spatial planning, coastal management, island policy, diving parks, aquaculture, transport networks, industrial parks, tourist areas and urban / regional projects.

He was a special assistant to Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis during his term as Minister of Administrative Reform. He then served in the area of Local Government as Secretary General of the Municipality of Galatsi and as a member of the Board of Directors of the Institute of Local Government of the Central Union of Greek Municipalities (2015-2019).

He has a number of scientific and other publications, with particular interest in the maritime tradition.

Since 2018, George has been the Deputy CEO of the Intermodal Group and at the same time responsible for the Group’s clients’ Financial Advisory department.

Prior to joining Intermodal, he was the Business Development Manager of NJ Goulandris Maritime Inc, following 14 years at the Royal Bank of Scotland – where he last held the title of Senior Director, Ship Finance.

George holds a Bachelor’s degree in Shipping Business Administration and a Master’s degree (MSc) in International Economics, Banking and Finance.

Since 2013, he has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Association of Banking and Financial Executives of Hellenic Shipping, currently holding the position of Vice President.

Panagiotis Laskaridis was born in Athens in 1947.

He graduated from the German School of Athens in 1965.

He obtained a degree in Mechanical Engineering (Diplom-Ingenieur) from the Technical University of Braunschweig in Germany in 1970.

In 1971, he received a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from King’s College London.

In 1972, he obtained a Diploma in Naval Architecture from University College London (Department of Naval Architecture of the British Royal Navy).

In the same year, he also received a Master of Science in Naval Architecture from University College London.

He has been awarded honorary doctorates:

• Honorary Doctor of the Department of Economics at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA)

• Honorary Doctor of the Department of Economics at the University of Piraeus

• Honorary Professor at UCASS, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

He holds the honorary title of Vice Admiral (Ret.) of the Hellenic Navy.

He served as:

• Vice President of the European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA) (2014–2016 and 2019–2020)

• President of ECSA (2016–2018)

He is a Fellow of:

• The Institute of Marine Engineers (UK)

• The Institute of Mechanical Engineers (UK)

• The Royal Institution of Naval Architects (UK)

• SNAME (Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers – USA)

He speaks English, German, French, and Spanish.

Decorations and Honors:

• Grand Cross of the Order of Honour, Hellenic Republic

• Senior Grand Commander of the Order of Honour, Hellenic Republic

• First-Class Medal of Value and Honour of the Hellenic Armed Forces

• Senior Cross of Merit and Honour of the Hellenic Armed Forces

He served in the Hellenic Navy from 1972 to 1975.

In 1977, he founded Laskaridis Shipping Co. Ltd. and Lavinia Corporation, which collectively operate a fleet of 90 ships, and he continues to serve as their CEO to this day.

He has held positions in the following organizations:

• President of the Aikaterini Laskaridis Foundation

• President and Board Member of the mutual insurance association The United Kingdom Freight Demurrage and Defence Association (UK)

• Board Member of the mutual insurance association The Hellenic War Risks Maritime Association (The Hellenic Club)

• Vice President of the Hellenic Maritime Museum

• Board Member of the War Museum of Greece

• Member of the Technical Chamber of Greece

• Member of the Hellenic Committee of Bureau Veritas (French Classification Society)

• Member of the Hellenic Committee of Lloyd’s Register of Ships (British Classification Society)

• Member of the Hellenic Committee of NKK – Tokyo (Japanese Classification Society)

• Member of the Hellenic Committee of DNV (Norwegian Classification Society)

• Member of the Hellenic Committee of RINA (Italian Classification Society)

• Member of the Hellenic Committee of CCS (China Classification Society)

• Honorary Member of the Hellenic Coast Guard Officers’ Retired Club

• Member of the Hellenic Institute of Marine Technology

• Honorary Member of the Hellenic Institute of Naval History

He had three daughters and one son with his late wife, Marilena Coombes (+).

Elina joined Grant Thornton in 2003 and is Partner in Deals Services department. She is a member of CFA Institute, of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Greece and of the Greek Economic Chamber. She also holds a BA in Business Administration (University of Piraeus) and MSc in Banking and Finance (University of Piraeus), as well as she is a CFA charter holder.

Her experience in projects includes valuations for M&A purposes and fairness opinions, as well as valuations for IFRS purposes, Purchase Price Allocations (PPAs) acting either as an independent advisor or as an advisor to the firm’s audit department. Furthermore, she has participated in Due Diligence projects, Business Plan Reviews and Independent Business Reviews. In addition, she has participated in the preparation of the Reports on Listing on the Alternative Market (ENA) of the Athens Stock Exchange.

She was member of Monitoring Trustee team for a Greek systemic bank attending as observer in executive committees mainly in Special 

Handling Committees of the bank (exposures under €5 mil). She was involved in the carve-outs of large banks, as well as in privatization projects. Currently, she supervises Monitoring Officer (MO/CRO) project teams and participates in M&A projects of the department.

Elina is also member of the teams of Valuations and Tourism, Travel & Leisure of Grant Thornton’s network.

Sectors of expertise: food & beverages, constructions, logistics, hotels, airlines, renewable energy sources & financial institutions.

Alexandros Bechrakis is the Managing Director of Digital Realty in Greece. He is responsible for broadening the reach of the company’s data center platform across Southeastern Europe, with a particular focus on Greece—including the recent development of the Heraklion Campus—as well as Cyprus, Albania, and Malta. A major focus of his role is to support Greece's transformation into a digital hub and a key gateway to Europe, leveraging its strategic position at the crossroads of the Eastern Mediterranean, Africa, and the Middle East.

In May 2025, Alexandros was appointed Chairman of the Greek Data Center Association, a newly established non-profit organization aimed at advancing the data center industry in Greece and strengthening the country’s role in the digital economy. Previously, Alexandros served for 11 years as Chief Commercial & Technology Officer at Lamda Hellix, where he played a pivotal role in driving strong revenue growth and customer satisfaction—successes that contributed to the company’s acquisition by Digital Realty.

Prior to Lamda Hellix, Alexandros spent over thirteen years at Cisco, where he held the position of Regional Sales Manager for the Enterprise, Financial, and Commercial sectors. He led teams across several Southeastern European countries, following earlier leadership roles in technical engineering management and marketing at the company.

He began his career at the Computer Technology Institute of Patras as a networking specialist, focusing on the emerging Internet and Intranet technologies of the time, as well as knowledge transfer initiatives bridging together academia and the enterprise sector. Alexandros holds a degree in Computer Engineering and Informatics from the School of Engineering, University of Patras.

Mr. Marios Bougioukas is a Chief Officer of the Merchant Navy and Director of the Department of Logistics & Supply Chain Management at BCA College. He is a graduate of the College’s Business Administration Department and holds two Master’s degrees (an MA in Management and an MBA) from the Business School of London Metropolitan University. He later graduated from the Mediterranean Maritime Academy in Limassol. He also holds the European Certification in Logistics, in accordance with the standards of the European Logistics Association.

At an institutional level, he has served as a Member of the Board of Directors of the Chios Marine Club since April 2022, and of the Board of Directors of the Hellenic Logistics Company (EEL) since February 2023, and as of February 2025 serving as a VP of Operations.

His academic career in higher education began in 2012 at BCA, initially in the Department of Marketing and Communication. Since 2016, he has been part of the Shipping Department, where he currently serves as Director of Development, and since 2022, he has assumed his current duties in the Department of Logistics & Supply Chain Management. He also coordinates the Academic Boards of the College for the Departments of Shipping and Supply Chain Management. Additionally, since November 2024, he has been a lecturer in the course "Leadership and Teamwork" at the Mediterranean Maritime Academy.

His career in the shipping industry began as a Deck Cadet at Aeolos Management S.A. and Neptune Lines, serving on a VLCC and a Car Carrier, respectively. He later worked as Third Officer on cruise ships operated by Variety Cruises. Since August 2024, he has been active in the coastal shipping sector, serving as Chief Mate on vessels of Saronic Ferries.

Mr. Konstantinos Economou has a substantial and diverse experience in the Banking field with specialization in shipping / transportation finance projects for more than 25 years in the national and international environment having worked in positions of trust, in several banking institutions such as the Bank of Nova Scotia, FBBank, EFG Eurobank, Bank of Cyprus,  Piraeus Bank S.A. and currently at Pancreta – Attica Bank as Head of the Shipping Finance Division.

He holds a degree in Economics and Operations Management from Lancaster University of England, and a Master’s of science in Marine Policy (shipping & Trade) from Cardiff University of Wales. He is also a certified economist of the Finance Chamber of Greece and has served the Greek Army as a reserve officer of Finance Trops with the rank of 2nd Lieutenant. He is a member of the Hellenic Ship Financiers Association since 2002, he has been firstly elected in the Board of the association on May 2011. He is currently the General Secretary of the Board.

Angelos Pantouvakis studied Civil and Transport Engineering at the National Technical University of Athens, (M. Eng.) He continued his studies at the UK, M.B.A. and Ph.D. at the Judge Business School, University of Cambridge

He spends more than twenty-five years from the bottom to the very top managerial positions at the professional arena in Greece and abroad in the manufacturing sector ( Food and Pharmaceutical ) and services sector industries (Leading consulting firms, Banking and Health Care, Maritime sector) and is at the present Professor and Dean of the School of Maritime and Industry of the University of Piraeus.

He has extensively published at top tier outlets in the fields of Shipping and Transport Logistics while his work has gained international recognition and received numerous research awards (e.g. Emerald Literati, Springer etc.). Finally, he has been included in the 2% list of top scientists from Stanford and Elsevier for the fields of Logistics and Transport.

Ioanna  Procopiou graduated  from  Bath  University  in  2000  with  a  BEng in Electrical and Electronic Engineering and continued her studies gaining an MSc from City University in Shipping Trade and Finance. In 2018 she became an alumna from Harvard Business School.

In 2003 she joined Dynacom Tankers Management in Glyfada, Greece. In 2010, after heading the Sale and Purchase and Projects activities in Dynacom for 4 years, Ioanna formed Prominence Maritime a company that manages bulk carriers. In addition to the above she is the CEO of Sea Traders.

Ioanna is vice-chairwoman of North of England P&I Association, Vice-President of BIMCO, she is on the board of the Union of Greek Shipowners Association and the Cypriot Shipowners Association.

Sotiris Raptis has been Secretary General ofthe European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA) since 2022. He worked previously as Director for Environment in ECSA and as Senior Advisor in European Sea Ports Organisation. Sotiris was responsible for the clean shipping campaign of the NGO Transport & Environment andworked as MEP policy advisor onenvironment, transport and legal affairs atthe European Parliament. He studied law at the University of Thessaloniki, University of Athens and King’s College London. Sotiris was awarded European Citizens’ Prize 2008 of the European Parliament as member of “G700” blog for promoting intergenerational justice.

Charalampos Simantonis has been President of the Hellenic Shortsea Shipowners Association (HSSA) since 2012.  Prior to assuming the presidency of HSSA, he was a member of its Board of Directors since 2004. He has also been a member of the Board of the Hellenic Chamber of Shipping since 2010, a member of the RINA Shipowners Committee and a member of the BCA Academic Committee, while serving as a member of the Board of the Greek Seafarers' Home.

Mr. Simantonis is the President and Managing Director of the shipping companies Silver Bulk SA, engaged in the management of bulk carriers, and Med Ferry Shipping Co, engaged in the operation of RO/RO and pallet vessels.

Charalambos Simantonis was born in Piraeus and comes from a shipping family involved in passenger shipping. He studied Maritime Economics at the Instituto Univeritario Navale di Napoli.

Ms. Tasiopoulou is the CEO of ThreatScene in Greece and EXELASIS in the United Kingdom. She serves as a trusted security advisor to numerous global figures, as well as members of the Greek Government, while collaborating with intelligence agencies to provide invaluable
support in the field of cybersecurity. Her professional career began at IBM, where she contributed to addressing numerous security incidents. Her name appears in Forbes 2024, and she has been honored with several prestigious awards in the United Kingdom, including:
• Finalist, Women in Tech Excellence 2023 Rising Star Award
• Winner, FDM Every Woman Rising Star Award 2020, sponsored by T-Systems
• Winner, Top 100 Women in UK, sponsored by the Sunday Times
• Winner, Rising Star Award 2019, sponsored by the Sunday Times
• Winner, British Computing Society Young IT Professional of the Year 2018, sponsored by CompTIA
• IBM General Managers Award 2019
• IBM Super-Hero Award 2018

Mr. George A. Tsavliris was born in London. He graduated from Athens College in 1968 and having acquired professional qualifications in Shipping (F.I.C.S., ACI.Arb), he concluded his graduate and post graduate studies in Shipping Law at University College London in 1973, with an L.L.M. degree. In 2009 he was qualified as a Mediator at the ADR Group London and in 2014 was certified as a Mediator by the Greek Ministry of Justice, Transparency and Human Rights.
He familiarized himself with the shipping and salvage sectors from a very early age by being engaged in the family business. George is a Principal at “Tsavliris Salvage Group” and represents the business on both a commercial and environmental basis internationally. He holds the position of Vice Chairperson of INTERMEPA (International Marine Environment Protection Association), President of CYMEPA (Cyprus Marine Environmental Protection Association), which received the “Cyprus Maritime Prize 2007”, as well as member of the Board of Directors of Cyprus Union of Shipowners, Board Member of ECSA (European Community Shipowners’ Associations), Board Member of The Yacht Club of Greece, Board Member of Friends of Hellas Liberty Association and the Jubilee Sailing Trust in the UK and Honorary Chairman of the Tsavliris Cultural Foundation. Furthermore, Mr. George Tsavliris is Member of the Academic Board of Metropolitan College / Solent Southampton University. Mr George Tsavliris was awarded the 2016 Capital Link Greek Shipping Leadership Award, in recognition of his unique and extensive contribution to Shipping and Greece and for his overall outstanding service to the shipping industry made by him individually, as a family and by his company as a Group. In Jan 2019, Mr Tsavliris received the Cyprus Environmental Award on behalf of CYMEPA by the President of the Cypriot Republic Mr Nikos Anastasiades and on March 12th, 2019, Mr Tsavliris was recognized with the Safety4Sea Leadership Award 2019 for his work with CYMEPA and other national & international organizations, toward the protection of the marine environment. On July 1st, 2019, Mr Tsavliris was appointed Non-Executive Chairman of OneGlobal Broking, Greece & Cyprus. Mr Tsavliris is a Founding Member and Vice President of The Propeller Club, Port of Limassol, Cyprus. In March 2024, Mr Tsavliris was elected President of Friends of Liberty Group and the floating Museum SS HELLAS LIBERTY.
In Dec. 2019, Mr Tsavliris published the book, which he co-wrote with Alba University Professor, Paul Emmanuelides, Winning Shipping Strategies: Theory and Evidence from Leading Shipowners. The book was translated into the Greek language and published in March 2021.
George is a frequent keynote speaker and panelist at numerous maritime related conferences. He is an avid supporter of various charities, an art and music enthusiast and has completed ten London marathons. He is a father of six children.

Stamatis Tsantanis is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp. (the “Company” or “Seanergy”) (NASDAQ: SHIP). He joined the Company in 2012 and led its significant growth to a world-renowned pure-play Capesize company listed in the U.S., with cargo carrying capacity exceeding 3.8 million dwt.

Stamatis is also the Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of United Maritime Corporation (NASDAQ: USEA), an independent diversified public shipping company that was initially established as a subsidiary of Seanergy.

He has more than 25 years of experience in shipping and finance and previously held senior management positions in prominent private and public shipping companies and financial institutions.

Stamatis is also a member of the board of directors of Breakwave Advisors LLC, the advisor of ETFMG which is the manager of the NYSE listed BDRY and BSEA and he is also a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers.

Stamatis holds a Master of Science (MSc) in Shipping Trade and Finance from Bayes Business School (formerly known as Cass Business School) of City University in London and a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Shipping Economics from the University of Piraeus.

Born in 1961 in Kampos, Chios, and coming from a traditional seafaring family with deep roots in the sea and fishing boats, it was only natural for me from an early age to dream of a career as a ship captain. From my early school years, I had set my sights on attending the Merchant Marine Academy. After successfully entering the Hellenic Merchant Marine Academy (AEN) and completing my studies during the period 1978–1980, I began my professional career as a Deck Cadet on a 280,000 DWT VLCC with the company S. LIVANOS HELLAS.

I then served on 16,000-ton Liberty-type general cargo vessels, equipped with midship accommodation and traditional cargo-handling gear (booms, winches, derricks). For approximately four years, I worked aboard various cargo ships, gaining valuable experience. Thereafter, I embarked on a long and dedicated career exclusively on all types of tankers, where I devoted the majority of my seafaring life.

Life at sea was not easy—especially during those times, when living conditions on board were harsh (no air conditioning, shared toilets, no private cabins, and much more). Despite the difficulties, I never regretted my choice.

With over 45 years of continuous service in the company of Stavros Georg. Livanos – SUN ENTERPRISES LTD, where I started as a young man and grew professionally, and with 15 years of experience as Master Mariner on tankers, I now continue my journey from ashore, serving as Crew Department Manager at the company’s head office. I take pride in my career, my dedication, and my contribution to the maritime industry, especially within one of the most historic Greek shipping companies.