Having been a member of the Executive Committee (EC) of the OMAE and then OOAE Division for a number of years, I have had the good fortune of getting to know and work with quite a number of exceptional and dedicated people, that I am proud to call my friends. Serving on this committee has certainly been a genuine pleasure ride on my part, and I have during this time period acquired insights and knowledge that I consider extremely valuable.

I shall enter my last year on the EC by taking over the chairmanship of the Division from Professor Cengiz Ertekin. I consider myself lucky indeed that the Division has had two very able leaders since the merger between the OMAE and the OE Divisions. First Professor Stephen Liu, after having served for two years as the Chair of the OMAE Division, did us all a great service by accepting to serve as Chair for an extended tenure of two more years to consolidate the situation after the merger and to develop the new division. We all owe him a great tribute for his superb work. Under the leadership of Cengiz Ertekin, the Division has also moved ably into the internet age. We now have a very attractive home page, giving the visitor the opportunity to explore the Division and its services. Cengiz has also been instrumental in finalizing the Bylaws of the new division, developing the ‘interface’ with ASME and new exciting web tools. The standard set by these two leaders, and their predecessors, can only serve as an inspiration and a goal to strive for. In this light, it is reassuring for me to know that I have an extremely able EC to rely on and to work with to further develop the Division toward what we would all like it to become – the first choice among our professional peers as well as the budding ocean and offshore engineer.

The following slate of elected officers for the EC of the OOAE Division will serve the members during the term July 1, 2002 through June 30, 2003:

OOAED’s Executive Committee Members for the Period 1 July 2002 - 30 June 2003

              I addition to the new EC, the Division is also fortunate enough to be able to continue to draw on the expertise and advice of a number of truly dedicated and knowledgeable individuals, who have served the Division and its members for many years, and who’s contributions to us all are impossible to overrate. They are Subrata Chakrabarti, Denby Grey Morrison, Mamdouh Salama, Carlos Guedes Soares. Without hesitation, I would claim that the annual OMAE conference series owe its status as a world leading ocean and offshore engineering conference largely to these people.

            The main purpose of the OOAE Division is to promote the ocean, offshore and arctic engineering profession by serving its members well. In an effort to achieve this, I shall focus in particular on the following issues:  

             I close my message by urging all members to get involved in the Division and OMAE conference activities, if you have not already done so. This can be done on many levels, depending on your situation. This is your Division, and it is totally dependent on the work of volunteers. It simply cannot reach its goals without the involvement of its members. Please realize that you really help yourself by helping us. Our common goal is a professional community we are proud to be part of.

 A. Naess