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Marine &
Oceanographic |
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A Message
from the President: MOTN GOES NATIONAL This year we are hoping to expand our membership over the century mark. In pursuit of this goal, the Board of Directors has recently voted to open membership to companies from the entire U.S. As a positive result of hosting two Marine and Port Security Workshops in Newport, RI and Avery Point, CT in 2003 and our very successful biennial Ocean Technology Workshop, which attracted attendees from overseas as well as from around the country, MOTN leadership had been approached by a number of these companies about the possibility of becoming MOTN members. After considerable discussions at the Board level, we put the question to a vote and the motion carried overwhelmingly. To synopsize the “pro” arguments of the Board, the benefits to the organizations are: · Increased political and economic clout --- membership numbers will catch the attention of state and federal delegations and potentially result in more economic assistance for all members. · Increased opportunities for smaller members to market their products and capabilities to larger members within MOTN. · Increased possibilities for MOTN-hosted events (e.g. OTW’s) in other marine tech hot-spots like Houston, San Diego, South Florida etc. · Increased participation in collaborative proposals to Federal agencies such as DoD, Dept. of Homeland Security, NOAA, EPA et. al. · Increased membership also translates into increased financial income to pay for the expenses of MOTN incurs. The companies outside the New England area recognized that
MOTN does not currently have the resources to be a political or economic force in their
home states at present. However, MOTN’s goal is that local chapters of MOTN can be
established and area membership increased to the point where the chapter reaches critical
mass and becomes a significant force. Sincerely yours, Hugh A. Murphy |
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