Port of Alaska in Anchorage
Port of Alaska in Anchorage

Port of Alaska Director Named Chair of IAMPE Advisory Board

Published: February 9, 2023

THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MARITIME AND PORT EXECUTIVES
www.iampe.org
For Immediate Release: February 2, 2023
Contact: IAMPE 207.741.7000

The Advisory Board of the International Association of Maritime and Port Executives (IAMPE) named Steve Ribuffo, Director of the Port of Alaska, the new Chairman of the IAMPE Advisory board at its most recent annual meeting. Capt. Kevin Kiefer, Chief for the U.S. Coast Guard Office of Waterways and Ocean Policy at Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington, DC, was named as the Advisory Board’s Vice Chairman at the same meeting.

Steve Ribuffo, AMPE, is the Port Director of the Port of Alaska. In this capacity he is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day business operations of the Port; interacting with tenants, the U.S. Coast Guard and other branches of the military, and new business prospects for the Port. He has been with the Port since August 2007, when he came aboard as Deputy Port Director. He has been the Port Director since June 2015. Steve retired from the United States Air Force as a Colonel, having served 30 years on active duty. A native New Yorker, he graduated from Manhattan College with a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing. He also has an MBA from Golden Gate University and a Master of Science degree in Logistics Management from the Air Force Institute of Technology.

Steve is a member of the Anchorage Economic Development Corporation Investors Council. He is the Alaska Representative on the Association of Pacific Ports Executive Committee. Steve is a certified instructor for the IAMPE. He also serves on the University of Alaska – Anchorage’s Global Supply Chain Management curriculum advisory committee and is a UAA adjunct professor for Logistics and Supply Chain Management.

Capt. Kevin Kiefer, AMPE, assumed the position of Advisory Board Vice Chairman at the most recent IAMPE Advisory Board annual meeting. Captain Kiefer is responsible for Ocean and Transportation Policy, Waterways Management, Great Lakes Pilotage, Domestic and Polar Icebreaking, and International Ice Patrol. He develops national policy for Captain of the Port (COTP) authorities, Marine Transportation System (MTS) goals, and other issues such as harmonizing waterways usage with autonomous vessels, marine events, and waterborne space launch and reentry operations. He also supervises the administration of the Great Lakes Pilotage program and serves as the Designated Federal Officer for the Great Lakes Pilotage Advisory Committee. Additionally, he is also the Coast Guard representative/liaison to the U.S. Committee on the Marine Transportation System, Marine Board, Transportation Research Board, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Previously, Captain Kiefer was the Director of Manufacturing for the Maritime Applied Physics Corporation (MAPC) in Baltimore, Maryland, a research, engineering, and manufacturing company that conceives and builds land, air, and sea vehicles and advanced technology systems. Prior to his time with MAPC, he served 30 years with the Coast Guard which included assignments as Deputy Director of Marine Transportation Systems at Coast Guard Headquarters; Chief of Staff, First District in Boston, Massachusetts; and Captain of the Port, Sector Maryland-National Capital Region in Baltimore, Maryland. He holds a Master of Engineering in Manufacturing and a Master of Science in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering from the University of Michigan, and a Bachelor of Science from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy.

The IAMPE is a non-profit industry association that provides professional development for coastal and inland port and terminal managers and executives. Programs are reviewed and approved for certification by the IAMPE’s Board of Advisors, comprised of 20 industry professionals. The Association offers professional and accredited programs in Coastal and Inland Port Management and Executive Management, as well as certification programs for Marine Terminal Operator and IMDG/Hazardous Awareness. The Association has over 2,600 alumni worldwide and is the only Association offering professional certification to port managers across the globe.