Canadian Maritimes Section

Leadership

 All terms end June 30, 2026 

Chair: Joseph Pratt - Jasco Applied Sciences

Joseph Pratt is a lifelong ocean lover which led to a pursuit of a Bachelors and then a Masters degree in Marine Biology.  In 2013 he began his career in marine technology by joining the Ocean Tracking Network, a global acoustic telemetry aquatic animal tracking project, as a field technician.  After five years with OTN he moved into management, and supervised the field operations team. Currently, Joseph is at JASCO Applied Sciences as a Mooring Technician. 

Vice-Chair: Brendal Townsend - Clean Foundation

Brendal Townsend is a distinguished leader in ocean technology and marine science, with extensive experience driving innovation in the blue economy sector. Currently serving as Senior Program Manager for Clean Foundation's Coastal and Climate Resilience initiatives, she brings her expertise to addressing critical environmental challenges. Previously, as Senior Director at the Marine Technology Society, she spearheaded the Ocean Enterprise Initiative and led the prestigious Dialogues with Industry program, fostering crucial partnerships between NOAA and GOOS. With a career spanning artificial intelligence, marine technology, and conservation biology, Brendal has demonstrated exceptional ability in managing complex, large-scale projects and building strategic partnerships. As the former Director of Artificial Intelligence at Ocean Supercluster, she played a pivotal role in developing and implementing AI strategies for ocean technology advancement. Her tenure at Innovasea and the Ocean Tracking Network showcased her expertise in marine research and technology deployment, where she managed global fish telemetry networks and led groundbreaking research initiatives. Brendal's academic background combines marine management expertise from Dalhousie University with specialized training in fisheries management from Oregon State University. She has further enhanced her leadership capabilities through executive education at Harvard Business School and AI for Business Leaders at the Wharton School of Business. A bilingual professional fluent in English and Spanish, Brendal has consistently demonstrated success in securing substantial funding for research initiatives and managing multi-million-dollar budgets. Her commitment to advancing sustainable ocean enterprises and fostering climate resilience has made her a respected voice in the field. She brings strength in program management, stakeholder engagement, and strategic planning, with a proven track record of delivering impactful results in both academic and industry settings. 

Secretary: Alfred White - Nova Scotia Community College

Current Oceans Technology faculty at the Nova Scotia Community College (NSCC), Alfred White teaches the graduate certificate program that includes several courses to that give students hands-on field/work experience.  Some of those courses include Seamanship, AUV & ROV’s, Navigation, Sampling Systems, Acoustics, Field Camp. Internship, as well as project related learning.  He is also a graduate of he NSCC, taking the Geomatics Engineering Technologist program back in the mid 90’s to then head to Louisiana and work offshore, supporting mostly the oil and gas sector in different survey roles. Before joining the NSCC, Alfred held a position of project manager C&C Technologies / Oceaneering.  In this capacity, he worked in various parts of the world such as USA, Mexico (Gulf of Mexico), Brazil and Asia.  The type of work started out as marine construction where later on there were years doing environmental monitoring projects for national oil companies, working with the C-Surveyor AUV both as an operator and technician and finally as the project manager running several rig move operations in the Gulf of Thailand. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with his family with things like hunting and fishing.  This passion has led to working a local non-profit group (Pictou County Rivers Association) since 2008 and helping in various roles on the executive.