Co-Chair
Joint Ocean Commission Initiative
Admiral James D. Watkins, U.S. Navy (Ret.) served as the sixth Secretary of Energy under President George H.W. Bush (1989-1993) and the 22nd Chief of Naval Operations (1982-1986) and Chairman of the U.S. Commission on the HIV Epidemic (1987-1988) under President Reagan. He was President of the Joint Oceanographic Institutions from 1993-2000, where he established the Consortium for Oceanographic Research and Education, now called the Consortium for Ocean Leadership. In 2001 Watkins was appointed to and chaired the Congressionally-mandated, Presidentially-appointed U.S. Commission on Ocean policy. In 2005, he collaborated with Leon Panetta, chair of the Pew Oceans Commission, to establish and jointly lead the Joint Ocean Commission Initiative, a collaborative effort to implement the recommendations of the two Commissions. Watkins was awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal in 2008 for his distinguished career in public service and the Navy's Distinguished Public Service Award in 2001 for his contributions to the nation in ocean science and technology matters. Watkins is a native of California and a 1949 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy.
