New Orleans – December 31, 2010. Senator Bob Graham, Co-Chairman of the National Oil Spill Commission, has been confirmed as the Opening Keynote Speaker at the Gulf Coast Leadership Summit. Senator Graham will speak at 9:00 a.m. on April 19, 2011, the first day of the event.
The Summit, to be held April 19 – 21, 2011 in New Orleans during the first anniversary of the BP oil spill, will provide the latest information on the ongoing impact of the nation’s worst oil disaster and provide strategies for for the economic recovery of the U.S. Gulf Coast.
Graham is the former popular two–term Governor of Florida and served for 18 years in the United States Senate. Senator Graham is recognized for his leadership on issues ranging from healthcare and environmental preservation to his ten years of service on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence — including eighteen months as chairman in 2001–2002. After retiring from public life in January 2005, Senator Graham served for a year as a senior fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. From May 2008 to February 2010, he served as Chairman of the Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism whose mandate was to build on the work of the 9/11 Commission.
President Barack Obama established the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling through Executive Order 13543 on May 21, 2010. The Commission has been examining the relevant facts and circumstances concerning the root causes of the Deepwater Horizon explosion and developing options to guard against, and mitigate the impact of, any oil spills associated with offshore drilling in the future. This includes recommending improvements to federal laws, regulations, and industry practices. The Commission’s findings and final report will be submitted to the President on January 12, 2011.
Defense
Energy
Homeland Security
Gulf Coast
Disaster Response
Clean Technology