Legitimacy, accountability and transparency are fundamental principles to fulfilling the mission of the Global Maritime Forum. The foundation is governed by an independent Board of Directors, who will help to set the direction for future priorities and actions.
Board of Directors
Jan Dieleman, Chair
President, Cargill Ocean Transportation
Jan Dieleman is the president of Cargill’s ocean transportation business based in Geneva, Switzerland. During his 18-year career with the company, Jan has successfully managed businesses in the U.S. and Europe.
Jan Dieleman joined Cargill in 1999 working as a management trainee in Amsterdam. During the next decade, Jan gained considerable experience as a trading manager across freight, grain, and energy markets. He was appointed the head of Cargill’s coal trading business in 2012, and subsequently led Cargill’s North America power and gas unit.
Jan is seeking to drive progress across the maritime industry as well. In 2016, he became a non-executive director of the Carbon War Room, an organization that focuses on the decarbonization of maritime transportation. He has advocated publicly for higher standards and transformation across the industry as shipping plays an increasingly important role in a sustainable global economy. Further to his nomination as President of Cargills Ocean Transportation, he immediately identified sustainable shipping as a foremost priority within the ocean transportation strategy. He is currently leading his team to realize tangible progress under the United Nations framework for sustainable development.
A native of the Netherlands, Jan graduated from the University of Maastricht with a master’s degree in economics, marketing, and organization.
Randy Chen, Vice Chair
Director and Vice Chairman, Wan Hai Lines
Randy Chen has been Vice Chairman at Wan Hai Lines Ltd. since June 2015, and is responsible for the International Business Development functions across different departments.
Randy has been a member of the executive management team and served on the Wan Hai Lines Board of Directors since 2002. Before joining Wan Hai Lines, Randy was a member of the senior management team of the Central Trading & Development Group, a Taiwan-based investor group with extensive infrastructure and real estate holdings in Vietnam. Randy also has extensive experience in software and financial services.
Randy is Wan Hai Lines’ representative for several industry forums including the World Shipping Council and the Asian Shipowners Association. He is a Deputy Chairman and Director at UK P&I Club and member of the Board of Directors of Interasia Lines, NIS Holdings and Commercial Management Limited.
Randy holds a Masters Degree in Business Administration from MIT’s Sloan School of Business as well as a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics and English Literature from Duke University.
Christine Loh
Chief Development Strategist, Institute for the Environment, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Aside from her position at HKUST, Christine Loh teaches at the Anderson School of Management, University of California at Los Angeles, and serves as a board member of the Robert HN Ho Family Foundation, board member of CDP Worldwide, and a member of BASF’s Stakeholder Advisory Council. Her expertise in environmental policy is well-known, including having advised the World Health Organization and International Energy Agency on issues relating to air pollution and public health.
Professor Loh has worked in different areas including law, business, politics, media and the non-profit sector. She was Under Secretary for the Environment in the HKSAR Government (2012-17) and a Member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council (1992-97 and 1998-2000). She founded and was CEO of the non-profit think tank, Civic Exchange (2000-12), and helped to establish several non-profit organizations in Hong Kong related to the environment, equal opportunity, arts and culture, as well as human rights. In 2006, she was named Woman of the Year by Hong Kong Business.
Professor Loh is a lawyer by training, and a commodities trader by profession. She received her legal training in England, her Master in Law in Hong Kong, and received honorary degrees of Doctor of Law from the University of Hull and Doctor of Science from the University of Exeter.
Claus V. Hemmingsen
Chairman, DFDS & Maersk Drilling
Claus Hemmingsen joined the Board at DFDS in 2012 and has since 2017 served as Chairman. He became chairman of Maersk Drilling in September 2016, and before that was the business’s CEO.
Claus Hemmingsen originally joined A.P. Moller – Maersk in 1981 as a shipping trainee. After completing his shipping education, he served in Maersk Drilling’s Human Resource department until 1987 when he moved to Maersk Line. He worked 12 years in both Hong Kong and Singapore and in 2003 returned to the head office in Copenhagen as Senior Vice President for Maersk’s global service delivery activities, while also being CEO of APM Terminals.
In 2005 he took over responsibility for Maersk Drilling and Maersk Supply Service, for SVITZER A/S in 2008 and for Maersk Tankers in 2012. Claus Hemmingsen was CEO for Maersk Drilling until October 2016. In 2019 Claus completed the separation of all Oil & Gas related activities from Maersk, including Maersk Drilling and became Chairman of the now independently listed company.
Claus Hemmingsen was member of the Executive Board of A.P. Moller – Maersk from 2007 and was Vice CEO of the Group from 2016 till 2019. He left Maersk in June 2019.
Claus Hemmingsen has supplemented his education with management courses at London Business School, Cornell University, holds an Executive MBA (honours) from IMD and in 2018 completed an International Directors Programme at INSEAD.
Professor Lynn Loo
Chief Executive Officer, Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD)
Prof. Lynn Loo is the chief executive officer of the Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD), a non-profit organization based in Singapore. Established by six founding partners from the maritime industry and supported by the Maritime & Port Authority of Singapore, GCMD’s mission is to help the sector accelerate its decarbonisation efforts through shaping standards, deploying solutions, financing projects and fostering collaboration across sectors.
Lynn is also the Theodora D. ’78 and William H. Walton III ’74 Professor in Engineering, and Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Princeton University. Before GCMD, she was Director of the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment, where she commissioned the Rapid Switch Initiative and the Net-Zero America Study that has provided unprecedented temporal and geographic granularity on transition pathways. She also founded Princeton E-ffiliates Partnership, a flagship corporate partner program to engage industry and she launched Princeton’s first executive program in partnership with the World Economic Forum to contextualize the complexities of the energy transition for business leaders.
Lynn received BSEs in chemical engineering and materials science and engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and her PhD in chemical engineering from Princeton University. She is co-founder of Andluca Technologies, a startup developing wireless smart window retrofits to increase building energy efficiency and occupant comfort. For the development of this technology, she and her team received the 2020 Thomas Edison Patent Award from the NJ Council of Research and Development. She is a Young Global Leader with the World Economic Forum and a fellow of the American Physical Society and the Materials Research Society.
Michael Parker
Chairman, Global Shipping, Logistics & Offshore, Citi
Michael Parker joined Citibank N.A. in London in September 1977. Michael Parker was recently appointed Chairman of Citi’s Global Shipping, Logistics and Offshore business having been Global Industry Head since 1997 until now. Vice Chairman of Corporate & Investment Banking (EMEA) and Chairman Corporate Banking EMEA.
During his 36 years involvement with shipping finance Mr. Parker has been a regular conference chairman, speaker or panellist. Under his leadership Citi receives recognised industry awards across the different areas of shipping finance and he was named Marine Money’s Dealmaker of the Year in 2012. In March 2015 in New York : Capital Link Leadership Award “in recognition of Michael Parker’s unique and extensive contribution to the shipping industry”. Mr. Parker chaired the London Committee of Intercargo for a number of years and is involved in UK maritime matters as they pertain to finance and served on the Expert Panel advising the UK Department for Transport on the UK 2050 Maritime Strategy. In 2015, 2017 and 2019 he served on the Advisory Board of London International Shipping Week. In 2017 he was appointed to the Board of The Global Maritime Forum. Chairman of the Steering Committee of the Poseidon Principles launched in New York June 2019 and elected first Chairman of the Poseidon Principles Association in 2020.
Oivind Lorentzen III
Managing Director of Northern Navigation LLC. and Director of Dorian LPG
Oivind Lorentzen III is Managing Director of Northern Navigation LLC. and Director of Dorian LPG.
He was President and CEO of SEACOR Holdings from 2010 to 2015 and President and CEO of Northern Navigation International, Ltd. (ship owning and finance) from 1990 to 2010. He was Founding Sponsor of Northern Shipping Funds from 2008 to 2010 and Chairman of NFC Shipping Funds from 2001 to 2008.
From 1979 to 1990 he was Managing Director of Lorentzen Epreendimentos S.A., an industrial and shipping group in Brazil, and Director until 2008. He has served as Non-Executive Vice Chairman of SEACOR and as Lead Director of Director of Genesee & Wyoming Inc. (a short line railroad) and Director of the Era Group Inc (aviation) and Blue Danube Inc (inland river).
Mr. Lorentzen is a member of the Council of Foreign Relations, and a Director of the Global Maritime Forum. He holds a BA in History and an MBA from Harvard University where he is an Advisory Director to the Center for Latin America Studies.
Captain Rajesh Unni
Founder and CEO, Synergy Marine Group
Captain Unni commanded tankers before serving in senior executive ship management positions in the Far East and launching Synergy Marine in 2006.
Renowned for innovative leadership on technology and sustainability, and driven by conviction in rapid evolution from analogue, in 2017 Captain Unni founded Alpha Ori Technologies, of which he is joint CEO. He established its Centre of Innovation, which can remotely monitor, diagnose and control most operational aspects of digital vessels using its patented and ClassNK-approved software, SMARTShip.
Captain Unni is a Class 1 Master Mariner from Mumbai’s LBS College and an alumnus of the Harvard Business School. A totally committed leader, he believes that societal benefit is key, insisting on community alongside corporate value. A creator and a determined philanthropist, Captain Unni sits on the boards of the North P & I Association, the Maritime Anti-Corruption Network, the Asia-Pacific Advisory Committee for major classification societies and the Gandhigram Rural Institute. He is also a strategic thought partner with major change-making network Ashoka, a Trustee of Cochin Cancer Society and a Governor at the Indian Institute of Management.
At home Captain Unni is a family man and a keen marathon runner. At work he is a principal shipping executive, a passionate humanitarian and a vocal supporter of the net-zero emissions ambition by 2050, and has created, leads and drives a major and growing shipping organisation cast in his own image.
Semiramis Paliou
Director and Chief Executive Officer, Diana Shipping
Semiramis Paliou serves as a Director and Chief Executive Officer of Diana Shipping Inc. since March 1, 2021. She also serves as Chief Executive Officer of Diana Shipping Services S.A. She began her career in 1996 at Lloyd’s Register of Shipping as a trainee ship surveyor. She has since gained over 20 years of experience in shipping operations, technical management, and crewing, holding various professional positions throughout this period.
Semiramis also serves on various boards and committees, including the Hellenic committees of DNV, NKK and BV respectively. She also serves as a Director of The UK P&I Club since November 2020 and as of February 2022 member of the Board of Directors of the Union of Greek Shipowners.
Semiramis has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Hellenic Marine Environment Protection Association (HELMEPA) since March 2018 and was elected Chairperson of the above-mentioned Association since June 2020. She also serves as Vice-Chairperson of INTERMEPA since June 2021. Throughout her work at HELMEPA and INTERMEPA, she became a strong advocate for the importance of sustainable development for future generations, in the shipping industry and society as a whole.
Semiramis obtained her BSc in Mechanical Engineering from Imperial College, London, and her MSc in Naval Architecture from University College, London.