WEST 2020
WEST is right around the corner: 2 and 3 March at the San Diego Convention Center! This year’s theme is “Are We Ready for Great Power Competition?”
The conference will kick off with remarks from The Honorable Mark T. Esper, Secretary of Defense (invited), and conclude with a discussion with the nation’s three Sea Service chiefs—Marine Corps Commandant General David H. Berger; Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Michael M. Gilday (invited); and Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Karl L. Schultz. Other keynote speakers include: The Honorable Ellen M. Lord, Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment; Admiral Philip S. Davidson, U.S. Navy, Commander, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command; and The Honorable James F. Geurts, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and Acquisition.
Keynote addresses, panel discussions, and deep dive conversations in dedicated engagement theaters will cover the latest challenges facing our Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard and the opportunities and solutions to address issues such as manning, training, and equipping to meet great power competition; readying the force to win in a fully contested zone; rapidly and effectively acquiring systems; adopting new technology to compete, deter, and win; leveraging information warfare; and much more.
Equally important as the content is the dedicated networking time that WEST provides to connect with industry, military, and government professionals in a location outside Washington D.C.
Naval Institute members receive a discount on WEST registration. Registration for active government and military is FREE. Visit www.westconference.org to register, book accommodations, and check out the full program and happenings.
If you are in San Diego for WEST or local to the area, please join us and other members and supporters on 3 March at the Ultimate Skybox, a rooftop venue in downtown San Diego, for our annual Naval Institute Member Event. Go to www.usni.org/memberevent to register and view details. The 2020 Naval Institute Member Event is made possible with support from L3 Harris Technologies.
New Naval Institute Press Title
Hot off the press is Aircraft Carriers and Seaplane Carriers, published in coordination with the Kure Maritime Museum. Our partner World of Warships referenced this book (in its original Japanese form) when it produced the model of the Japanese World War II aircraft carrier Kaga.
Membership Resolution for 2020
Membership plays a key role in the vitality of the independent forum. Keep your membership current, encourage your friends to join, and add your voices to the debate and discussion advancing the naval profession. The Naval Institute continues to enhance your member benefits with incredibly rich content provided through a variety of products such as Proceedings, the Naval Institute Blog, and the Proceedings podcast. Soon we will be offering Naval History subscriptions in a digital format. We also will be offering several documentaries online exclusively to members throughout the year, so watch your inbox for announcements or visit your Member Account page for additional information.
While on your Member Account page, please take a few minutes to ensure all of your information is correct: address; military status/branch, etc. We continue to work on cleaning our data, and ensuring your information is correct will help us complete this program in a timely manner.