David Libatique is the Deputy Executive Director of Stakeholder Engagement for the Port of Los Angeles, a position that oversees and manages all communications on behalf of America’s Port® via the Community Relations, Media Relations, Government Affairs, Trade Development, and Labor Relations and Workforce Development Divisions.

In this role, Libatique works with diverse stakeholders, including local communities, organized labor, beneficial cargo owners, terminal operators, international customers, shipping and cruise lines, railroads, the trucking industry, media, and regulatory agencies to advance the Port’s goals and initiatives. He also interacts on a broader scale with an array of local, regional, statewide, and national elected officials and stakeholders.

Dr. Noel Hacegaba is responsible for managing the Port’s day-to-day operations, including commercial services, engineering, finance and administration, human resources, planning and environmental affairs and strategic advocacy.

In recent years, Dr. Hacegaba led the Port’s response to the global supply chain disruptions, directing the Port’s Business Recovery Taskforce and coordinating with industry, labor and government partners to keep cargo moving through the nation’s largest port complex.

In total, Dr. Hacegaba has more than 27 years of public and private sector leadership experience spanning a variety of industries.  He is a graduate of the University of Southern California (USC) and earned a doctorate degree from the University of La Verne.  Dr. Hacegaba is also a Certified Port Executive (CPE) and earned the Port Professional Executive (PPX) and Port Professional Manager (PPM) designations from the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA).

Dr. Hacegaba serves as Chairman of the AAPA Professional Development Board, Vice Chairman of the USC Kendrick Global Supply Chain Institute and Treasurer of the Coalition for America’s Gateways and Trade Corridors and also serves on the Boards of Directors of the Intermodal Association of North America, Marine Exchange of Southern California, University of Denver Transportation and Supply Chain Institute and the Containerization & Intermodal Institute.

Binyam (Ben) Reja is the Global Practice Manager at the World Bank, where he oversees the Transport Global Unit’s knowledge program, technical support to operational units, partnerships, and corporate mandates. Ben has a proven track record of delivering high-impact projects, knowledge programs, fostering internal and external partnerships, and supporting sector reforms and investment across a wide range of countries, from fragile states to high-income nations.  His leadership has been instrumental in operationalizing global strategies in the World Bank’s transport sector portfolio, including aligning with the Paris Climate Accord, supporting supply chain and logistics resilience, and mobilizing private sector and climate financing for transport. He led the establishment of the World Bank’s Global Facility to Decarbonize Transport (GFDT) and the Transport Global Knowledge and Expertise Unit.

Ben previously served as the Regional Practice Manager for China, Central Asia, Mongolia, and South Korea, where he managed a portfolio totaling US$10 billion covering all transport sectors, including railways, regional corridors (connecting Central Asia and Asia), ports, urban mobility, and private infrastructure finance.  Ben holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of California, Irvine, and a B.A. (Honors) in Economics from the University of California, Santa Barbara. He also completed the Executive Education Program at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. He has authored numerous publications and has been a speaker at various international forums.

Charles Kunaka is a Lead Transport Specialist with the Transport Global Practice at the World Bank. He spearheads the organization’s initiatives on freight modeling and regional connectivity and logistics. Charles has extensive experience working across all regions of the World Bank, including South Asia, East Asia and Pacific, Africa, Europe and Central Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, and the Middle East and North Africa. Charles is the author of several influential reports among them, a comprehensive assessment of logistics in Bangladesh, a study on transport integration in South Asia, and the design and operation of international transport corridors. He has an upcoming flagship report on the nexus of transport and food security in Africa. Charles holds a PhD in transport studies from University College London in the United Kingdom.

Dr. Marlon Boarnet is a Professor of Public Policy at the University of Southern California and Director of the METRANS Transportation Consortium. METRANS is the center for transportation research at USC and has partnerships with over a dozen universities worldwide. Boarnet is a renowned authority on urban economics, urban growth patterns, transportation, and regional science. He is an expert in transportation and land use, and has served on the National Research Council committee that authored “Driving and the Built Environment.”

His research focuses on land use and transportation; links between land use and travel behavior and associated implications for public health and greenhouse gas emissions; urban growth patterns; and the economic impacts of transportation infrastructure.