Maritime disaster economics and port recovery expert joins Crisis Lab's Advisory Board to strengthen its programs and intelligence products.

SHERIDAN, WY, UNITED STATES, September 8, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Crisis Lab has appointed James Merten to its newly established Advisory Board. Merten joins as a strategic adviser, contributing senior peer review on intelligence products, guidance on programs and products, and introductions across his maritime and emergency management network.

Merten is the Founder and Principal of The Merten Group, LLC, a maritime crisis management consulting firm based in Portland, Oregon. He previously served with the U.S. Coast Guard at Sector Columbia River, where he coordinated Marine Transportation System recovery and port reopening and chaired the Oregon Federal Executive Board's Crisis Continuity Coalition Committee. He is an Adjunct Professor at Clackamas Community College and is completing a PhD in Economics at the University of Antwerp, with research focused on the economic effects of marine disasters on ports and supply chains. Merten developed the Port Recovery Index, a framework that assesses a port's absorptive, restorative, and adaptive capacities after disruption.

In his advisory capacity, Merten will review pre-publication products from the Intelligence by Crisis Lab line, advise on program and product development within his domain expertise, and make introductions to institutional partners and qualified subject matter experts.

The Advisory Board provides independent guidance on program and product development, institutional partnerships, and the alignment of Crisis Lab's offerings with practitioner needs.

About Crisis Lab
Crisis Lab is a crisis management intelligence and professional development platform, reaching 57,000+ professionals globally through its intelligence publications, practitioner-taught courses, podcast, and newsletter. For more information, visit crisislab.io.

Kyle King
Crisis Lab
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