Page 10: of Marine News Magazine (March 2026)

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Insights

Aimee Andres, Executive Director, IRPT

Built on the Rivers

Aimee Andres and the Expanding

Role of America’s

Inland Ports

ANDRES i t b t t t t ti For Aimee Andres, the nation’s inland rivers are not an abstract transportation network or a policy talking point. They are personal. Growing up, she spent her formative years around ports, terminals and railroads, watching firsthand how freight moved and how quietly essential inland infrastructure is to the country’s economic engine. That upbringing ultimately led her to a role she has now held for more than a decade: Executive Director of Inland Rivers, Ports & Terminals (IRPT). Over the past 13 years, Andres has helped transform IRPT from a relatively small, inland-focused association into a national advocate for freight mobility, infrastructure investment and supply chain resilience.

10 | MN March 2026