Recreational boating and water activities offer recreation and adventure for millions across the globe, yet water safety challenges persist. Preventable accidents, changing environmental conditions, and inconsistent safety awareness demand ongoing attention and practical intervention. Without dedicated cross-industry cooperation, water safety campaigns often struggle to achieve maximum public reach and impact.
The International Boating and Water Safety Summit (IBWSS), presented by the National Safe Boating Council, serves as a global gathering dedicated to solving these challenges. The summit unites safety professionals, educators, government agencies, and industry partners to share research, establish best practices, and introduce life-saving education programs. In this Executive Q&A, we speak with Executive Director Peg Phillips about the summit’s mission, its role in modern water safety, and what attendees can expect from its milestone 30th annual gathering.
Q: The International Boating and Water Safety Summit marks its 30th annual event as a collaborative hub for saving lives. How has the core focus of the summit evolved over the last three decades to meet emerging safety challenges?
Captain Peg Phillips: When you look back over 30 years of the International Boating and Water Safety Summit, what's remarkable is how much our industry has evolved, but our mission has remained the same: saving lives.
In the early years, much of the focus was on boating education, life jacket wear, and regulatory issues. Those priorities are still very much part of our work, but today we're looking more broadly at how we influence behavior, engage new audiences, and measure whether our efforts are actually making a difference.
Technology has changed how people navigate waterways, how they access information, and how we communicate safety messages. We're also seeing new types of recreational activities and participants entering the boating community.
I think one of the most important changes is the recognition that education and awareness alone aren't enough. We have to move people from knowing what they should do to actually doing it.
That's where IBWSS plays such an important role. We're bringing together people who approach water safety from different perspectives, sharing research, challenging conventional thinking, and identifying practical solutions that can be implemented across the country and internationally.
Thirty years is an incredible milestone, but I'm much more interested in what we can accomplish in the next 30.
Q: IBWSS gathers educators, law enforcement, manufacturers, and non-profits from around the world. What makes this multi-stakeholder collaboration so essential for moving the needle on accident prevention?
Captain Peg Phillips: No single organization has all the answers, and no single organization can solve the challenges we face in recreational boating safety.
When you bring together law enforcement, educators, government agencies, manufacturers, nonprofit organizations, and industry leaders, everyone brings something different to the table. Law enforcement sees firsthand what's happening on the water. Educators understand how people learn. Manufacturers are developing technologies that can improve safety. And organizations like the National Safe Boating Council help connect those resources and turn good ideas into national initiatives.
The real value comes when those perspectives intersect. I've always believed that collaboration isn't simply about getting people in the same room. It's about finding common ground, identifying opportunities, and then doing something meaningful with those relationships.
We're all working toward the same goal: reducing preventable incidents and saving lives. When we work together instead of operating independently, we can reach more people, use our resources more effectively, and create a much greater impact.
Q: Attendees can earn up to 13 Continuing Education Units (CEUs) from a Certified Recreational Boating Professional Approved Course Provider. How does formal professional development translate to better safety outcomes on the water?
Captain Peg Phillips: Professional development is critically important because the people delivering boating safety education, managing programs, and making policy decisions need to stay current.
I'm a licensed captain and an on-water instructor trainer, so I understand the value of continuing education from both an operational and leadership perspective. There's always something new to learn, regardless of how many years you've been involved in boating.
The Certified Recreational Boating Professional program recognizes the knowledge, experience, and commitment required of professionals working in this field. I'm proud to hold that certification myself.
At IBWSS, professional development goes beyond earning continuing education credits. Participants are exposed to new research, innovative training methods, emerging technologies, and successful programs they can adapt for their own organizations.
What I find particularly valuable is the opportunity to learn from people who are actually implementing these programs. We can talk about theories and strategies all day, but I want to know what's working, what's not, and what we can do better.
When professionals return to their organizations with new knowledge, stronger skills, and practical tools, that ultimately benefits the boating public.
Q: The Communication Awards are a key highlight at IBWSS. What qualities or strategies define an effective, life-saving water safety campaign in today’s media environment?
Captain Peg Phillips: This is something I'm particularly passionate about because communication is at the heart of so much of what we do at the National Safe Boating Council. The biggest mistake we can make is assuming that because we've delivered a safety message, we've changed someone's behavior.
Today's audiences are exposed to an extraordinary amount of information. Simply telling people to wear a life jacket or boat responsibly isn't enough. We have to understand who we're trying to reach, what motivates them, and what barriers might be preventing them from making safer decisions.
Effective campaigns need to be relevant, relatable, and engaging. Authentic storytelling, strong visuals, and messages tailored to specific audiences are incredibly important. But I also believe we have to get much better at measuring results. Impressions, views, and social media engagement tell us how far a message traveled, but they don't necessarily tell us whether we influenced behavior.
Through initiatives like our national Safe Boating Campaign, we're continually looking for ways to strengthen our messaging, expand our reach, and better evaluate our impact. The Communication Awards recognize creativity and innovation, but ultimately, the most successful campaign is one that helps someone make a safer decision on the water. That's the standard we should all be working towards.
Q: Beyond structured sessions and training, networking events and coffee chats play a central role at IBWSS. What collaborative initiatives or partnerships have emerged directly from these attendee connections?
Captain Peg Phillips: One of the things I value most about IBWSS is that the conversations don't end when the conference is over. In many cases, they're just getting started. IBWSS provides a unique environment where we can introduce a concept, challenge conventional thinking, and bring together people who have the knowledge and resources to move an idea forward.
For example, a discussion about improving boating safety education might generate enough interest to become an initiative of NASBLA's Education and Outreach Committee or lead to further work through the National Boating Standards Panel. What begins as a conversation among professionals can eventually influence how boating safety education is delivered across the country.
The same is true for on-water skills training. We can introduce industry standards and best practices at IBWSS, and a marine dealer attending that session may return home and establish an on-water training program for new boat owners. That's a tangible outcome that can make a real difference.
I think that's where the true value of IBWSS lies. We're not simply sharing information. We're connecting people, encouraging innovation, and creating opportunities to turn ideas into action.
Q: Looking forward to the upcoming summit in Herndon, Virginia, what are the primary goals and takeaways you hope every participant brings back to their community?
Captain Peg Phillips: First, I want people to be inspired. Not simply because they attended a great conference, but because they discovered something they can take home and put into action.
We're celebrating the 30th anniversary of IBWSS in 2027, and we're planning a very special event in Herndon, Virginia, just outside Washington, D.C. The location is intentional. We want to encourage greater participation from federal agencies, national organizations, first responders, and others who play an important role in recreational boating and water safety.
Our goal is to create a program that combines meaningful educational content, practical training, new ideas, and opportunities for collaboration.
I would love for every participant to leave with three things: a new idea they can implement, a new relationship that will help them accomplish something, and a renewed commitment to making a difference.
I'm also excited about the opportunity to reflect on how far we've come as a boating safety community while challenging ourselves to think differently about the future.
Thirty years of bringing people together is worth celebrating. But for me, the real success of IBWSS isn't measured by how many people attend or how many sessions we offer.
It's measured by what happens after the summit, when participants take what they've learned and turn it into actions that make our waterways safer. That's how we make a difference.
This discussion underscores the critical importance of shared knowledge, professional education, and targeted communication in reducing water-related accidents. Meaningful safety advancements require continuous dialogue across public, private, and non-profit sectors, ensuring that proven life-saving protocols reach everyday boaters and water recreation enthusiasts.
As recreational water use grows and safety dynamics evolve, platforms like IBWSS remain vital to fostering international alignment. By bringing together dedicated advocates to exchange insights and recognize effective public campaigns, the summit helps build safer waterways for everyone.
To learn more visit https://www.ibwss.org/
