ERIC GREEN
CEO, JACKSONVILLE PORT AUTHORITY, JACKSONVILLE
JaxPort is Florida’s largest container port, a top U.S. vehicle port, and the only port in Florida able to move U.S. military cargo for national security initiatives. Cargo activity through Jacksonville’s seaport supports 258,800 jobs and $44 billion in annual economic output for Florida. Green joined JaxPort in 2005 and was named CEO in 2017. “Our most recent economic impact numbers show that the jobs supported by cargo activity through Jacksonville’s port has grown double digits over the last 5 years,” he says. Green is a long-time board member of the YMCA’s Tiger Academy, which provides education and resources to deserving children, including many who live in the same north Jacksonville neighborhood where he grew up.
EDUCATION: St. Andrews Presbyterian College (BA)
FIRST JOB: I began my career in the city of Jacksonville’s State Attorney’s Office and have had the privilege of being a lifelong public servant ever since.
DREAM ALTERNATE CAREER: College basketball coach
HOBBY: I am a novice saltwater aquarium enthusiast.
MENTEE IMPACT: My wife April and I once ran a travel basketball organization that gave inner city teenagers the opportunity to experience different parts of the country through sports. We were able to use basketball as a tool to teach the teens essential life lessons, like responsibility and the value of hard work and earning an education. My godson participated in the program, and I am proud to say he went on to earn a four-year degree from Ole Miss, was drafted into the NFL and played football for the Carolina Panthers.
