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Jill Heinerth to Present Closing Session at Risk Management Educational Forum

Jill Heinerth, a world-renowned underwater explorer and cave diver, will be the closing speaker at the 31^th Annual Risk Management Educational Forum. During the session, she will share her experiences, including dangerous dives into underwater caves and emphasize risk assessment, preparation for the unknown, teamwork in crises, and resilience when things go wrong “beneath the surface.”

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More people have walked on the moon than have visited the places Heinerth has explored here on Earth. From underwater lava tubes to caves inside icebergs, her career has unfolded in places where certainty does not exist and every decision matters. In the closing session, Heinerth will share lessons from decades of extreme exploration, showing how to succeed when the path ahead is uncertain. Through stories and practical insights, she will highlight how adaptability, clear communication, and resilience can transform risk into opportunity and help teams perform under pressure.

Heinerth is a writer, photographer, and filmmaker, widely considered one of the most accomplished technical divers in the field. Her work spans television, film, and publishing, including series produced for PBS, National Geographic Channel, and the BBC. Jill has authored several books and produced documentaries that chronicle her experiences in some of the world’s most extreme environments.

This year’s Forum, titled Beneath the Surface—Dive Into Risk Management, will be held at the Monterey Conference Center in downtown Monterey from October 7 through 9, 2026. For questions about the Forum, please send us an email.

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