This team presented Washington with options to both expand trade and stop invasions of exotic species and pathogens by explaining available tools and management methods. It also identified global climate change’s impacts on Great Lakes international shipping. The team briefed the Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C., the St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, the Great Lakes Congressional caucus, and the House Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation. Interest centered on a practical solution to the problem of ship-vectored introductions of aquatic invasive species, with questions focused on technical aspects of treatment systems and the potential risks posed by coastal and inland vessels. The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation used the team’s work to inform the Senate version of new ballast water legislation. Beyond all this, team members reached interested parties in a webinar and conducted interviews with print, radio and Internet media outlets including the Associated Press.