It’s high time the IMO (International Maritime Organization) spearheaded a campaign for gender equality in shipping by launching a Maritime Woman of the Year awards programme. There’s an IMO Seafarer of the Year Award and Exceptional Bravery at Sea Award. Why not one for maritime women? Many of them have been helping advance seafarers’ education, maritime safety, the protection of the marine environment and shipping commerce itself. Time to highlight their contributions – and correct the gender imbalance that persists in the male-dominated maritime world.

We have a personal reason for pushing the idea. We are in awe of women in general. They are more complex than men. They are not one-dimensional. Being free from the male tendency to constantly validate oneself, they can be a joy to converse with. Women in shipping are certainly no less intelligent than their male counterparts. We see this in the case of Intertanko managing director Katharina Stanzel and others whom we’ve featured in our ‘Portraits of maritime women’ series. There are countless others whose lives and careers exemplify what women are capable of, what heights they can reach.

By bestowing the Maritime Woman of the Year award on the best, IMO shall have signaled a new era in international shipping. And it shall not want for candidates. ~Barista Uno

NOTE: Image shown is a reproduction of ‘Femme à la Fenêtre’ (Woman at the Window) by Spanish painter Pablo Picasso (1881-1973).