This time of the year always gives a great opportunity to consider lessons learned and set new year’s resolutions for new beginnings. For that matter, Mr. Andrew Stephens, Executive Director, Sustainable Shipping Initiative, makes an assessment of 2021 and shares his message for the new year across the global maritime community.
SAFETY4SEA: How would you briefly describe 2021? What is your assessment?
Andrew Stephens: Fast-paced.
SAFETY4SEA: What were the lessons learned for the maritime industry in 2021 and what to keep for the new year moving forwards?
AS: This year has seen pressure grow from cargo owners and financial stakeholders on decarbonization (e.g., through the recently announced CoZEV), as well as on seafarers’ rights as a result of the crew change crisis. Shipping has stepped up to the COP26 stage to take an active role in taking action for our climate. At the same time, supply disruptions mean we are seeing retailers charter their own vessels, shifting the landscape and increasing public awareness of the maritime industry. Shipping is part of a broader landscape and cannot operate in isolation. The momentum that has built throughout 2021 on shipping needs to continue building.
SAFETY4SEA: Focusing on your area of expertise, what do you think that will be the biggest challenge(s) for the industry in 2022?
AS: Following on from the previous question, 2022 needs to be a year of action. Investment, R&D, and scaling up sustainable solutions are essential to ensuring that shipping can prepare for a world where 5% of all fuel is zero carbon by 2030 and the industry is fully decarbonized by 2050. At the same time, the human element is a key consideration, and ensuring that the industry is prepared for re-skilling and a just transition will ensure that seafarers are able to have a safe, healthy and sustainable career at sea, facilitating global trade and implementing decarbonization strategies at the vessel level.
SAFETY4SEA: What would be the new year’s resolutions for your organization?
AS: The landscape has changed so much in the 11 years that SSI has been active in the maritime industry, and we are seeing so much acceleration and enthusiasm for change.
Our new year’s resolution is to support that and continue pushing the needle on what sustainability means for shipping – ensuring that areas such as seafarers’ rights, transparency and lifecycle management among others are not forgotten.
SAFETY4SEA: What are you looking forward to in 2022? What would you be most glad about seeing changing in the maritime industry next year?
AS: A key area for SSI next year will be continued work on ensuring a sustainable decarbonization for shipping – both through the continuation of our work on sustainability criteria for zero and low carbon fuels to facilitate their use throughout the industry, but also through further research into the idea of circular vessels and reducing emissions from the components, materials, and construction processes. As companies look to plan their fleet transitions and invest in decarbonization, we would be glad to see sustainability considered at all stages of a ship’s lifecycle.
SAFETY4SEA: If you could make one wish for the maritime industry for the year to come, what would you ask for?
AS: One wish would be for a common baseline for sustainable zero and low carbon fuels to be agreed upon, providing the necessary assurances of a fuel’s lifecycle sustainability across environmental, social, and socio-economic sustainability concerns and thus enabling stakeholders across the value chain to make informed decisions.
The views presented are only those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of SAFETY4SEA and are for information sharing and discussion purposes only.
