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Equality

Women in maritime celebrate 50 years of solidarity

29 July 2024

Nautilus has congratulated the maritime women's association WISTA on its 50th anniversary – by sponsoring a special Golden Jubilee event at the International Maritime Organization (IMO) headquarters in London.

A packed conference in the UN agency's main hall saw expert panellists covering topics such as maritime media, decarbonisation, alternative fuels and environmental, social and governance standards.

The 'business' part of the day was followed by a reception where awards were given to WISTA's Woman and Man of the Year for their exceptional contribution to the maritime industry and championing women in maritime. The awards were presented by IMO secretary-general Arsenio Dominguez.

The Woman of the Year is Nusrat Ghani MP, who was a maritime minister in the UK government in 2018 and 2019 and has maintained her interest in and support for the industry ever since.

The Man of the Year is Guy Platten, secretary general of the International Chamber of Shipping, who gave a powerful speech at the conference on the importance of supporting female seafarers – such as his own daughter.

A Special Commendation was given to Katy Ware, director of maritime safety and standards and permanent representative of the UK to the IMO.

The Nautilus delegation to the conference included Council member Captain Jessica Tyson and director of communications, campaigns and digital Helen Kelly. Ms Kelly said: 'We are strong supporters of WISTA at Nautilus, and were proud to be a Silver Sponsor for the 50th anniversary event.

'The organisation – whose full name is Women's International Shipping & Trading Association – started off in the 1970s as a business membership body for women in shore-based maritime services. However, in recent years, we have seen female seafarers joining WISTA's ranks, and we're keen to encourage more Nautilus members to contribute their front line experience to WISTA's work.'


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