Championing Professionalism and Safety at Sea

High-quality continuous professional development (CPD) is the basis for professionalism in the maritime industry.

Last Tuesday, we were pleased to welcome in our offices the safety team from the UK’s Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) as part of their annual CPD programme.

As ever, safety across all aspects of seafaring continues to evolve, with best practices often emerging from specialised areas and finding application across the wider maritime sector.

Captain Aly Elsayed AFNI shared insights from our Ocean Project research, focusing on the role of Safety II, an approach that identifies and builds on positive outcomes and examples of best practice, rather than focusing on incidents in which a blame culture often prevails.

Captain Chris O’Flaherty AFNI then explored how The Nautical Institute plays an influential role at the International Maritime Organization (IMO), helping shape global regulations to support the best possible outcomes for the maritime industry. He followed this with an open discussion, drawing on personal experiences of navigating safety challenges both at sea and during his time leading underwater bomb disposal teams.

Olly Alexander, Head of Safety at the RNLI, reflected on the visit:

“We came up with the RNLI safety team from Poole and although we were unsure what we were going to get from the visit, it has been absolutely superb in terms of understanding what the role of The Nautical Institute is and how you represent the interests of professional mariners through the IMO and other organisations. And I think what we are particularly pleased about is the understanding that we have two organisations with a common goal: to improve the safety of people at sea.”

At The Nautical Institute, we are committed to creating every opportunity to support the professional development of seafarers and empowering the next generation of maritime leaders.