Yngvil Åsheim - Building One Industry Voice for a Sustainable and Efficient Oceans Industry

Reflections on the Challenges and Opportunities Facing the Oceans Industry

Before we dive into the discussion with Yngvil Åsheim, let's set the stage. The oceans industry faces significant challenges that require collaboration and innovation to overcome. One of the bottlenecks for efficiency and transformation in the Industry is the need for a singular voice. If the Industry is to move towards a more sustainable and efficient future, it must come together with one voice. 

Introduction

The oceans industry is a vast and complex field that plays a crucial role in the global economy, with an estimated 90% of the world's trade transported by sea. However, the Industry is facing significant challenges related to climate change, environmental degradation, and the need for greater sustainability. To address these challenges, Yngvil Åsheim, a prominent figure in the oceans industry, believes that the Industry needs to come together with a singular voice. In this article, we will explore the reflections of Yngvil Åsheim on the challenges and opportunities facing the oceans industry and how the Industry can come together with one voice to move towards a more sustainable and efficient future.

Challenges and Opportunities:

The oceans industry faces numerous sustainability, efficiency, and complexity challenges. One of the challenges facing the Industry is the difficulty in abating its emissions. The Industry comprises numerous sectors and players, including shipping, energy production, fishing, aquaculture, and tourism. While many industry bodies cover some sectors rather than others, there is a need for a singular voice representing the Industry as a whole.

Unfortunately, the Industry is characterized by fragmentation and a lack of coordination, with differing opinions on policy and best practices among industry bodies. For example, the International Maritime Organization (IMO), a United Nations agency responsible for regulating shipping, has been criticized for being too slow to act on environmental issues. At the same time, some industry bodies have pushed for more aggressive regulation.

Similarly, there are disagreements among industry bodies on issues such as labor standards, safety regulations, and the use of new technologies. This lack of coordination and consensus can slow progress on important issues and impede the Industry's ability to adapt to new challenges.

Despite these challenges, the development of zero-carbon fuels like hydrogen and ammonia presents opportunities for innovation and growth in the Industry. However, challenges in production and safety remain, requiring collaboration between industry players, policymakers, and researchers.

In addition to sustainability, the Industry must also focus on greater efficiency, collaboration, and regulation. Commercial forces, such as customers and pricing, can also be a hurdle to sustainability goals. The Industry must prioritize sustainability goals while addressing the complexity of the issue.

Building One Industry Voice:

To address the challenges facing the oceans industry, building a singular voice that represents the Industry as a whole is essential. This will require greater collaboration and coordination between industry bodies, policymakers, and other stakeholders.

 It requires creating a joint vision of the Industry and where we are going in the future that can be projected to the world and external stakeholders. It's essential to design this vision together, with all players represented, to ensure that it reflects the Industry's diversity and complexity. This will require a shared understanding of the Industry's challenges, opportunities, and priorities.

Collaboration is crucial to building a singular industry voice. The Industry comprises numerous sectors and players, each with unique challenges and opportunities. To overcome these challenges and seize opportunities, industry players must collaborate, share knowledge, and build on each other's strengths. This collaboration must occur within the Industry and with policymakers, regulators, and other external stakeholders.

To build a joint vision of the Industry, prioritizing sustainability, we can build a common goal that unites all players and helps them work towards common solutions where it matters. i.e., infrastructure, measurements, and digitalization of standard agreements and data.

Fostering a culture of safety and problem-solving is also critical to building a singular industry voice. This includes creating an environment where individuals can discuss difficult issues, solve problems, and learn from mistakes. By prioritizing safety and problem-solving, the Industry can create a more collaborative and cohesive culture that works towards common goals.

Human-centered design is another essential element of building a singular industry voice. By creating easy-to-use and understandable tools, the Industry can prioritize the needs of the individuals using them. Improving efficiency and reducing the likelihood of errors, making it easier to collaborate and coordinate efforts. Especially when the tools and databases are to be used by a wide portion of the Industry, and people rely on them for their day-to-day work and operations.

Conclusion and Call for Action:

The oceans industry faces significant sustainability, efficiency, and complexity challenges. To overcome these challenges and move towards a more sustainable and efficient future, building a singular industry voice is essential. This requires wide collaboration between industry bodies, policymakers, and other stakeholders to design a joint vision of the Industry that reflects its diversity and complexity.

Prioritizing sustainability goals is critical to building a singular industry voice. It can also help with language toward a shared vision. By reducing environmental impact and promoting sustainable practices, the Industry can unite around a common goal and work towards common solutions. Fostering a culture of safety and problem-solving is also crucial, as is focusing on human-centered design to improve efficiency and reduce errors.

Collaboration and regulation practices are also essential to building a singular industry voice. Industry players can develop common standards and practices that promote sustainability and efficiency by working together. Greater regulation can also ensure that the Industry is moving towards a more sustainable and efficient future, but only if it is made collaboratively with the people and companies governed.

In conclusion, the oceans industry must come together with one voice to overcome its challenges and seize its opportunities. By prioritizing sustainability goals, fostering a culture of safety and problem-solving, focusing on human-centered design, and promoting collaboration and regulation practices, the Industry can work towards a sustainable, efficient, and cohesive future. This requires action from industry players, policymakers, and other stakeholders, and we must all work together to build a brighter future for the oceans industry.