BIMCO Seascapes resumes in 2005 with a six month programme designed to provide a concise and accessible introduction to the shipping industry. Ideal for teachers, students and others interested in this fascinating global industry. Seascapes offer a unique insight into modern merchant shipping, its technology, people and the issues which confront it in 2005. As with previous Seascapes, four separate components are provided each month - available on the BIMCO Website.
Maritime Matters will reflect the variety to be found in the shipping industry, with interesting articles on the transport of oil from ice-bound Russian ports, the daily life of a cadet at sea, the new generation of giant diesel engines now entering service, the astonishing growth of China's merchant marine, the challenges of keeping terrorists away from shipping, and the role of the Coast Guard in the 21st century
Ships that Serve Us will provide an insight into the amazing specialist ships to be found in the world fleet today. The next six months will see information on dramatic new technology being harnessed for the latest LNG carriers, ferries designed to carry a mix of rolling freight, cars and passengers, a breed of cruise ships that seek out unconventional destinations, special ships that have evolved to "plant" wind turbines on the sea bed, floating oil and gas production units, and a ship designed to clean up oil accidentally spilt at sea.
Questions of Shipping set out to provide clear answers to commonly asked questions about shipping today. The new programme will ask whether people who make mistakes at sea should be criminalised, if lighthouses - signposts of the sea since classical times - are redundant, why there are not more women seeking sea careers, whether ferries in the developing world can be made safer, what new "goal-based" standards of ship construction might mean and whether shipping should be subsidised.
Sea View offers a contemporary insight and a professional opinion on issues of the moment. The next six months will see views offered on present port congestion problems, a better balance between environmental protection and the needs of industry, sea "congestion" as windfarms are established offshore, the need for a new generation of shipping writers, a maritime future for an expanded Europe and an explanation of marine mutual insurance.
