The Sailor's Society is organising Woolly Hat Week. The society, which distributes 15,000 woolly hats to seafarers every year, wants everyone to wear a woolly hat to work to support seafarers who have to work in cold and demanding conditions…

MUCH has been said in recent times about quality and training of crews. Crew shortages have led to those on board being promoted more quickly than might have happened in the past, with knock-on effects on experience in each role.

PIRACY remains firmly at the top of the agenda for the industry this year, and statistics make for grim reading. According to IMO secretary general Efthimios Mitropoulos, who spoke at the Propeller Club this month, on 1 January 2010 there were 12 ships and 299 crew members held hostage, while on 1 January 2011 there were 28 ships and 656 crew members…

THE London Shipping Law Centre is holding the latest in its series of lectures on February 2 at Salans London office. There will be a chance to discuss what opportunities remain to obtain pre-judgment security…

IT has been said that the true test of a vocation is the love of the drudgery it involves. So began Changing Course issue 1, back in June 2001. Nearly 10 years on, Changing Course is distributed to nearly 20,000 shipping professionals each month. We know that some of you are kind souls and read and comment on our efforts and we thank you!

20th FEBRUARY is the date when the ice melts in the Baltic Sea. What every year? Yes, every year! Well, not quite, but thanks to that historical link, 20th February has become the date on which most of the world's shipowners renew their P&I insurance.

Does your boss have good communication skills? Well, according to research from Korn Ferry / Whitehead Mann, only one in five workers think their boss has what it takes…

THERE was a great turnout for the Nautical Institute's seminar in Newcastle which was used to launch the latest edition of the “Mariner's Role in Collecting Evidence” handbook, produced in association with the North of England P&I Club…

AS the IMO Year of the Seafarer draws to a close, we should not forget that over 500 seafarers remain in captivity as a result of piracy. Let's hope that the new year will bring a solution to the piracy problem so seafarers, who are so vital to the world's economies, can sail in safety…