The earth’s oceans play a central role in sustaining life on our planet. They supply the food chain, provide other life-sustaining natural resources, and regulate our global climate. And because they enable shipping that connects people and countries everywhere, oceans facilitate 90% of the world’s trade. Studying, protecting, and preserving our oceans is a vital mission for humanity.
For over 130 years, The Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST) has been working toward that mission—to ensure the world’s oceans and seas are managed and sustained for the benefit of humanity.
IMarEST serves more than 18,000 marine engineers, scientists, and technologies based in more than 120 countries. The Institute offers its members professional recognition in their fields, ongoing education and development, and knowledge sharing with like-minded professionals.
The Institute also plays key roles in the global marine community—for example, as a consulting member of the UN’s International Marine Organisation (IMO), where IMarEST’s members contribute their knowledge to help shape maritime law. IMarEST also helps ensure marine academic programs are held to high standards, by offering accreditation services to marine-related university courses all over the world.
But as the COVID-19 lockdowns appeared increasingly inevitable across the UK, IMarEST feared that much of its important work would be temporarily in jeopardy—because its phone system wasn’t built to support a remote workforce.