Dear Oil Spills, PUT A CORK IN IT! Sincerely, the Drilling Fellow who loves her job

I came to Maersk uncertain of what to expect, even uncertain about if I would find fulfillment in the tasks I would be asked to perform. As someone who tears up at the site of oil spill footage, I was downright nervous to walk through the doors of a drilling company’s head office. Now, eight weeks into my fellowship and I feel right at home. I take pride in the tasks that have been given to me and the job itself feels important. Perfect? No. But a valuable response to our current socio-economic composition? Absolutely. That is how I think of my work here, and the work of every single one of my colleagues on the HSSE team. It really feels great to work on something that directly makes a difference for a cause I care about. Continue reading

Exploring Corporate Level Solutions

All is still well in Denmark! Although if you don’t look out the window, I really could be anywhere. Working for Maersk is the very definition of international. In a single day I may be on the phone with colleagues in Singapore and Mumbai (sometimes at the same time), frantically flipping through the pages of MARPOL (International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from ships) to determine whether or not a rig in the Philippines is disposing of their drill cuttings accordingly, or discussing corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the Arctic with colleagues over coffee. In our small HSSE team alone, there are ten countries represented and three continents. It makes for such an invigorating work environment, as world views fuse into progressive policymaking and occasional cultural faux pas give way to much needed laughter breaks. Continue reading

In Between Here and There (A Story of an Environmentalist and a Drilling Company)

I love flying. I love the people watching in the airports, the international merging, the shameless snacking and more than anything, the overwhelming sense of being somewhere in between. In between what, of course, is personal for everyone. You will perhaps find yourself in between two places, Point A and Point B, nothing more. Perhaps you will find yourself in between two big life events, where your footsteps become the physical manifestation of your own emotional growth. Perhaps you will find yourself in between the retractable belt barriers in the security checkpoint, looking over your shoulder at what you are leaving behind while being ushered forward towards your next significant something. These in between moments often make me cry. Continue reading