Rose George: Inside the secret shipping industry

Almost everything we own and use, at some point, travels to us by container ship, through a vast network of ocean routes and ports that most of us know almost nothing about. Journalist Rose George tours us through the world of shipping, the underpinning of consumer civilization.
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[@sahityaroy8493]

I am a Seafarer & I am very much Impressed by the Passion with which the Speaker conducted her Eloquent Speech. Lots of Regards for Enlightening people across the World about this Crucial Industry... -Proud Seafarer from India.

[@Franciscomvd]

Shipping industry has had deep impact over the entire human history and far from diminishing, our present life is impacted by logistics and seafreight industry more than ever. Every large city and economic center in the world has been firstly a hub port.

[@Sailorman56]

Guess it is a good start to making the general populace aware of the shipping industry. Will be interesting to hear more such talks, specially from some shipping professionals.

[@deepthikranthikumar2677]

One of the finest video,to thank SHIPPING INDUSTRY as a whole. Thank you so much.

[@is1dre]

Thanks for this. One thing that has changed - the entire industry is required to use low-sulfur fuels (or LNG vessels or scrubbers) starting in 2020 (IMO 2020 rules). The infrastructure changes have already begun, so the level of pollution created by shupping should decrease very meaningfully in the near future. Estimated annual cost for this change is $60 billion.

[@ShawnRavenfire]

I was a little surprised at the beginning where she said that people see shipping as being archaic. I don't know anyone who thinks that, or would think that. We see everything is made in other countries, and we know that they don't get here by teleporters (yet). As for the names of the companies, the reason they're not commonly known to the average consumer is because they don't advertise to the average consumer. Shipping companies like Maersk advertise to companies, while Microsoft advertises to average people who want to buy a computer for their home or office.

[@Cityj0hn]

Leave it to a TED speaker to not realize how important shipping is before the age of forty and then give a talk about the subject.

[@ShawnRavenfire]

adam beatty I don't really have any new information on the industry itself to offer. I was just speculating about why the industry isn't as much part of the sphere of common knowledge as other industries. I didn't mean to sound indignant. (Though in the age of the internet, with plain text, sometimes a difference of opinion can come across as belligerence.)

[@carlitosaqui]

Lol what a reply! You should go cry in a corner. His opinion is valid.

[@philinspain65]

The sector is in the stone age with regard to emissions control. It's done little to nothing to reduce its environmental impact for decades in spite of using the most toxic fuel imaginable

[@FlamiStar]

Great talk! So interesting to know more about the world of shipping!

[@adityasawdekar8147]

Very informative and well explained. The concept of acoustic habitat is the first time I came across. Thanks a lot Rose.

[@Deontjie]

Informative on a pre-school level?

[@mottv6506]

I cannot imagine how my grandfather handled his homesick on his time..they were onboard for 2 years without any updates to his family..lucky for us now we have internet that i could video call to my wife and kids..this is so true to us Filipinoes that we call it a dollar for homesick.

[@nomar5spaulding]

Maersk reflagged the Kendall to a US flag and I sailed on it while reading her book. It's quite accurate.

[@mamahannatu]

Extremely eye-opening!

[@shanekawallace-graham2190]

Thank you for the information

[@anonymous-gg4st]

thanks for sharing!

[@raxxmoriti]

2:00 hehe thats funny but true, just saw that ship today up on top of a hotel :-) im an electrician by profession from south africa, i have seen how shipping has revolutionized singapore. When you say shipping to a common person they already think DHL or FEDEX

[@jackson12200]

Ted talks is great I'm inspired by this show

[@komm11]

Well, there IS internet now on board the ships, that is how I saw this video clip.

[@andy4an]

This needs to be less secret...we need to understand this batter. Thanks Rose.

[@finalascent]

Anyone considering booking passage on a freighter? Don't hesitate - just DO it. I was on a small container feeder Rotterdam to Hull and back - 3 days. No pirates on that route - great ship and crew, more than decent food.

[@MegaTraker]

I have spent many years on deep sea going ship and on containers as well so what Ms Rose George is right on almost all of what she is talking about.

[@shininglamb]

I feel this talk falls short of the topic. Anyway its informative....

[@Zentaurus21Blogspotr08m1n]

thanks!

[@sheshu666]

The cost of internet on board my last vessel was $308 for 1 GB Usage (that is for those who end up on ships where they have to pay for their internet)

[@lizardmaldokill]

i'm having a hard time understanding where she's at on the subject?

[@hdvija]

This was very interesting. Makes me wanna go work on a ship¦)

[@kersievandrevala6969]

Good talk , could give you much more first hand information ,of what the shipping game is all about . RGDs Capt.K.A.Vandrevala

[@OneNomadagain]

Such true words.... We in the shipping industry also wish the same to happen....to people realise what it is truly .... Not hypothetically.

[@rahuld4900]

The most inspiring talk. Thank you Mam.

[@ShiroKage009]

We have too much shipping. That's why we need teleportation.

[@ductuslupus87]

Or we could invest in 3-D Printing Technology. Maybe starting manufacturing products, here are home. I don't know. Shipping could be at just the right amount, maybe we need more. Who knows, this is my 2 cents.

[@gerglmuff]

***** how do the materials to print things come from?

[@AugustVonpetersborg]

gerglmuff Magic, 3D printers are made of magic, don't you know?

[@playgroundprotagonis]

giant rail gun cannons. launch them ipods and whats nots in reinforced metal tubes using giant rail gun cannons. have giant nets to catch them.

[@JohnBastardSnow]

gerglmuff Much less transportation is needed in order to just transport materials comparing to transporting already constructed products. Surely, some things can be made more efficiently with mass production, but most things can be made with 3D printing. But right now 3D printing is pretty immature. As recycling tech advances, we can also just recycle local "waste" to create bare materials again. But as for transportation, evacuated tube transport is still the best bet for now. You can just build a tube (for 1/10th the cost of High Speed Rail, or 1/4th the cost of a freeway) and travel stuff at 4000 miles/hour . It's more efficient than shipping and much faster than air transportation.

[@gto433]

What she's trying to say is how much we are dependant on the shipping industry. If this stops working you wont get 90% of your food( not really, but you get the idea). This industry to should be seen as a top industry, not something that people just know about.

[@SuperManishrockstar]

Proud to be a seafarer

[@joachimmacdonald2702]

I never thought Id hear someone quote the first sea lord in a TED talk

[@pinetarsoap]

and with the Covid19 pandemic.... there are thousands of seafarers TRAPPED aboard their ships. As countries and ports refuse to allow them to disembark to catch a flight back home. It is an ignored international humanitarian crisis. Some of these poor people have been aboard for 15 months at this point. There have been sucides.

[@ebphinn]

Rose George is a brilliant and courageous journalist and writer. Her message needs to be heard by the ordinary person and we need to begin to make choices that will reduce the dependency on trade and ships. Much of Shipping is fueled by greed.

[@AlaaNouasri1994]

Shipping has a new meaning now. Fangirls would know what I'm talking about lol

[@robertdblitch]

Oh how things come back into focus

[@niokpanda]

Woots Singapore! XD Hell yeah!

[@navylaks2]

motorsail ships would be one way to go, and of course using electric motors instead since their tourqe is beyond oil piston machines. Norway is testing ships powered by methane fuel cells, electric charging could also be done via offshore Windturbines, it should be alot easier to shelter noice from the electric motors too.

[@lewisktownsend]

I think 90% of her jokes were lost on that crowd.

[@stevejordan7275]

@ Lewis Townsend There's a lot to be said for delivery, but yeah...tough crowd.

[@jamese9283]

She swallowed a little too much seawater.

[@navylaks2]

Of course taxation in Denmark does make this a bit difficult but if we create a legal loophole which favours green or should i say blue shipping) it would be considderet a minor problem some good shocking campains about children inhaling the toxic fuemes is also a good way to play with peoples conscience

[@youbigtubership]

Read Outlaw Ocean by Urbin if you want to read some horror stories about how crews can be mistreated.

[@SevenseasB]

Learning to sea the sea is essential.

[@gto433]

For all of you gaining nothing from this video, shipping industry is the most important industry out there and the companies run on losses, dont you think thats a cause for concern?

[@cathrisrose1835]

What is capitalize countries ??

[@LoneWolf-wp9dn]

i thought she would talk about illegal goods made in international waters...there are a lot of nasty things happening in international waters

[@morefreedomplease]

Shhh...

[@jonahcastro5894]

That's crazy

[@user-ug5be9rs6d]

不错

[@lindatisue733]

One more reason to reduce consumption, and buy local. Our species depends on it.

[@ShekharKumar-fl3jq]

❤️❤️❤️

[@theparadisesnare]

This lady's got JOKES. Yeah!

[@justgivemethetruth954]

How do you get passage on a cargo ship?

[@TheGruesomeFoursome]

Apparently there's lots of old ships still in use from times when crews were larger, so there's vacant quarters you can use, if you pay of course.

[@vatsal9387]

Here after the Suez incident. 2021

[@_thacieng]

6:06 you got so over excited. so north korea is landlocked?

[@menincognito4467]

In India I asked one of my neighbour : do u know what can be the max. Size of a ship, he said approx 100ft I laughed and said: its approximately a half kilometer He said : are u drunk

[@manatee2500]

Gross Revenue (turnover) is not the same as Net Profit. Silly to call shipping 'archaic'. Look up Martin Stopford(ex director Clarkson's research) for interesting & informative information.

[@hugogerbichpais3779]

Coool

[@henrymacaroy6134]

Odd seeing you here.

[@sdfsdfsdfsdfsdfsdfsdfs607]

Proud to be Greek

[@gh1Mikie]

there are ppl who are more than aware of the sea! What about the entire African continent? Perhaps, the west isnt, but the rest of Asia, Africa and Australasia more than depend on the sea for many of the things we use...

[@blusticks7505]

Close your eyes, it sounds like a listening exam

[@funny-video-YouTube-channel]

*Let's hope* they get free WiFi on board, so that they will not be bored :-)

[@torgeirbrandsnes1916]

epSos.de most of the ships still do not have access to the internet on the ship. Type up any vessel on Maritime traffic.com and those ship you can track between ports have wifi. The others that say they still are in port, do not have wifi onboard. Wifi costs money. Norway ruled shipping. Wilh. Wilhelmsen lines with over 100 ships have today 8 Norwegians sailors. Why so few? A Cheif from Norway cost AS much AS the hole deck crew from India!

[@blazeblaze666]

Zen master

[@chrisbova9686]

15 largest ships = ALL THE CARS IN THE WORLD. 100,000 ships at sea... Got that?

[@whatabouttheearth]

What do you mean by the equal sign? Do you mean fuel usage?

[@studinthemaking]

I knew the tree huggers would make an appearance here!

[@robertzosa4789]

i can picture her as the cabin boy who fooled everybody for years and ended up being a cabin girl

[@MassDynamic]

build portals in usa, europe, asia, and africa. emissions cut down by 99%

[@electrical5]

Interesting talk. This is, however, a bit misleading of a title. There are few secrets here. Also, she very briefly touches on the management of the companies who have allowed people to remain hostage. Then, does not give the reasons or reasoning behind those decisions. It would be interesting to know more about what makes (or made) this a workable strategy and/or management decision.

[@JnanadasKKunjan]

Likes shipping

[@itscrazytrevor]

I was the 666th like for this video and more than that I'd like to be a pirate since she had pointed out what a profitable business practice it is! Aside from all the sailor stories she needs to work on her stand up comedy delivery! She holds back when she gets to the punch line!

[@rprasannakumar]

Oh my G she looks like the sister of Jim Parsons The big bang theory fame.

[@jackson12200]

Worries

[@iberian1580]

"The very western infrastructure that has created a nation wealthy enough to have allowed me to pursue my studious endeavors should feel bad for the noise propellers make that disrupt whale mating calls...or something." Shut up, Peter Pan.

[@thebookwasbetter3650]

If you like this read up on nyc teachers held in rubber rooms. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reassignment_centers

[@baseboots]

All that profit and none spent on guns and missiles? Atleast some 50 cals. Weapons will not solve piracy but I'm pretty sure it'll be another obstacle for these pirates. Let's make it harder for them to attack cargo ships. Maybe they'll go back to their roots, by looking for buried treasures!

[@AvgGuyFitness]

Sorry, What was the secret in it ?

[@clnmyjts]

15 of the largest ships equal the same amount of pollutions as all the cars in the world? WOW! and.. the fuel burned in these ships is basically one step up from asphalt grade crude? wow! This information is important..Why don`t they rebuild all these ships with an electric powered motors system? The movement of the ship alone crossing the oceans would be enough to turn turbines generators to charge battery to store enery in battery banks to run the motors thus a cheap free source of clean fuel. ( I`m pretty sure amtrak has been using the electric train motor system for 40+ yrs AND I`m not talking about the overhead wires electric train system either../ the wheels can turn turbines generators as the train is moving alone...

[@petevmi95]

North Korea is not a landlocked country. Try Google Maps sometimes.

[@theultimatereductionist7592]

8:24 Thumb up for bringing up carbon emissions!

[@gsmailes]

what? who doest know this already? how does your shiny new honda cross the sea? must be with new technologies like wishful thinking

[@dgaryretherford6385]

Nothing secret about this industry. I may seem that way to someone who doesn't know The business. Like this talk for example.

[@drackar]

She really should replace "we" with "I"...nothing in this would have been "new" to me as a teenager, let alone now.

[@markhenry1007]

what a guy-you are so smart-wow

[@drackar]

What? Her own personal ignorance isn't the sum total reality for the entire planet.

[@joshuafulton1625]

A reflection of the sad state of modern journalism

[@jackson12200]

We'd

[@inthefade]

How did she think our goods were brought between nations which are separated by oceans? Of course shipping is bigger than ever.

[@Beanione]

I think she is pointing out how much the "sea blindness" affects people. Do the Maersk test with people and they don't have a single clue.

[@BatuSmoka808]

Of course a lot of people know that everything is shipped but she is pointing out that no one really knows the behind the scenes of the shipping industry. Luckily U.S. shipping isn't as dreary compared to the foreign fleets out there thanks to the Jones Act. Bet you didn't know what the Jones Act was until you wikipedia'd it.

[@dondreytaylor8001]

Thanks Fedex and UPS....oh wait, wrong shipping lol

[@reubenosei7059]

Pour nous chaque jour c’est Noël

[@FlowLai]

The most pointless talk I've seen in quite a while. Who doesn't know that sea shipping is the key to international trade? What was the issue again?

[@stevejordan7275]

Air and sound pollution, hazards and isolation for crews, abandonment of said crews by companies flying flags of convenience. Pointless indeed, unless you're a crew member, an air breather, or a compassionate human being.

[@Skval2254]

The problem with blockchain........they al think that the players in that game are 100% clean.......but thats all BS......look at some harbours in The Netherlands..........99% of the containers are nevver inspected......because......the transporting company's.....are trusted players....so if you wanne be a bad boy......those are the best company's to work

[@bwilks271]

This was like a talk by a naive 8 year old beholding the world for the first time. Everyone of average intelligence knows shipping is how things move. The bar is low it seems for TED talk speakers.

[@BatuSmoka808]

Don't be so sure of yourself. I'd be willing to bet that the average American does not know that 90% of everything is moved via ship.

[@Groaznic]

Adam Sandler's sister.

[@s1llysushi]

Basically she's just presenting already known facts, not presenting any new ideas.

[@jamesclausen6239]

In 2018 this is a very dated video, shipping has REALLY cleaned up its act. This video is no longer relevant.

[@robertdblitch]

The irony of KZbin

[@aaaya658]

Sounds like an ignorant and under-researched view of the shipping industry.

[@SuperManishrockstar]

You should know what she said is most of it is true..

[@hermestrismegistus8154]

Good lecture until she started talking about carbon emissions and shipping noise. Typical yuppy complaining about everything

[@zariff7842]

No need to be an asshat.

[@bsklasika]

dont invite journalists that have not seen life, but only philosophize about it to these talks. better bring educated people of experience and actual knowledge.

[@MrinalNavy]

What does she want to convey. She's herself not clear.

[@ohmyblindman]

I was hoping for Somali pirates....

[@happyfox711]

Seriously I learned nothing, she sound like shippings wikipedia page, nothing that hasn't been in the media for decades. And I refuse to believe I'm the only one that has heard absolutely every point she mentioned, before. Down to the 15-17 ships that equal all rhe cars in the world. That's why new ships being built are trying to get off crude, and they have electric pods and stuff. When she told us in the beginning we all was as ignorant as herself, not knowing what MAERSK was, I should have gotten the hint, but I stupidly watched the whole thing thinking she must have come up with something new. But no. Last TED talk for me for a while. Depressive this has grown ups in the audience, it should be 4th grade material.

[@GrigorisKontakos]

Gave 4 facts without drawing a conclusion. what's the innovation behind this talk?None. Just wasted my time for facts I knew from childhood, not on my 40's.

[@Jask1717]

I thought She was a guy and I looked at the thumbnail.

[@v12tommy]

We've had shipping for hundreds of years, and suddenly now it has become a problem for whales? Perhaps they are just supposed to go extinct.

[@BatuSmoka808]

We haven't had steel ships of these size and power running off of black oil/diesel for hundreds of year. Think before you comment.