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Dr. Anna Weerakoon Karunatilleke: Marine Consultant Advancing Innovation and Leadership in Maritime Engineering
Dr. Anna Weerakoon Karunatilleke has built a career at the intersection of maritime engineering, shipyard operations, and strategic leadership. As a marine consultant, entrepreneur, and educator, she brings both technical expertise and a forward-looking perspective to...
Ade Solorzano: Chief Mate Advocating for Safety, Visibility, and the Next Generation of Women at Sea
Ade Solorzano understands firsthand what it means to build a maritime career in spaces where women are still underrepresented. As a Chief Mate with Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement, she has spent years navigating the operational demands of life at sea while developing...
Benefit Gala Raises Over $100,000 to Support Careers on the Water
Houston, TX — February 2025 — Women Offshore Foundation is proud to announce the successful conclusion of its annual Benefit Gala, which raised over $100,000 to support its mission of strengthening careers on the water. Held on February 7, the evening drew a full room...
Love Is in the Sea Air
There’s something about salt air that makes everything feel more honest. Maybe it’s the way the wind strips things down to what matters. Maybe it’s the long watches, the night skies offshore, or the quiet moments leaning on a rail at sunrise. Out here, relationships...
Project Mayflower: Preserving Maritime History Through Storytelling
By Christine MacMillan  | Women Offshore Blog | Podcast Episode 251 Maritime history shapes the foundation of global trade, exploration, and seafaring culture, yet many of its most significant stories risk fading with time. In Women Offshore Podcast Episode 251, we...
New Year, New Job? Knowing When It’s Time for a Change
Career change is rarely sudden. More often, it begins quietly, with a feeling that something no longer fits, even if it once did. Across the Women Offshore community, many professionals shared that their decision to make a change was not driven by failure, but by...
Featured Sea Stories
Ask an Ambassador
By Christine MacMillan | Women Offshore Blog | Podcast Episode 247 In Episode 247 of the Women Offshore Podcast, we’re sharing the audio from a previously recorded Ask an Ambassador event hosted by Women Offshore Executive Director Liz Schmidt. This conversation...
Rising Through the Ranks: The Story of Christalove Agyin-Ayetse, Apprentice Deck Officer at Hafnia
Christalove Agyin-Ayetse’s journey to a life at sea began long before she ever stepped on board a vessel. It began with her father, a man who grew up in a small fishing village in Ghana with dreams of becoming a seafarer, dreams he never had the chance to pursue. His...
From Cadet to Chief Mate: How Max Kantor Is Navigating Leadership, Integrity, and Life at Sea
For Max Kantor, the maritime industry isn’t just a career; it’s part of her DNA. Growing up in the harbors of Long Beach and Los Angeles, Max spent her childhood surrounded by ships and dockside operations. Her parents both worked in the port where they met, her...
Stronger Doesn’t Mean Harder: Why It’s Time to Redefine Resilience at Sea
In Episode 244 of the Women Offshore Podcast, Executive Director Liz Schmidt and Director of Career Development Christine MacMillan sit down for an open and honest conversation about resiliency—and why it may be time to rethink how we talk about it. Resilience is...
Standing the Watch: Navigating Motherhood and a Maritime Career
When Women Offshore Director of Career Programs, Christine MacMillan, received a call to support a ship conversion project in Houma, Louisiana, she didn’t hesitate to step back aboard. Nearly nine years had passed since her steel-toed boots last hit a steel deck. The...
Sailing Strong: Andrew Bruhl on Building Health and Wellness Offshore
Sailing Strong: Andrew Bruhl on Building Health and Wellness Offshore By Christine MacMillan | Women Offshore Blog | Podcast Episode 240 In Episode 240 of the Women Offshore Podcast, Christine MacMillan sits down with Andrew Bruhl, mariner-turned-entrepreneur and...
Navigate Your Career
Rising Through the Ranks: The Story of Christalove Agyin-Ayetse, Apprentice Deck Officer at Hafnia
Christalove Agyin-Ayetse’s journey to a life at sea began long before she ever stepped on board a vessel. It began with her father, a man who grew up in a small fishing village in Ghana with dreams of becoming a seafarer, dreams he never had the chance to pursue. His...
From Offshore Engineer to Executive Leader: The Trailblazing Journey of Gladys DeClouet
By Christine MacMillan | Women Offshore Blog | Podcast Episode 245 In Episode 245 of the Women Offshore Podcast, Christine MacMillan speaks with Gladys DeClouet, author of A Layered Life: Breaking Barriers as a Trailblazing Black Woman in Corporate America, about her...
From Cadet to Chief Mate: How Max Kantor Is Navigating Leadership, Integrity, and Life at Sea
For Max Kantor, the maritime industry isn’t just a career; it’s part of her DNA. Growing up in the harbors of Long Beach and Los Angeles, Max spent her childhood surrounded by ships and dockside operations. Her parents both worked in the port where they met, her...
Stronger Doesn’t Mean Harder: Why It’s Time to Redefine Resilience at Sea
In Episode 244 of the Women Offshore Podcast, Executive Director Liz Schmidt and Director of Career Development Christine MacMillan sit down for an open and honest conversation about resiliency—and why it may be time to rethink how we talk about it. Resilience is...
Navigating Change: Samantha Cibelli on Leadership, Innovation, and the Future of Maritime
Navigating Change: Samantha Cibelli on Leadership, Innovation, and the Future of Maritime By Christine MacMillan | Women Offshore Blog | Podcast Episode 241 In Episode 241 of the Women Offshore Podcast, Christine MacMillan sits down with Samantha Cibelli, Sales...
From Refineries to Riverways: How Erika Shanley is Charting a Course to Pilotage
When Erika Shanley earned her Unlimited Radar Endorsement earlier this summer, she celebrated more than a certification. It was proof of years of grit, balancing 28-day hitches, studying late into the night, and showing her three kids what resilience really looks...
Podcast
Project Mayflower: Preserving Maritime History Through Storytelling
By Christine MacMillan  | Women Offshore Blog | Podcast Episode 251 Maritime history shapes the foundation of global trade, exploration, and seafaring culture, yet many of its most significant stories risk fading with time. In Women Offshore Podcast Episode 251, we...
From Idea to Impact: Celebrating 250 Episodes of the Women Offshore Podcast
By Liz Schmidt & Christine MacMillan | Women Offshore Blog | Podcast Episode 250 Episode 250 of the Women Offshore Podcast marks a major milestone, not just in episode count, but in the evolution of Women Offshore itself. In this special episode, Executive...
Racing Around the World & Changing It: Meg Reilly on Leadership and Impact
By Liz Schmidt | Women Offshore Blog | Podcast Episode 249 In Episode 249 of the Women Offshore Podcast, Women Offshore Executive Director Liz Schmidt sits down live at METSTRADE in Amsterdam with Meg Reilly, circumnavigator, sustainability leader, and global...
From Cadet to Captain: Rima Fe Lumangtad Makes History at Tidewater
By Christine MacMillan | Women Offshore Blog | Podcast Episode 248 In Episode 248 of the Women Offshore Podcast, Christine MacMillan sits down with Captain Rima Fe Lumangtad, Tidewater’s first Filipino female Master, to talk about her remarkable journey to the bridge...
Ask an Ambassador
By Christine MacMillan | Women Offshore Blog | Podcast Episode 247 In Episode 247 of the Women Offshore Podcast, we’re sharing the audio from a previously recorded Ask an Ambassador event hosted by Women Offshore Executive Director Liz Schmidt. This conversation...
Navigating Carbon: Deb Ryan on Energy, Emissions & Leadership in a Changing World
By Christine MacMillan | Women Offshore Blog | Podcast Episode 246 In Episode 246 of the Women Offshore Podcast, Christine MacMillan sits down with Deb Ryan, CEO and Founder of Swan Mountain Advisory, and one of the newest members of the Women Offshore Board. With...
WOMEN OFFSHORE MENTORSHIP!
Offshore Lifestyle
AGAINST THE CURRENT: A JOURNEY OF RESILIENCE IN THE MARITIME WORLD WITH KITARA SMOLINSKI, EPISODE 193
Today on the podcast, we bring you an unforgettable speech delivered by Kitara at the Women Offshore Benefit Gala. Join us as we dive into Kitara's remarkable journey—a tale of resilience, perseverance, and the unwavering spirit...
CASSIDY PATTON AND THE ALASKA MARINE HIGHWAY SYSTEM, EPISODE 191
On today's episode, Christine gets to speak with Cassidy Patton from Ketchikan, Alaska, who grew up in a fishing community that inspired her to seek out a career at sea. She shares all about the Alaska Marine Highway System, along with diving into her interesting...
QUESTIONS WE ARE TOO AFRAID TO ASK OFFSHORE WITH MAX AND CHRISTINE, EPISODE 162
We asked YOU what questions you are too embarrassed or afraid to ask offshore. In today's episode, our Director of Career Support Programs, Christine MacMillan, and Women Offshore Ambassador Max Kantor review our questions and share their answers and experiences. They...
REBECCA AND HEATHER – THE CALL OF THE SEA, EPISODE 157
In today's episode, Christine talks with Rebbeca Johnson and Heather Richard, shares their passion and experience of sailing and how they got to be where they are today. They share about working with the Call of the Sea, which is an educational non-profit that...
Yoga on the Helideck
In the summer of 2020 I was kindly asked to do a double trip as Kazakhstan closed the borders. It was quite new for all of us, and everyone was affected in different ways. My best way to cope with stress is yoga. I have been practicing yoga since I was at university...
How to Stay Energized While Working Offshore: Tips for Women at Sea
As your hitch offshore goes on your energy level slowly depletes. The shifts, the demands of your job, the socializing aspects, and the lack of days off duty, they all take their toll on your sleep. It’s hard to stay focused and energized. Thankfully, there are ways...
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