There is a manning crisis in the shipping industry today. But most of the people who make decisions about the industry do not work on ships. There is a very different view of life at sea from behind a desk in an office. Many of the big decisions about the industry are made at conferences and global meetings, but people who work at sea usually do not have time to go to conferences. So we want to hear the voice of people still working onboard, to help you explain how life could be better.

We do not want to know your name or any other information that could identify you. If you want us to know your email address you can tell us, but it is not necessary. We only want you to tell us about your experience of life at sea today. Your reply will be completely anonymous and you will not be identified in any way.

Shiptalk are independent. We are not ship owners. We are not a charity. We do not get donations from any industry organisation. We are not part of any government. This makes us impartial, but it also means we do not have observer status at the IMO.

We have just one goal. We want to focus the minds of decision-makers on the issues that really matter to people working at sea today. We can only do that if you tell us about the things that affect you.

We are planning five surveys this year:

Each survey will run for approximately two months, so there will be plenty of time for everyone to give their views.

We will produce a full survey report, containing the summary, key findings and details of the statistics behind the survey, including charts and illustrations.

At the end of the year all five surveys will be combined to produce the Annual Life At Sea Report. Please remember that all responses are anonymous and we will only publish an overview of this information. Nobody will be able to identify anyone replying to any of these surveys at any time.