Introduction: Annus pandemicus
1 Departure
2 What is wrong with the shipping industry?
3 Crossing the Atlantic
4 Coffee, rum, and chocolate
5 Point of return
6 The eternal frontier
7 Ship Earth
8 Where are we headed?
9 Sailing home
Index
Christiaan De Beukelaer took up sailing to get away from his desk on weekends, which worked out well until he developed an interest in how to decarbonise the shipping industry.
He works at the University of Melbourne and has held visiting positions at the Institute of Advanced Study at Durham and at the universities of Copenhagen, Jyvskyl, Cape Town, Hildesheim, and Coimbra. He is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.
One of the Financial Times' Notable new books on climate and
environment
‘This book is both important and beautiful: important, in that it
describes one of the best ways we can move into a post-fossil fuels
civilisation, which is to say by sail; and beautiful, because it
shows on every page how this bursting out of the cocoon of heavy
oil that we have been living in will return us to a life in the
real world, with the wind felt in the hands and on one’s face, and
every day an adventure. What a joy to read these pages and learn
their news.’
Kim Stanley Robinson, author of The Ministry for the Future
‘The story is original – a sailing ship undertaking a quixotic
mission to deliver a tiny amount of cargo (in order to demonstrate
that it can be done) when the pandemic descends, trapping the
narrator – makes for a diverting narrative.’
Horatio Clare, author of Down to the Sea in Ships
‘This is a book that should change the world. Beautifully written
and brimming with bold yet careful analysis, Christiaan De
Beukelaer has given the world a tremendous gift.’
Deborah Cowen, author of The Deadly Life of Logistics
‘De Beukelaer tackles a subject that’s growing in importance,
giving us his perspective from the deck of a sailing cargo boat. No
mean achievement.’
Tom Cunliffe, sailor, presenter and author of The Complete
Yachtmaster
‘Trade winds is an absorbing account of a voyage that starts off as
an effort to prove the continuing viability of sail, but becomes
far more challenging than expected when the COVID-19 pandemic shuts
off all access to the shore. It is also a thoughtful analysis of
practical ways for shrinking the carbon footprint of one of the
world’s most polluting industries – shipping.’
Amitav Ghosh, author of The Nutmeg’s Curse
‘A truly fascinating account – of a voyage, but also of an idea
that is counter-intuitive in a world based on speed, but revelatory
for a planet that is going to have to start taking real care of
itself. There’s a bit of romance here, and a lot of reality.’
Bill McKibben, author of The End of Nature
‘Simultaneously engaging and scholarly, Trade winds combines
sailing memoir and environmental analysis to provide important
insights about the environmental effects of global shipping and
about what plausible alternatives might be. De Beukelaer brings
together personal experience with an impressive command of
scholarly literatures across history, economics, philosophy,
climate science, among many others, and brings them all together in
an interdisciplinary tour de force that is realistic and yet
ultimately hopeful.’
Elizabeth R. DeSombre, Camilla Chandler Frost Professor of
Environmental Studies, Wellesley College
‘Scientists, scholars, and sailors have long turned to the ocean to
conjure futures that lie just beyond reach. In his dive into the
quixotic movement to revive shipping by sail, Christiaan De
Beukelaer leaves us wondering which is more of a folly: imagining
that sail could once again be a viable technology for transporting
goods around the world, or imagining that we can continue
practicing business as usual.’
Philip Steinberg, UArctic Chair in Political Geography, Durham
University
‘Finally a book that delves deeply into the urgent need to
decarbonise the shipping industry by connecting political economy
and environmental challenges. Christiaan De Beukelaer poignantly
describes day-to-day life aboard a twenty-first-century sail cargo
vessel in its social and historical context. In doing so, this book
raises essential questions about the future of shipping while
offering suggestions on how to resolve them. This story of
adventure on the high seas sketches a liminal space that will
inspire realists and dreamers alike.’
Dr Lucy Gilliam, Senior Shipping Policy Officer, Seas at Risk
‘The decarbonisation of shipping does not need to be a sacrifice.
Instead, as Christiaan De Beukelaer eloquently shows, sailing to a
sustainable future for shipping can be exciting and full of
enriching experiences for both the author and us, the readers.
Admittedly, I personally do not share all the views of Christiaan
about open registries and the workings of the maritime industry,
but I appreciate his sincere and enthusiastic voyage. I recommend
reading this thought-provoking book.’
Jan Hoffman, Chief of UNCTAD’s Trade Logistics Branch
‘Trade winds is a riveting book that talks about seafarers’
workers’ rights, sustainable trade that’s fair and equitable, the
human struggles of the lockdown and the COVID pandemic, the climate
crisis, and the emissions of the shipping industry. It says all
this in a beautiful story that emphasizes the need for storytelling
and radically imagining the better world that we’re fighting for.
It puts practical solutions to take our first steps towards climate
justice while simultaneously challenging us to think about how and
where we’re going next.’
Mitzi Jonelle Tan, Youth Advocates for Climate Action Philippines &
Fridays for Future
‘This book brings the environmental and social challenges facing
the shipping industry to the fore. After five months at sea,
Christiaan reveals how the radical changes necessary to decarbonise
shipping will rely on the skill, tenacity and sacrifices of
seafarers. This book rightly asks the big question, how do we build
an economically, socially and environmentally sustainable shipping
industry? An important contribution to the challenges facing
shipping that exposes the work needed to ensure the fundamental
rights of seafarers are protected.’
Stephen Cotton, General Secretary, International Transport Workers’
Federation (ITF)
‘As the famous quote goes: “If you want to build a ship, don’t drum
up the men to gather wood, divide the work, and give orders.
Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea.” This is
a book that does just that! Christiaan’s intense interest and vast
knowledge on this subject matter jumps out from every page, whether
it is directly recounting his extended sail cargo adventure in
lively detail or using those experiences to bring alive the fabric
and challenges of maritime transport and trade past and present. A
story of sustainability, shipping and a glimpse of a maritime
future full of possibilities that will sustain your interest
throughout.’
Gavin Allwright, Secretary General of the International Windship
Association (IWSA)
'I am convinced that the Trade Winds is, indeed, an important
addition to literature that might serve as support and guidance for
academics and the general public on this very timely and complex
topic. Additionally, the book can serve as a reference background
for students and young researchers in their initial approach to the
topics, providing a good base as well as interdisciplinary and
multi-faceted approach to the topic.'
Fabio Ballini, WMU Journal of Maritime Affairs (2023)
'The book is very well written, and it is interesting to read about
the practical details of navigation, work and social life onboard
such an unusual vessel.'
Nautilus Telegraph
'De Beukelaer's book Trade Winds about his adventure on the
Avontuur, [is] an interesting interweaving of travelogue,
scientific research and climate activism.'
Roel Verrycken, De Tijd
'During his search for low-carbon alternatives for international
shipping, Christiaan De Beukelaer ended up in the niche of sailing
cargo ships. He planned to conduct fieldwork for three weeks on
board an old sailing ship, until the Corona crisis suddenly erupted
and he was marooned at the sea for months. He documented his
personal odyssey in Trade Winds, a book that moves between an
in-depth analysis of modern shipping, climate research and a memoir
about life at sea.'
Gie Goris, MO* Magazine
'A plausible, engaging account of the many problems that plague
today’s shipping industry.'
A. A. Batabyal, CHOICE (Vol. 61 No. 6)
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