Leilany Rodriguez of Tulane Law School has been selected as the Center for Mariner Advocacy’s (CMA) summer intern for 2025. Leilany will be the thirtieth intern to serve in this capacity, continuing a partnership between the Seamen’s Church Institute and Tulane Law School that began in 1993. Leilany shares her thoughts on joining CMA: “I’m thrilled to be […]
Read MoreSCI’s Center for Mariner Advocacy (CMA) Director, Phil Schifflin, Esq., attended the Fifth Meeting of the Special Tripartite Committee established under the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC, 2006) at the ILO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland from April 7-11, 2025. Representing SCI as a member of the International Christian Maritime Association (ICMA) Delegation, Schifflin was one of […]
Read MoreSCI’s Center for Mariner Advocacy (CMA) Director, Phil Schifflin, Esq., attended the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Human Elements, Training, and Watchkeeping (HTW) sub-committee meeting in London from February 10-14, 2025, serving as an expert advisor on mariner issues for the U.S. delegation. During the meeting, he participated in a working group focused on a comprehensive […]
Read MoreThe 40th edition of CMA Shipping, North America’s leading maritime industry conference, will be held from April 1-3 in Stamford, CT. This annual event gathers key maritime professionals, offering a platform for networking and discussions on industry challenges. The Seamen’s Church Institute (SCI) will once again participate, with the Rev. Mark Nestlehutt, SCI’s President & […]
Read MoreThe Seamen’s Church Institute Welcomes the Release of the Galaxy Leader Hostages The Seamen’s Church Institute (SCI) and its Center for Mariner Advocacy (CMA) are relieved and delighted to learn of the safe release of the hostages from the Galaxy Leader. This event represents a significant moment of hope for the maritime community and for all those […]
Read MoreThe Center for Mariner Advocacy (CMA) consistently steps in to defend the rights of seafarers facing unfair treatment. A recent case highlighted this commitment when an Indian seafarer was connected to CMA through the assistance of a local seafarer center. His father, battling lung cancer, experienced a serious decline in health, prompting the seafarer to […]
Read MoreSCI’s Phil Schifflin, Esq. recently participated in the third meeting of the Joint ILO-IMO Tripartite Working Group to Identify and Address Seafarers’ Issues and the Human Element (JTWG3) as a representative of the International Christian Maritime Association (ICMA). The meeting focused on the criminalization of seafarers, who may be unjustly treated as criminals for performing […]
Read MoreYesterday marked the opening of the “Joint ILO–IMO Tripartite Working Group to Identify and Address Seafarers’ Issues and the Human Element” in Geneva, Switzerland. This is the third meeting of this particular ILO (International Labour Organization) and IMO (International Maritime Organization) group, and it is dedicated to discussing and developing guidelines for the fair treatment […]
Read MoreRemembering the Galaxy Leader Crew’s Ongoing Detention We recently passed November 19, 2024, which marked the one-year anniversary of the Galaxy Leader crew’s detention by the Houthis in Yemen. These 25 seafarers—17 Filipinos, two Bulgarians, three Ukrainians, two Mexicans, and one Romanian—were simply carrying out their duty, transporting critical cargo across the seas to support […]
Read MoreThe Seamen’s Church Institute, along with Seafarers International House, proudly co-hosted the 2024 North American Maritime Ministry Association (NAMMA) conference in September in Newark, NJ. SCI President and Executive Director, the Rev. Mark Nestlehutt, welcomed the 125 delegates with a speech focused on the issue of “Sea Blindness.” He explained how advances in containerization have […]
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