Prior to boarding the MV World Odyssey last month, every student, faculty and staff member, and Lifelong Learner committed to six Voyage Community Values. They embraced respecting others’ identities, belief systems, and perspectives, and pursuing understanding, even when confronting difficult topics and diverging points of view.
Voyage 134’s commitment to these values was on full display in recent days as the one-year anniversary of the attack on Israel, and the resulting war and humanitarian crisis, approached.
On Sunday, Oct. 6, the Palestinian Solidarity Collective hosted a vigil in the ship’s Kino Cinema. The vigil honored those killed during the Oct. 7 attack and in the conflict that followed. Open to all, the event included moments of silence for those killed in Israel and Gaza.
Voyage Community Values
The Voyage Community Values are the bedrock of every Semester at Sea voyage. Together, they encapsulate the desired culture and vision of the program. By choosing to participate in Semester at Sea, each participant has a responsibility to uphold the following values:
- Well-Being: We commit to the health, safety, and well-being of ourselves, all members of our voyage community, and members of the communities we will visit.
- Interconnectedness: We understand our actions and attitudes have an impact locally and globally. We always seek to positively affect the planet and people around us- near and far.
- Respect: We honor the inherent dignity of all people with an abiding commitment to freedom of expression, scholarly discourse, and the advancement of knowledge. We have the right to be treated, and the responsibility to treat others, with fairness and equity.
- Inclusion: We ensure inclusive environments that welcome, value, affirm, and embrace all people within the shipboard community and in each port country.
- Integrity: We are honest and ethical in all of our interactions, including our academic work. We hold ourselves accountable for our actions.
- Excellence: We model the highest academic standards of preparation, inquiry, and knowledge and consistently seek to understand complex issues and express informed opinions with courage and conviction.
Semester at Sea’s Voyage Community Values were revised over the summer and appear in the Voyager Handbook, which contains program information, procedures, and policies.
The event took shape over several days as the organizers spoke with voyage leadership and fellow students from a number of student organizations. When concerns were raised about the content and timing of the vigil, as well as the language used on an early flyer, students – including members of the Jewish student organization – discussed those concerns with the organizers and voyage leaders. The organizers utilized language that was inclusive and focused on creating a safe space for reflection.
According to Executive Dean Hudgens, the focus was on grieving lives lost, the human tragedies of war, and the main message was the common need for a safe homeland. Members from many different student organizations were in attendance, including from the Palestinian Solidarity Collective and the Jewish student group (which named their club, “Jew Cruise”).
As the Institute for Shipboard Education’s CEO and President Scott Marshall put it in comments to ISE staff this week, “These students remained open to and engaged in dialogue; they listened to their peers and the voyage leadership. Ultimately, they organized a gathering that privileged humanity and let them fulfill their purpose.”
Marshall also shared a new video of a SAS World Religions class visiting a mosque, synagogue, Christian church, and museum during the voyage’s time in Morocco, highlighting how people of different faiths live and work together.
Next up, Ghana: Voyage 134 arrived in Ghana on Tuesday, Oct. 8. After six days in the country, the voyage will set sail for South Africa, arriving October 22. The voyage will then head for Mauritius and four Asian ports.
Learn more about how Semester at Sea prepared to build community and dialogue on this voyage and beyond: “Building community, understanding and dialogue onboard Semester at Sea voyages”
