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UN Sustainability Development Goals

UN Sustainable Development Goals

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), also known as the Global Goals, were adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015 as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity by 2030.

There are 17 SDGs in all. They recognize that action in one area will affect outcomes in others, and that development must balance social, economic and environmental sustainability.

That is why the SDGs are designed to bring the world to several life-changing goals: clean water and sanitation, reduced inequalities and discrimination, zero poverty and an end to world hunger.

The creativity, knowhow, technology and financial resources from all of society are necessary to achieve the SDGs in every context.

Click on a Goal to find examples of how we contribute.

No Poverty
Good Health and Wellbeing
Quality Education
Gender Equality
Clean Water and Sanitation
Affordable and Clean Energy
Decent Work and Economic Growth
Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
Reduced Inequalities
Sustainable Cities and Communities
Responsible Consumption and Production
Climate Action
Life Below Water
Life on Land
Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
Partnerships for the Goals
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Synergy Marine Group is a member of

Getting to Zero Coalition
MACN
Intercargo
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IMPA SAVE
All Aboard Alliance
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Danish Shipping
No Poverty

SDG Goal 1 - No Poverty

The scourge of poverty blights many aspects of life, and two of its main, and directly related, effects are hunger and lack of schooling.

India has more out-of-school children than any other country, the majority from among the rural poor and most of those aged from 11-18, with struggling parents needing extra income and informal childcare while they themselves work.

These factors combine to deny access to secondary schooling, and together with an alarmingly high drop-out rate will severely jeopardise the future of a young country like India.

Based in Mumbai, Light of Life Trust (LOLT) provides support and guidance to help children break this generational cycle of poverty and denied opportunity. Starting with just one small centre at Karjat, Maharashtra, LOLT now has 65, and has reached out to almost 800 villages with its creed of Educate, Empower and Equip for Employability.

Go2C has helped with sourcing a solar microgrid for Karjat, partnering with Norwegian company Aker and securing from them INR 600,000 towards that, and hence for LOLT an annual saving on power of about INR 250,000.

Synergy also has several employee initiatives. For example its Pune office supports a local outreach called Rainbow Homes, which helps house and also feed homeless children from marginalised communities, and its Singapore office helps Willing Hearts, a charity there that every day prepares and distributes over 5,000 meals to the needy in over 40 locations, also offering medical care and even legal aid services.

Synergy has partnered with the Mauna Dhwani Foundation to set up sustainable livelihood centres in Odisha, which leverage tribal wisdom and crafts to create enduring eco-friendly products for use on merchant vessels.

The Mauna Dhwani Foundation is a not-for-profit social enterprise that aims to facilitate the revival and resurgence of personal and community identities by enabling the disenfranchised sections of society to find their voice and rightful place. The Foundation’s efforts are primarily focused on rehabilitation of women in marginalised communities through a holistic three-pronged methodology that includes:

  • self-empowerment
  • skill enhancement
  • sustainable livelihood

Our goal is to take this enterprise to 300 families over the next two years, enabling their craftswomen to create and maintain a sustainable livelihood, tackling extreme malnutrition with midday meals and supporting education for the children of these communities through an after-school programme.

SDG Goal 2 - Zero Hunger

Affecting almost one in three people globally and a major developmental challenge in a great many countries, malnutrition is one India’s key issues.

The statistics are dire.

The 2015-16 National Family Health Survey-4 revealed widespread poor feeding, and sometimes simply inadequate feeding practice, from birth to 23 months, with 35.8% of under fives underweight – about 12 times the worldwide level – 38.4% stunted and 21% wasted i.e. with lower than expected weight for height. On all indicators the nutritional status of Indian children is below acceptable levels, even in comparatively wealthy states like Haryana, where only 7.5% of children from 6-23 months receive a sufficient diet.

In response, Poshan Abhiyaan is India’s flagship programme, a multi-ministerial mission for improving nutrition during pregnancy and breastfeeding, and likewise among under fives and adolescents. This is being achieved by harnessing technology amid a broad yet precisely targeted attack on malnutrition, with nationwide information (including basic nutrition details and food husbandry), focused intervention and greatly improved pastoral care.

Among many other things, Synergy Educational and Charitable Trust (SECT) actively and also financially supports the Nourishing Schools initiative, which reaches out to schoolchildren aged from 9-14 and teaches them hands-on techniques by which they can take charge of their own nutrition, and the Go2C Changemakers Foundation supports the Department of Women and Child Development of Haryana, based in Faridabad. This is a government department which is responsible for child health and nutrition, and implements the Integrated Child Development Scheme in coordination with the Haryana Department of Health.

Synergy has partnered with the Mauna Dhwani Foundation to set up sustainable livelihood centres in Odisha, which leverage tribal wisdom and crafts to create enduring eco-friendly products for use on merchant vessels.

The Mauna Dhwani Foundation is a not-for-profit social enterprise that aims to facilitate the revival and resurgence of personal and community identities by enabling the disenfranchised sections of society to find their voice and rightful place. The Foundation’s efforts are primarily focused on rehabilitation of women in marginalised communities through a holistic three-pronged methodology that includes:

  • self-empowerment
  • skill enhancement
  • sustainable livelihood

Our goal is to take this enterprise to 300 families over the next two years, enabling their craftswomen to create and maintain a sustainable livelihood, tackling extreme malnutrition with midday meals and supporting education for the children of these communities through an after-school programme.

Good Health and Wellbeing

SDG Goal 3 - Good Health & Well-being

This is a key topic at Synergy, with involvement in a great many initiatives. Here are just some of them.

 

Seeking to address the very serious issue of seafarers’ mental health, Synergy Marine Group created a counselling facility for all mariners i.e. not just Synergy personnel.

 

Launched in September 2018, iCALL is a free 24/7 psychological helpline for the worldwide maritime community. It is available in seven different languages and via phone, email, and the chat-based nULTA App.

This support is totally confidential and provided via 20 trained counsellors, all of whom have a relevant Master’s degree and have received further specialist training in (for example) emotional distress, relationship and family concerns, LGBT issues and work-life anxieties.


On a related theme ashore, Go2C has helped facilitate the purchase of two ambulances for Shraddha Rehabilitation Foundation, which helps with the problems faced by mentally ill roadside destitutes nationwide, rescuing, treating and counselling them and then reuniting them with their families, sometimes in different parts of the world.


Of all the senses, sight is surely the most important, and Go2C also supports Adarsha Community Development Service Trust, which focuses on empowerment of the visually impaired (INR 120,000 towards rent and voice recorders for eight inmates), and has helped upscale the Aloka Vision Programme, an entrepreneurial network whose support includes quality training in basic eyecare, screening and dispensing of spectacles.

Quality Education

SDG Goal 4 - Quality Education

Synergy has been helping with education in many and varied ways.

Chennai is one of India’s largest industrial and commercial cities, but just as for many other places those in its slums have little or no access to education.

Synergy Educational and Charitable Trust (SECT) has been helping to facilitate this in some of Chennai’s underprivileged communities. The Hope Foundation Matriculation School at Thoraipakkam gives free quality education to local children, and SECT provided benches and key materials for a safe drinking water supply.

SECT is also supporting fishing communities from Kottivakkam and Velachery which are suburbs of the coast city of Chennai. with after-school help from a qualified teacher, each supporting 60 children in a local community centre. Go2C sourced laptops for both locations.

Again as in many places, biodiversity education remains a challenge in India, with students losing opportunities to understand the significance of their surroundings, the value of local natural heritage and related wisdom on health and food security.

“Every Child a Scientist” is a concept developed by Professor M S Swaminathan in order to develop education in biodiversity by a tailored curriculum including classroom lectures, debates, discussions and field visits.

So far, over 120 students have taken part in this programme, and SECT serves in an advisory role and has sponsored related events.

Also, in helping Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups, Go2C raised INR 130,000 for a memorable exposure visit to Kerala for 18 teachers and accompanying staff from two tribal schools from remote Jharkhand.

Gender Equality

SDG Goal 5 - Gender Equality

The full UN title is “Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls”. Plainly recruitment is part of the start of that, and there is so much more. This is what Synergy is about, here.

Recruitment, and also retention, are critical to expansion everywhere, and this keystone supports increased employment of women across the Synergy Group and the many other tenets of gender equality. From autumn 2018-19 the company trebled female seafarers, with Captain Radhika Menon (winner of the 2016 IMO award for exceptional bravery at sea) specifically tasked with mentoring young women eager for a seafaring career.

Overall, the Synergy gender ratio ashore is near 50:50, but (despite a recruitment drive in the Philippines that resulted in the first female LNG carrier cadet) at sea it remains a very different story, and certainly with comparatively few female officers. The company wants at least to double the number annually, actively seeking simply the right people, and within a wider industry that has long recruited only men, a nonsensical, self-defeating tradition that bars about half the talent pool.

The Group has long been aware of the major cultural (and, in truth, comparatively minor operational) factors in play, and regards these as education issues, just like respect, equal opportunities and avoidance of discrimination.

Synergy seeks the right balance of male and female employees both ashore and at sea, within a culture that champions each of the above and all other facets of this SDG.

Synergy has partnered with the Mauna Dhwani Foundation to set up sustainable livelihood centres in Odisha, which leverage tribal wisdom and crafts to create enduring eco-friendly products for use on merchant vessels.

The Mauna Dhwani Foundation is a not-for-profit social enterprise that aims to facilitate the revival and resurgence of personal and community identities by enabling the disenfranchised sections of society to find their voice and rightful place. The Foundation’s efforts are primarily focused on rehabilitation of women in marginalised communities through a holistic three-pronged methodology that includes:

  • self-empowerment
  • skill enhancement
  • sustainable livelihood

Our goal is to take this enterprise to 300 families over the next two years, enabling their craftswomen to create and maintain a sustainable livelihood, tackling extreme malnutrition with midday meals and supporting education for the children of these communities through an after-school programme.

Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) are integral to the people strategy at Synergy, very simply because this is the right thing to do and it resonates with the ethos of the organisation in building a collaborative work environment.

The All Aboard Alliance brings together senior leaders from across the maritime industry, united by a collaborative drive towards increasing DEI in all organisations, at sea and on shore, and supported by Founding Knowledge Partners the Global Maritime Forum, the Diversity Study Group and Swiss Re.

Synergy fully supports the Alliance and is committed to pursuing the DEI journey in building an innovative and sustainable maritime sector of which all can be proud.

Clean Water and Sanitation

SDG Goal 6 - Clean Water and Sanitation

Wholesome drinking water and good sanitation are two of life’s basics, and both are core elements in Synergy Educational and Charitable Trust’s (SECT) close involvement with the integrated development of many of India’s Panchayats. These are remote communities organised under a village (and sometimes tribal) council, and which often need help with other things, too, such as environment conservation, healthcare, school infrastructure and wider access to education.

Focussing on empowerment, and after close consultation with the local people, SECT is helping tackle the identified priority needs of various Panchayats, in collaboration with the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation, together with the Trust for Village Self Governance, established by leading changemaker Elango Rangasamy.

For example, in the Thiruvallur district of Tamil Nadu, a development initiative was funded by SECT and dovetailed with multiple stakeholders. Engaging the regional workforce, and at an approximate cost of INR 12,500 each, this built 30 toilets at Adigathur Panchayat, with 30 more scheduled, and 51 at Chithukadu.

Also, after research and investigation, a detailed supply system was drawn up for Chithukadu. A great many borewells were then commissioned, drilled and each connected to six storage tanks, with dispensing systems to help provide dedicated, clean drinking water just a few steps from each household.

Affordable and Clean Energy

SDG Goal 7 & 11 - Affordable and Clean Energy

We cannot directly influence the weather, but we can meet its effects with technology for creating alternative energy sources and re-establishing community sustainability.

No rivers rise in the Tuljapur region of Marathwada, which receives 30% less rainfall than the national average. Since 2014 it has seen consistent cash and subsistence crop failure, grave hardship, widespread suicide among farmers and forced migration.

A solar farming model called Bloomsday Clock is helping, by turning even long drought to advantage. Using land to harvest free and abundant sunlight ensures sustained supplemental funding for farming communities, and mitigates low income from lean agricultural yield. Also, annually saving around 6.6 million litres of water compared to an equivalent thermal source, it helps conserve local supplies while contributing power to the regional grid.

It also means increased electricity to power local irrigation systems and support the needs of other nearby businesses, and also for domestic use, hence less reduction or cutting of supply to ease demand on conventional generating.

Go2C has been advising and assisting the Bloomsday Clock Solar Farm model by helping it secure leads on funding. For example, saving Bloomsday about INR 10 million, Go2C arranged for their Detailed Project Report to be prepared by India’s largest power generating company, Tata Power, and also helped secure specialists in presenting Bloomsday’s funding proposal.

Synergy is also part of the Getting to Zero Coalition, a partnership between the Global Maritime Forum and the World Economic Forum that brings together decision-makers from across the maritime, energy, infrastructure and finance sectors to commit to the vision of advancing Zero Emission Fuels, to support the transformational change towards a decarbonized, sustainable and affordable shipping industry.

Our CEO Capt. Rajesh Unni was recently elected as a new member of the Global Maritime Forum Board of Directors.

Synergy has partnered with next generation battery developer Alsym Energy and Japan’s largest ship owner Nissen Kaiun so that we will have non-flammable rechargeable batteries on managed vessels. These will further reduce emissions and also insurance costs, and will lessen risks for crew, cargo and vessel.

Decent Work and Economic Growth

SDG Goal 8 - Decent Work and Economic Growth

We must all help in removing bars to opportunity and fetters on personal development.

The 2015-16 All India Survey of Higher Education showed that young undergraduate enrolment was no more than 25%, with poor formative schooling and lack of funding for higher education surely among the main reasons for that.

Synergy Educational and Charitable Trust (SECT) offers interest-free loans to help some students overcome these difficulties, as part of a scholarship programme that selects young men and women according to ability and need and helps fund study for a maritime career.

For 2018-19, SECT supported five candidates towards becoming rating or officer cadets. These were selected from all over India, overseen by the Synergy Marine Group recruitment structure and with involvement of external industry partners.

Looking slightly further ahead, Go2C advises and also gives practical help to an organisation called Citizens for Public Leadership.

CPL is a wholly apolitical and not-for-profit organisation whose sole objective is to ready our young people for the leadership challenges of public life. Operating via the learning community of an innovative fellowship programme, CPL first offers the next generation a global perspective by interaction with high quality thought leaders who expose them to the scope and challenges of the real world. It then seeks to prepare them by developing a detailed understanding of the public arena, alongside competencies that transcend the public-private sector divide.

Synergy has partnered with the Mauna Dhwani Foundation to set up sustainable livelihood centres in Odisha, which leverage tribal wisdom and crafts to create enduring eco-friendly products for use on merchant vessels.

The Mauna Dhwani Foundation is a not-for-profit social enterprise that aims to facilitate the revival and resurgence of personal and community identities by enabling the disenfranchised sections of society to find their voice and rightful place. The Foundation’s efforts are primarily focused on rehabilitation of women in marginalised communities through a holistic three-pronged methodology that includes:

  • self-empowerment
  • skill enhancement
  • sustainable livelihood

Our goal is to take this enterprise to 300 families over the next two years, enabling their craftswomen to create and maintain a sustainable livelihood, tackling extreme malnutrition with midday meals and supporting education for the children of these communities through an after-school programme.

Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) are integral to the people strategy at Synergy, very simply because this is the right thing to do and it resonates with the ethos of the organisation in building a collaborative work environment.

The All Aboard Alliance brings together senior leaders from across the maritime industry, united by a collaborative drive towards increasing DEI in all organisations, at sea and on shore, and supported by Founding Knowledge Partners the Global Maritime Forum, the Diversity Study Group and Swiss Re.

Synergy fully supports the Alliance and is committed to pursuing the DEI journey in building an innovative and sustainable maritime sector of which all can be proud.

Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure

SDG Goal 9 - Industry Innovation and Infrastructure & Sustainable cities and communities

Synergy is very closely involved in all three.

At sea, the first two are captured in SmartShip, an internet-based platform for remote onboard monitoring and support. SmartShip is a digital solution for data collection and operational advice, which collates material from the vessel’s systems and displays it in order to assist both crew and managers in safe and optimal decision-making.

Ashore, through Synergy Educational and Charitable Trust (SECT) and Go2C Synergy has been helping to address one of India’s core infrastructure issues – the lack of acceptable urban housing.

Rapid economic growth in a developing country leads to progressive urbanisation fuelled by continued internal migration, and with limited resources there is acute pressure on basic amenities such as power, water, sanitation and most of all housing. The 2022 urban shortage is projected as 30 million homes, with a huge number already enduring informal settlements and slums. Founded in 2015, Indian Housing Federation (IHF) is a not-for-profit organisation that gives low-income communities access to suitable housing. It has established a network of key stakeholders in making decent, affordable dwellings a reality for the urban poor by encouraging creative dialogue and helping implement solutions through partnered development.

Go2C helped IHF to found a housing mission to create access to multiple housing options in Haryana, setting up an initial INR 300,000 as the core fund to begin construction of proper and affordable homes, with a further 900,000 provided directly by SECT.

Synergy has partnered with next generation battery developer Alsym Energy and Japan’s largest ship owner Nissen Kaiun so that we will have non-flammable rechargeable batteries on managed vessels. These will further reduce emissions and also insurance costs, and will lessen risks for crew, cargo and vessel.

Reduced Inequalities

SDG Goal 10 & 16 - Reducing Inequality and Peace Justice and Strong Institutions

The Railway Children is an endearing story about an Edwardian London family who go to live near a train line in Yorkshire.

But in India this phrase suggests something very different. Hundreds of youngsters run from home daily and are found wandering around rail stations nationwide, most destined for a life on perilous streets and many becoming victims of trafficking, drug peddling, child labour and other abuse.

Society for Children (SOCH) is a non-profit organisation established in 2012, which seeks to rescue, counsel, rehabilitate and where possible resettle missing and runaway children found at main railway stations in the eastern state of Odisha. It also helps working and begging children, and those on the verge of involvement in more serious activities.

SOCH has built a strong network among railway employees and other stakeholders, such as the National Crime Records Bureau, the Indian Railway Protection Force, the Union Ministry of Child Development and the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights.

Outreach initiatives on station platforms can lead to a rescue, after which the child receives any necessary first aid, and food and better clothing. Investigation of background then follows, as part of a process of specialist counselling, before the child is reunited with family or given institutional care and protection.

When SOCH came to our attention, Go2C helped to raise USD 3,500 from Yale University alumni to meet yearly expenses for the schooling, health and general wellbeing of 13 rescued girls.

Synergy has partnered with the Mauna Dhwani Foundation to set up sustainable livelihood centres in Odisha, which leverage tribal wisdom and crafts to create enduring eco-friendly products for use on merchant vessels.

The Mauna Dhwani Foundation is a not-for-profit social enterprise that aims to facilitate the revival and resurgence of personal and community identities by enabling the disenfranchised sections of society to find their voice and rightful place. The Foundation’s efforts are primarily focused on rehabilitation of women in marginalised communities through a holistic three-pronged methodology that includes:

self-empowerment
skill enhancement
sustainable livelihood

Our goal is to take this enterprise to 300 families over the next two years, enabling their craftswomen to create and maintain a sustainable livelihood, tackling extreme malnutrition with midday meals and supporting education for the children of these communities through an after-school programme.

Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) are integral to the people strategy at Synergy, very simply because this is the right thing to do and it resonates with the ethos of the organisation in building a collaborative work environment.

The All Aboard Alliance brings together senior leaders from across the maritime industry, united by a collaborative drive towards increasing DEI in all organisations, at sea and on shore, and supported by Founding Knowledge Partners the Global Maritime Forum, the Diversity Study Group and Swiss Re.

Synergy fully supports the Alliance and is committed to pursuing the DEI journey in building an innovative and sustainable maritime sector of which all can be proud.

Sustainable Cities and Communities

SDG Goal 7 & 11 - Affordable and Clean Energy

We cannot directly influence the weather, but we can meet its effects with technology for creating alternative energy sources and re-establishing community sustainability.

No rivers rise in the Tuljapur region of Marathwada, which receives 30% less rainfall than the national average. Since 2014 it has seen consistent cash and subsistence crop failure, grave hardship, widespread suicide among farmers and forced migration.

A solar farming model called Bloomsday Clock is helping, by turning even long drought to advantage. Using land to harvest free and abundant sunlight ensures sustained supplemental funding for farming communities, and mitigates low income from lean agricultural yield. Also, annually saving around 6.6 million litres of water compared to an equivalent thermal source, it helps conserve local supplies while contributing power to the regional grid.

It also means increased electricity to power local irrigation systems and support the needs of other nearby businesses, and also for domestic use, hence less reduction or cutting of supply to ease demand on conventional generating.

Go2C has been advising and assisting the Bloomsday Clock Solar Farm model by helping it secure leads on funding. For example, saving Bloomsday about INR 10 million, Go2C arranged for their Detailed Project Report to be prepared by India’s largest power generating company, Tata Power, and also helped secure specialists in presenting Bloomsday’s funding proposal.

Synergy is also part of the Getting to Zero Coalition, a partnership between the Global Maritime Forum and the World Economic Forum that brings together decision-makers from across the maritime, energy, infrastructure and finance sectors to commit to the vision of advancing Zero Emission Fuels, to support the transformational change towards a decarbonized, sustainable and affordable shipping industry.

Our CEO Capt. Rajesh Unni was recently elected as a new member of the Global Maritime Forum Board of Directors.

Synergy has partnered with next generation battery developer Alsym Energy and Japan’s largest ship owner Nissen Kaiun so that we will have non-flammable rechargeable batteries on managed vessels. These will further reduce emissions and also insurance costs, and will lessen risks for crew, cargo and vessel.

Responsible Consumption and Production

SDG Goal 12 - Responsible Consumption and Production

ESTAH Society is a collective that works on projects in support of farmers and other food producers, with a strong focus on rural entrepreneurship, and SECT has helped ESTAH to purchase a Euro PowerTrac Tractor with a contribution of Rs 7 lakhs.

It is the responsibility of us all to preserve and maintain the oceans on which our businesses – and our planet – depend. With that in mind, in 2021 we pledged that our 500+ fleet of vessels would work with the International Marine Purchasing Association (IMPA) to help reduce the almost one billion litres of drinking water delivered to the global shipping fleet each year, which generates more than 40 tons of waste bottles.

IMPA SAVE addresses the global marine plastic and micro-plastic problem systemically, by for example seeking to minimise single-use water bottles to support the UN 2030 agenda, primarily concentrating on carbon reduction, environmental protection and preservation and reducing consumption of resources.

Climate Action

SDG Goal 13, 14 - Climate Action and Life below water

The full titles of these SDGs are respectively “Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts” and “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.”

Two concepts more directly relevant to the maritime world would be hard to find.

Floods, typhoons and wildfires are increasingly common as proof of climate change, whose immediate reversal is an absolute priority, and the April 2018 agreement to at least halve shipping’s greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 was hailed as a major industry breakthrough.

Believing that innovation in tackling climate change is part of any modern and responsible company’s duties, Synergy Group is a founding member of the Getting to Zero Coalition. This is an alliance of over 80 public and private sector bodies committed to decarbonisation of international shipping. It follows IMO strategy on reducing greenhouse gases, but with an even more ambitious goal of powering all deep sea vessels by commercially viable zero emission fuel by 2030.

1 January 2020 was the IMO compliance deadline for capping sulphur in bunker fuel, for which the maritime industry had long been planning, and is now using either new blends or scrubbers in order to meet the SOx emission controls.

Synergy started charting a course towards a greener future long before then, with a special projects team working on several innovative design concepts, seeking continually to improve the efficiency of its operations and to develop more collaboration in further reducing pollution and lessening waste and resource use.

It is the responsibility of us all to preserve and maintain the oceans on which our businesses – and our planet – depend. With that in mind, in 2021 we pledged that our 500+ fleet of vessels would work with the International Marine Purchasing Association (IMPA) to help reduce the almost one billion litres of drinking water delivered to the global shipping fleet each year, which generates more than 40 tons of waste bottles.

IMPA SAVE addresses the global marine plastic and micro-plastic problem systemically, by for example seeking to minimise single-use water bottles to support the UN 2030 agenda, primarily concentrating on carbon reduction, environmental protection and preservation and reducing consumption of resources.

Synergy has partnered with next generation battery developer Alsym Energy and Japan’s largest ship owner Nissen Kaiun so that we will have non-flammable rechargeable batteries on managed vessels. These will further reduce emissions and also insurance costs, and will lessen risks for crew, cargo and vessel.

Life Below Water

SDG Goal 13, 14 - Climate Action and Life below water

The full titles of these SDGs are respectively “Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts” and “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.”

Two concepts more directly relevant to the maritime world would be hard to find.

Floods, typhoons and wildfires are increasingly common as proof of climate change, whose immediate reversal is an absolute priority, and the April 2018 agreement to at least halve shipping’s greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 was hailed as a major industry breakthrough.

Believing that innovation in tackling climate change is part of any modern and responsible company’s duties, Synergy Group is a founding member of the Getting to Zero Coalition. This is an alliance of over 80 public and private sector bodies committed to decarbonisation of international shipping. It follows IMO strategy on reducing greenhouse gases, but with an even more ambitious goal of powering all deep sea vessels by commercially viable zero emission fuel by 2030.

1 January 2020 was the IMO compliance deadline for capping sulphur in bunker fuel, for which the maritime industry had long been planning, and is now using either new blends or scrubbers in order to meet the SOx emission controls.

Synergy started charting a course towards a greener future long before then, with a special projects team working on several innovative design concepts, seeking continually to improve the efficiency of its operations and to develop more collaboration in further reducing pollution and lessening waste and resource use.

It is the responsibility of us all to preserve and maintain the oceans on which our businesses – and our planet – depend. With that in mind, in 2021 we pledged that our 500+ fleet of vessels would work with the International Marine Purchasing Association (IMPA) to help reduce the almost one billion litres of drinking water delivered to the global shipping fleet each year, which generates more than 40 tons of waste bottles.

IMPA SAVE addresses the global marine plastic and micro-plastic problem systemically, by for example seeking to minimise single-use water bottles to support the UN 2030 agenda, primarily concentrating on carbon reduction, environmental protection and preservation and reducing consumption of resources.

Synergy has partnered with next generation battery developer Alsym Energy and Japan’s largest ship owner Nissen Kaiun so that we will have non-flammable rechargeable batteries on managed vessels. These will further reduce emissions and also insurance costs, and will lessen risks for crew, cargo and vessel.

Life on Land

SDG Goal 15

Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.

Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

SDG Goal 10 & 16 - Reducing Inequality and Peace Justice and Strong Institutions

The Railway Children is an endearing story about an Edwardian London family who go to live near a train line in Yorkshire.

But in India this phrase suggests something very different. Hundreds of youngsters run from home daily and are found wandering around rail stations nationwide, most destined for a life on perilous streets and many becoming victims of trafficking, drug peddling, child labour and other abuse.

Society for Children (SOCH) is a non-profit organisation established in 2012, which seeks to rescue, counsel, rehabilitate and where possible resettle missing and runaway children found at main railway stations in the eastern state of Odisha. It also helps working and begging children, and those on the verge of involvement in more serious activities.

SOCH has built a strong network among railway employees and other stakeholders, such as the National Crime Records Bureau, the Indian Railway Protection Force, the Union Ministry of Child Development and the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights.

Outreach initiatives on station platforms can lead to a rescue, after which the child receives any necessary first aid, and food and better clothing. Investigation of background then follows, as part of a process of specialist counselling, before the child is reunited with family or given institutional care and protection.

When SOCH came to our attention, Go2C helped to raise USD 3,500 from Yale University alumni to meet yearly expenses for the schooling, health and general wellbeing of 13 rescued girls.

Synergy has partnered with the Mauna Dhwani Foundation to set up sustainable livelihood centres in Odisha, which leverage tribal wisdom and crafts to create enduring eco-friendly products for use on merchant vessels.

The Mauna Dhwani Foundation is a not-for-profit social enterprise that aims to facilitate the revival and resurgence of personal and community identities by enabling the disenfranchised sections of society to find their voice and rightful place. The Foundation’s efforts are primarily focused on rehabilitation of women in marginalised communities through a holistic three-pronged methodology that includes:

self-empowerment
skill enhancement
sustainable livelihood

Our goal is to take this enterprise to 300 families over the next two years, enabling their craftswomen to create and maintain a sustainable livelihood, tackling extreme malnutrition with midday meals and supporting education for the children of these communities through an after-school programme.

Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) are integral to the people strategy at Synergy, very simply because this is the right thing to do and it resonates with the ethos of the organisation in building a collaborative work environment.

The All Aboard Alliance brings together senior leaders from across the maritime industry, united by a collaborative drive towards increasing DEI in all organisations, at sea and on shore, and supported by Founding Knowledge Partners the Global Maritime Forum, the Diversity Study Group and Swiss Re.

Synergy fully supports the Alliance and is committed to pursuing the DEI journey in building an innovative and sustainable maritime sector of which all can be proud.

Partnerships for the Goals

SDG Goal 17 Partnerships for the Goals

This SDG emphasises linkage with other industry stakeholders.

As part of Shell Partners for Safety we seek a Zero Incident Industry, with no harm and no LOPC or other loss across all our operations. We ensure that everyone has the necessary training and skills, and our safety experts network widely in order to share and implement best practices worldwide.

Our RightShip partner is the world’s leading organisation in maritime risk management and environmental assessment, and their key mission is to improve the safety and environmental sustainability of the maritime industry.

Synergy has also partnered with MIT to conduct research on carbon capture.

This involves technologies that reduce emissions by “capturing” CO2 before it is released into the atmosphere and then transporting it to storage for later use. It is unique in climate change mitigation in dealing directly with fossil fuels, rather than providing alternatives.

iCall was launched in 2018 in partnership with the TATA Institute of Social Sciences, and is part of a vision to create a free and readily accessible service for mental wellbeing and a sound environment on board, where mental health is prioritised, seeking help is normalised and discrimination and stigma banished.

MACN is the Marine Anti-Corruption Network. Synergy became a member in early 2020, having long dealt with many oil majors and other owner and operator members. Synergy was thus already fully conversant with all MACN requirements and guidelines, and is training all employees accordingly as part of its total commitment to eradicating corruption.

As a leading ship manager, we intimately understand the importance of delivering consistent and quality services to our clients. As a member of “The International Association of Dry Cargo Shipowners” (INTERCARGO), we represent the interests of our dry cargo shipowner-clients in developing and implementing strategies to enhance the maritime industry’s standards of safety, quality, the environment, and operational excellence. INTERCARGO has NGO consultative status at the International Maritime Organization (a United Nations specialized agency) and is a prominent voice representing the dry bulk sector in many other fora.

Synergy Marine Group is a member of The International Maritime Employers’ Council (IMEC), the world’s only organisation dedicated to maritime industrial relations.

Synergy is also part of the Getting to Zero Coalition, a partnership between the Global Maritime Forum and the World Economic Forum that brings together decision-makers from across the maritime, energy, infrastructure and finance sectors to commit to the vision of advancing Zero Emission Fuels, to support the transformational change towards a decarbonized, sustainable and affordable shipping industry.

Our CEO Capt. Rajesh Unni was recently elected as a new member of the Global Maritime Forum Board of Directors.

Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) are integral to the people strategy at Synergy, very simply because this is the right thing to do and it resonates with the ethos of the organisation in building a collaborative work environment.

The All Aboard Alliance brings together senior leaders from across the maritime industry, united by a collaborative drive towards increasing DEI in all organisations, at sea and on shore, and supported by Founding Knowledge Partners the Global Maritime Forum, the Diversity Study Group and Swiss Re.

Synergy fully supports the Alliance and is committed to pursuing the DEI journey in building an innovative and sustainable maritime sector of which all can be proud.

Synergy has partnered with the Mauna Dhwani Foundation to set up sustainable livelihood centres in Odisha, which leverage tribal wisdom and crafts to create enduring eco-friendly products for use on merchant vessels.

The Mauna Dhwani Foundation is a not-for-profit social enterprise that aims to facilitate the revival and resurgence of personal and community identities by enabling the disenfranchised sections of society to find their voice and rightful place. The Foundation’s efforts are primarily focused on rehabilitation of women in marginalised communities through a holistic three-pronged methodology that includes:

self-empowerment
skill enhancement
sustainable livelihood

Our goal is to take this enterprise to 300 families over the next two years, enabling their craftswomen to create and maintain a sustainable livelihood, tackling extreme malnutrition with midday meals and supporting education for the children of these communities through an after-school programme.

It is the responsibility of us all to preserve and maintain the oceans on which our businesses – and our planet – depend. With that in mind, in 2021 we pledged that our 500+ fleet of vessels would work with the International Marine Purchasing Association (IMPA) to help reduce the almost one billion litres of drinking water delivered to the global shipping fleet each year, which generates more than 40 tons of waste bottles.

IMPA SAVE addresses the global marine plastic and micro-plastic problem systemically, by for example seeking to minimise single-use water bottles to support the UN 2030 agenda, primarily concentrating on carbon reduction, environmental protection and preservation and reducing consumption of resources.

Synergy has partnered with next generation battery developer Alsym Energy and Japan’s largest ship owner Nissen Kaiun so that we will have non-flammable rechargeable batteries on managed vessels. These will further reduce emissions and also insurance costs, and will lessen risks for crew, cargo and vessel.

The shipping industry transports more than one third of the value of global trade, providing more than four million jobs, and faces a host of regulations and stakeholder expectations for safe operations. Synergy is a member of the Container Ship Safety Forum, a platform for identifying improvements in safety management systems through measuring, reporting and benchmarking, sharing best practices and engaging with key stakeholders to develop durable solutions and ensuring that no harm is caused to people, vessels, cargoes or the environment.

Synergy Logo

Getting to Zero

Synergy Marine Group is a member of The Getting to Zero Coalition, dedicated to launching zero-emission deep-sea vessels by 2030 and achieving full decarbonisation by 2050. The Global Maritime Forum, in collaboration with the World Economic Forum and Friends of Ocean Action, founded and manages the Coalition.

MACN

Synergy Marine Group is part of the Maritime Anti-Corruption Network (MACN), a global initiative striving for a corruption-free maritime industry, promoting fair trade for the greater societal good.

INTERCARGO

Synergy Marine Group is a part of INTERCARGO, an association championing safe, efficient, and eco-friendly shipping. INTERCARGO collaborates with the International Maritime Organization and other global entities to shape maritime legislation.

IMEC

Synergy Marine Group is part of IMEC, a top maritime employers’ group championing fair and sustainable labor practices. Representing global employers, IMEC negotiates seafarers’ wages and conditions, and invests in workforce development.

IMPA

Synergy Marine Group is involved in IMPA Save’s initiative to reduce single-use water bottles at sea. The IMPA SAVE council comprises top global shipowners and suppliers, representing over 8000 vessels with significant combined purchasing influence.

All Aboard

Synergy Marine Group is a key participant in The All Aboard Alliance’s Diversity@Sea initiative. As one of eleven prominent maritime companies, we aim to foster inclusivity at sea and directly address challenges faced by women seafarers.

CSSF

Synergy Marine Group is part of the Container Ship Safety Forum (CSSF), a global B2B network dedicated to enhancing safety and management standards in the container shipping sector.

Danish Shipping

Synergy Marine Group is affiliated with Danske Rederier, the primary industry and employers’ association for Danish shipping—Denmark’s top export sector. Danske Rederier actively engages with authorities and policymakers both domestically and globally.