To mark International Women’s Day, the Celebrity Edge will set sail with a bridge and officer crew of women from 17 countries
The luxury cruise liner, Celebrity Cruises will set sail with a historic all-female bridge and leadership crew to mark International Women’s Day, on March 8, 2020. Kate McCue, the first North American female cruise ship captain will be at the helm of the brand’s newest and award-winning ship, Celebrity Edge in charge of 26 other women from 17 countries to create an all-female bridge and officer leadership team. The team will be joined by Celebrity’s President and CEO Lisa Lutoff-Perlo.C
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Celebrity Edge – Leading women of the world
To mark the special occasion, Celebrity Cruises has also created special programming that includes gallery exhibitions and auctions of works by female artists celebrating the female form; collaboration on an exclusive design with luxury jewelry designer Reout Kallati; movie screenings featuring top female directors and lead actresses; as well as activities on the Celebrity Edge such as trivia challenges themed on leading women of the world, a pool volleyball tournament between the female officers and guests, and a Q&A panel with the ship’s female leadership team.
“We are all passionate about closing the gender gap,” said Lutoff-Perlo. “Over the last few years, we have worked hard to diversify the crew on board and bring more women than ever into our industry. None of this could have been possible without the leadership and shared vision of the extraordinary men and women I work with every day, led by Patrik Dahlgren and Brian Abel – who take this challenge to heart and have made it possible. We are fortunate to have many incredible, experienced and beyond-qualified women who have worked tirelessly to achieve these positions. And we also celebrate the many men who continue to support them and help champion having more women crew onboard.”
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The number of women on the bridge has increased from 3% to 22% within five years
Uri Schnabel, CEO of Sunoroma Tourist Services, the exclusive representative in Israel of Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises’ sister company, said: “We are proud to be leading the way in narrowing the gender gap and we will continue to place women in key positions. The announcement of the first cruise with an all-female bridge and leadership team is very exciting and is a historic milestone for us.”
Senior Vice President of Global Marine Operations for Royal Caribbean, Patrik Dahlgren added: “Since 2015, we have raised the percentage of qualified women on our navigational bridges from 3% to 22%. Now, we hope this all-time industry-high will continue to grow; we just need more women to raise their hands for careers at sea, especially in engineering.”
“Excitement does not even begin to describe how I’m feeling about working alongside these incredible, barrier-breaking women on Celebrity Edge for this truly historic sailing,” said Captain Kate McCue. “I am inspired every day by the amazing women we have working throughout this organization – both on land and at sea. They’re proof that there’s power in diversity.”
Celebrity Cruises is planning further special programming, including a discussion panel with special guests such as artist and child prodigy Autumn de Forest and fashion designer Mary Frances already confirmed.
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