What inspired you to work for Peace Boat & GET Universal?
I first heard about Peace Boat after having returned to New York City from a year abroad in India. I was on the 2/3 express train and met a former participant and we struck up a conversation about not only my year in India, but the three years I served in the United States Peace Corps in West Africa.
She thought Peace Boat should be on my bucket list and years later, after having learned about the number of humanitarian initiatives that Peace Boat was involved with—including their unique three month around the world voyages—I thought I should set some serious intentions in that direction.
First I applied to a Rotary World Peace Fellowship and attended grad school in Japan. Then two years later a Peace Fellow friend, Zach, reminded me about Peace Boat while we were working at a Summer Camp, so I applied and the rest is history. I really enjoy hands-on, team-based experiences around the world with humanitarian aspirations, and this has been a great fit over the past several years.
Describe a typical day at work.
On the ship, it's usually sunrise Tai-chi or some nordic walking out on the open deck. Then a staff meeting followed by breakfast outside in the sunshine before the day's activities get underway. That means checking on GET Street, our language school, and then checking on individual and group classes throughout the ship.
There are also lectures to attend—some of which I host. If there’s time I squeeze in band practice, a 5km run on the treadmill, lunch, more work activities, and a team meeting. Then dinner in the main dining room followed by drinks and karaoke or a larger event onboard, or possibly a movie and/or get together.
An onboard play done with Passengers and GET students and staff aboard Peace Boat's 86th Global Voyage.
Why do you do what you do?
It fuels my heart to be connecting with people from around the world linked through humanitarian activities. I cannot say how many people have been positively touched by the work that we do, but I see it making a positive difference in many lives.
Perhaps not on a grand scale - but rather on a more person-to-person level, whether that be people who benefit from disaster relief initiatives or atomic bomb survivors being able to have their stories broadcast live in ports around the world.
I occasionally see individuals who maybe never wanted to leave their rooms, yet they took a leap of faith and, with some push from family members, got out there and tried to grow through their challenges and it has created positive transformation.
I see people finding things that open their hearts and minds to a better future with a lot of positive communication, and that's why I do what I do. I am performing only a very small part in this organization that does a lot of good—with the combination of my effort and countless other efforts from fellow team members.
What is your favorite part of your job?
My short answer is getting my teaching teams up to speed, and then celebrating the community that we create both onboard and in ports. Some of my favorite parts are the music and dancing aboard the ship.
It seems like there are often frequent reasons to dance or sing as part of daily life on the ship, sometimes much more than I have found on land. It's kind of a work-hard/play-hard community where you get out what you put into it, and I try to put in a lot.
How do you use your education and international background in your current role?
I bring all of my experiences to date to the ship—from TESOL, to Peace Studies, to French Language and literature, team leading, and international development. All of my experience is relevant and there are countless opportunities to learn more while at sea from not only VIP guest educators, but also fellow passengers and staff as well.
Christopher Lindstrom enjoying a visit to Ushuaia Port, at the southernmost tip of Argentina.
What challenges do you often face and how do you overcome them?
It's easy to lose balance onboard and to get a little cabin fever. Naps, fresh air, exercise, good hydration, and nutrition are crucial to maintaining oneself on board the ship while at sea.
It's also important to support staff members when they get rundown or tired and work together to create comradery and support at all times. If I am down at the same time as my staff, this can be particularly challenging.
As such, one thing I do for the first month is to focus solely on work and healthy functioning before I celebrate too much with my staff on board. This helps me to maintain my energy by not playing too hard, so to speak, at the beginning of the voyage at sea.
What are some current projects you are working on?
We are currently revamping all of our training materials in preparation for a new voyage on our newest ship, which is really exciting. GPPAC, a global peace network associated with Peace Boat, is hosting free peace coursework and I am looking forward to participating in their Peace and Conflict Resolution curriculum.
In addition, I am a Rotarian working on Polio Eradication initiatives while also sponsoring a Haitian high school student with his studies at home.
What advice would you tell your pre-travel self?
Be sure to put together a variety of lectures ahead of time to share with the greater ship community, learn a bunch of songs to perform on the ship, and stay in shape to start the journey on a strong footing.
I think for my next voyage I would like to incorporate book reading into my routine, which some of my teachers have found particularly helpful. I love reading, but never incorporated that into my shipboard life.
I also would tell my pre-travel self to look ahead at that itinerary for opportunities to liaise with friends and like-minded souls around the world, which oftentimes takes time and planning in order to get it done just right.
Why should someone choose Peace Boat and GET Universal over competitors?
We do not have competitors per se. There are for-profit luxury cruise options for passengers that offer around-the-world cruises and there are smaller community minded ship experiences, but this is quite a unique opportunity to travel, contribute, learn, and teach on board to a captive audience of 1,500-plus individuals.
Staff and participants enjoying a back deck party on the MV Ocean Dream.
How is your organization handling Covid protocols? What should participants know about your Covid readiness? How are you assisting participants with navigating the new travel landscape?
Our program has been on hold for a long time due to Covid and the country protocols here in place in Japan. Our organization is part of a maritime industry-wide discussion and we are always updating and implementing best practices into our framework and sharing that online. This is an ongoing discussion and mission.
What hopes do you have for the future for your organization?
I hope the organization becomes even more diverse in the future. It is quite Asia-centric which is culturally rich and wonderful unto itself. However, I believe peace - which is the overall mission - needs a diverse population at the table, along the lines of the United Nations.
Our founder also hopes to bring the world's most eco-friendly ship to date to Peace Boat because we campaign for the Climate through the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. I know this could set an example for the industry in the future and that has been one of my motivations to remain in order to see that unfold during my time here.
What is your organization's mission and how do you continue to work toward it?
Peace Boat’s activities onboard and in port empower participants, strengthen local capacity for sustainability, and build people-to-people cooperation beyond borders. The voyages - run on a social business model - blend sustainable tourism, lifelong learning, and friendship activities with educational programs, cooperative projects, and advocacy.
Peace Boat carries out its activities in partnership and as a member of many networks, such as the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC), the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), the International Peace Bureau, and Japan Campaign to Ban Landmines to mention a few.
I get involved in study groups, I host guest speakers onboard, and arrange lectures and opportunities for interaction between groups such as these, our passengers, and even guests in ports of call around the world.
Some translators called Communication Coordinators aka CCs on Peace Boat during an event.
What do you hope participants take away from your programs?
One thing I hope participants take away from their three-month journey around the world with us is joy, pure and simple. For many, this is a trip of a lifetime, with friends, family, or even individuals looking to have a fresh start or new perspectives and community.
In addition, I would love for fellow passengers to become better informed on topics crucial to the future health and betterment of our planet and society overall. I hope people find the best versions of themselves onboard and reasons to be excited to be alive.
Why is it important for people to travel abroad and experience new cultures?
There is so much ignorance and fear out there and one easy way to dispel that is by meeting others and experiencing life through their eyes and their communities and cultures. If we only step into other people's shoes for a moment, we can deepen our empathy for one another.
Empathy, I believe, can be more readily obtained through considerate and thoughtful travel abroad.
Why do you think learning a new language is important?
Language is a bridge to different cultures and to a different way of thinking and seeing the world. My father always tells a story of when I took him and my brothers to a Malian restaurant in Harlem and, upon arrival, the environment was less than enthusiastic.
However, when I greeted everyone in Bambara, the place lit up like a warm home and we had great smiles and laughs together in the company of new friends.
What does meaningful travel mean to you?
Meaningful travel for me is going abroad with a positive purpose. It might be for personal growth, helping others, contributing, etc. Perhaps giving something back to the place you're going makes it meaningful and/or sharing that place with others so as to dispel fear and ignorance.
I always like to travel on an education-based program with service learning at the heart of my travel. I especially like doing this with faculty and students, because I see positive transformations within a short amount of time. I see relationships being made, especially within a rural versus a city context.
I think it is important to have people unplug from their technology and have them instead plug into the life and the way of living of others during their short times away from home. This is where I see the most magic take place.
