Station 2’s Grace Timney (front row – third from left) recently travelled to Sydney, Australia to represent RCMSAR at the International Maritime Rescue Federation’s WomenInSAR training. Grace has been a member of Station 2 North Vancouver since December 2021, and is a crew member, training officer, station operations assistant, and a CISM peer. Grace kindly offered to share her reflections with all of us.
In August, I had the opportunity to participate in the International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF) WomenInSAR Training in Sydney, hosted by IMRF and Marine Rescue New South Wales (MRNSW). The three-day seminar brought together 15 participants from Canada (RCMSAR and CCGA-CA), Australia, Estonia, France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, and New Zealand. The training included content on leadership, SAR methods, and guest speakers from maritime and SAR leaders. We also spent a full day of exercises on the water, including time offshore and in Sydney Harbour with MRNSW and the NSW Police Marine Area Command.
Participating in the WomenInSAR Training was a truly incredible experience. Spending time alongside these other volunteers from around the world deepened my respect for marine SAR volunteerism on a global scale, from the quiet, steadfast professionalism that each participant brought to the table. It was initially daunting to be among such an accomplished group, but that feeling quickly gave way with the authentic bonds of connection and purpose built almost immediately. Walking into a MRNSW base and seeing the familiar words “saving lives on the water” was a powerful reminder that, regardless of geography, we’re all working towards the same objective.
Although many shared similar stories of challenges, what resonated more were the tangible examples of women operationally benefitting SAR — sometimes bringing different thought processes, strengthening crew dynamics, or even providing a safer presence for subjects during certain taskings. We had lots of conversations on representation and what it means to truly sustain progress for underrepresented groups in the industry. It’s not enough for women to just be present in SAR today — what matters is creating a space that ensures others will follow.
This can also have an intersectional benefit. Like so many accessibility measures, similar initiatives that benefit women in SAR can also support other underrepresented groups to get in the door, and often, it’s hard to notice who’s missing from the table. We also recognized that the work of change is collective. Many of us are where we are today thanks to encouragement and mentorship from men, sometimes because there were no women in those spaces yet to play that role. Progress doesn’t happen in isolation, and everyone working together to lift all ships is how we build a stronger, more representative SAR community for the future.