How To Understand Global Shipping, Trade Routes and Why Ships Get Stuck

A little over a year ago a ship called the Ever Given got stuck in the Suez Canal and blocked off an estimated 12 percent of the world's trade for weeks. Billions of dollars were lost. Last month, another ship called the Ever Forward ran aground while departing the docks in Baltimore. Both ships were owned by the same company and while this latest mishap did not block off a line of ships behind it, the situations do seem like something we should be paying attention to. But how worried should we be?

Seeking an answer to this question, I came across a video channel called What’s Going on With Shipping? that went viral during the Ever Given crisis last year. If you want to understand how shipping actually works, why we should be worried about the grounding of the Ever Forward and why these problems all seem to be happening now, I highly suggest reading this illuminating article and watching some of this video content.

As channel founder and maritime historian Sal Mercogliano writes, "we are a nation suffering from sea blindness" and his goal is to inspire "greater understanding, appreciation, and recognition of the maritime sector to everyone." It's hard to argue with that mission.