Every week, CargoForwarder Global’s ‘Spotlight On…’ brings a different part of the air cargo industry to the fore to show the multitude of careers that are possible here. With such a segmented industry where collaboration is key to ensuring the smooth and safe transport of cargo around the world, one initiative is increasingly starting to take hold: the launch of cargo communities at airports. Over at Brussels Airport, Air Cargo Belgium which will celebrate its 10th anniversary next year, was created to unite BRUcargo stakeholders – giving everyone a voice and collaborating to drive initiatives and topics for the benefit of the industry as a whole. Jolien Mussen, Project Coordinator at Air Cargo Belgium, takes us through her responsibilities and shares her views on the industry.
CFG: What is your current function and company? And what are your responsibilities?
JM: I have been working at Air Cargo Belgium (ACB) for a year and a half, currently as a project coordinator. ACB is a community organization on the cargo side of Brussels Airport, dubbed ‘BRUcargo’. For our projects, we rely on community input gathered during our cluster meetings and steering groups. I am responsible for the Airline Cluster and Innovation & Sustainability steering group, and I’m involved in projects relevant to those.
CFG: What does a normal day look like for you?
JM: For me, there is no such thing! One day, I might be in a warehouse to see if the scanners for our project with RFID-tags are running, the next, I’ll be organizing a meeting regarding infrastructure for e-Trucks, looking into the results of our community sustainability assessment, or brainstorming with airlines and forwarders to set up a campaign regarding hidden dangerous goods.
The only thing I’m consistently doing is trying to spread awareness regarding sustainability!
CFG: How long have you been in the air cargo industry, and what brought you to it?
JM: Only for as long as I have been working for ACB!
I actually have a bachelor in Event and Project Management, which has nothing to do with logistics. After a year of working in event management, I wanted to do something different. Coincidentally the airport was close to where I wanted to live, and they had a lot of job vacancies. One job market later and I was given the opportunity to learn all about the air cargo industry as a part of the ACB team.
It still impresses me to this day what a warm welcome the industry has given me, community members welcoming me into warehouses and offices to teach me absolutely everything I know today. And they continue to do so, allowing me to keep learning every day, which I’m extremely grateful for!
CFG: What do you enjoy most about your job?
JM: That’s a difficult one. I love having a job that allows so much contact with different industry professionals, the variation of different topics in my agenda each week, and working together with colleagues at ACB.
Aside from that, sustainability is a topic that I believe is very important, but it is often a difficult subject in air cargo for different reasons. Even though it’s not always the easiest or most well-liked topic, I love being able to amplify the sustainability message and trying to work on practical improvements.
CFG: What do you see as the greatest challenges in our industry?
JM: Sustainability is definitely one of them, and arguably the one challenge I understand the most. As an industry, we need to reduce our emissions, which is difficult because while technology is already helping this along, it has not developed far enough yet to reduce emissions to zero in the foreseeable future. As a global industry, a universal approach is needed in order to implement big changes in a feasible way, making it even more challenging.
Reducing emissions is just one of the actions needed to become more sustainable as an industry, but other actions must also be taken. For example: the diversification of the workforce, the excessive use of paper, or the – for now – impossibility to find a sustainable alternative for some single-use packaging/wrapping.
Don’t get me wrong, there are already a lot of initiatives being developed and implemented, and companies that are genuinely committed to the cause. However, we need to recognize that we still have a far way to go and that the road to this particular destination will not be easy.
CFG: What advice would you give to people looking to enter into the air cargo industry? Any particular training they should aim for?
JM: As someone who doesn’t have a degree in logistics, never mind air cargo, I don’t feel particularly qualified to answer this question. However, with my limited experience, I’d advise everyone to be open to learning new things, to be passionate about their job, and to listen to those who have been working in the sector for a while. Those industry professionals are often open to sharing their knowledge with newcomers.
CFG: If the air cargo industry were a film/book, what would its title be?
JM: “Wingin’ it” (pun intended)
As an incredibly fast-paced, international sector, I’ve seen people find solutions for crazy things, and for seemingly insolvable problems in the blink of an eye. Definitely very impressive!
Many thanks, Jolien!
If you would like to share your personal air cargo story with our CargoForwarder Global readers, feel free to send your answers to the above questions to cargoforwarderglobal@kopfpilot.at We look forward to shining a spotlight on your job area, views, and experiences.
