You have likely heard the phrase “Safety is everyone’s responsibility”. This phrase represents an important aspect of strong safety culture, feeling ownership and responsibility for safety and spreading these values to others in your daily life. As the safety culture grows stronger, trust should also increase.
We are fortunate to live and work on the beautiful Red Sea, surrounded by magnificent biodiversity. While we have beautiful waters around us, access has traditionally been limited. Risks in the water are inherently different, but we trust that with proper guidance our community will do what is needed to maintain the high safety standards we have grown to expect at KAUST.
Kayaking has been chosen to model this approach and serve as a template for much more to come. To promote a safe and enjoyable experience, Recreational Kayaking Guidelines have been developed. The major sections of guidelines include:
- Kayaker Responsibilities
- Registration
- Potential Hazards
- Kayak Selection
- Must Have Equipment
- Recommended Equipment
- Planning and Preparation
- Navigation Channel in KAUST
Allowing unsupervised kayaking in KAUST is a first step toward a more pragmatic safety approach. Using this model, HSE provides the guidelines, including required and recommended controls, and then trusts our community will follow them. While HSE continues to provide education and outreach as well as periodic checks, this is done on a much more limited basis than an activity under strict controls, as we rely on community members to read and follow the guidelines.
If you have any questions, please contact us at hse@kaust.edu.sa. Thank you for Keeping KAUST Safe!
