The Wardroom on the USS Kearsarge is the officer’s cafeteria, conference room, lecture hall, 24 hour coffee house and social club for the officers, foreign militaries, and NGOs onboard the Kearsarge. However, the Wardroom’s most valuable function is more subtle: as a point of information exchange and social networking onboard the ship.
While the Kearsarge’s crew and riders total more than 1600, only around 500 (my guess) are involved in the humanitarian mission and almost all of them eat in the Wardroom. Every night personnel from different nationalities, services, and specialties eat together at the Wardroom’s communal tables. A typical table might include a Navy pediatrician, a Marine pilot, an NGO logistician, and an Army veterinarian.
The result is that, three times a day, people from disparate roles/organizations share information and perspectives over hot food. Through casual conversation, personnel are introduced to new and different aspects of the operation. Simply put, the Wardroom is possibly the greatest builder of intellectual capital on the ship.
Coordination and communication is going to be key determinants in the success of the Kearsarge’s mission. While individuals do have more formal interactions through briefings and meetings, the Wardroom provides a much welcome extra, efficient, and informal medium for exchanging information and building working relationships.
Christopher R. Albon is a political science Ph.D. specializing in armed conflict, public health, human security, and health diplomacy.
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