The Panama Canal is arguably the most difficult engineering project humanity has ever undertaken, and it’s so large, you can see it from space.

More than a million vessels have used it as a shortcut between the Atlantic and the Pacific since it was opened in 1914, and canal dues raise $2bn a year, making it the economic mainstay of an entire country.

Ilya Marotta, was appointed as Deputy Administrator of the Panama Canal earlier this year having served as the chief engineer on the multi-billion dollar canal expansion project that completed in 2016.

She has been breaking barriers since she began her career at the Panama Canal in 1985 as the sole female engineer at the shipyard and is today a vocal advocate of engineering as a career route that can make a real difference in the world.

In this week’s edition of the podcast, Ilya talks to Lloyd’s List’s David Osler about the impact of coronavirus on this key waterway, her career in engineering so far, why more work is needed to regulate water levels, and why she decided to make a pink hard hat her professional trademark.