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The Ocean Race Summit 2020 – Wed 16 September – Virtual

Start of Leg 2. Day 1 from Lisbon to Cape Town. 05 November, 2017

David will be speaking at The Ocean Race Summit 2020 taking place virtually from Newport, RI tomorrow – Wednesday 16 September 2020 – exploring the challenge of restoring ocean health and abundance.  David will be part of an all-star line-up of diverse, international speakers, change-makers and advocates, and more than 500 registered participants

The focus is on developing and sharing solutions via an innovative and interactive online platform that maximises guest participation and engagement.

>More info on www.theoceanracesummits.com and The Ocean Race social media channels. #theoceanracesummits and #oceanlife

Exploring By The Seat Of Your Pants

David de Rothschild is reliving the Plastiki Expedition via a live virtual event on 17 September 2020 as part of the Exploring By The Seat Of Your Pants lesson events: Sign up to be part of this event:

September 17, 2020
1:00 pm to 1:45 pm EST

David’s adventurous spirit, passion, and commitment to action have sent him to some of the world’s most remote and fragile regions in order to bring widespread media attention and, moreover, solutions to urgent global environmental issues. In the summer of 2010, de Rothschild embarked on his most challenging and high-profile adventure yet, the Plastiki. The Plastiki set sail on an ocean adventure over 8,000 nautical miles across the Pacific Ocean from San Francisco to Sydney. The Plastiki was no ordinary vessel. The 60-foot catamaran was built from approximately 12,500 reclaimed plastic bottles and a unique recyclable technology called Seretex. This distinctive, one-of-a-kind construction demonstrated that the list of solutions available is far greater than the list of problems. The Plastiki created a platform to fuel conversation and shift public thinking and perception from plastic as the enemy to plastic becoming part of the solution. The mission: to beat waste. The adventure set the stage for a historic expedition and delivered a spectacular global “message in a bottle.”

Exploring By The Seat Of Your Pants aims to inspire the next generation of scientists, explorers and conservationists by bringing science, exploration, adventure and conservation live into classrooms through virtual speakers and field trips with leading experts across the globe. Since starting in September 2015 the organisation has run close to 2,000 live events and connected hundreds of thousands of students to scientists and explorers in over 80 countries. Best part of all, it is and always will be free for classrooms everywhere! Each month during the school year the organisation hosts 30-50 live virtual events for classrooms.

New technology is opening up countless opportunities in the fields of science and exploration and these experiences are able to inspire students while exposing them to important issues, amazing places, exciting role models and new career paths.

https://www.exploringbytheseat.com/lesson/david-de-rothschild-plastiki/

United World Challenge

Tez Steinberg’s team have posted the first update on Tez’s row – some four weeks into the adventure:

Tez is now officially one month into his row. He has faced some unexpected challenges, like his phone resetting in his pocket on day 2 leaving him with no music or audio books. He was battling against a strong current dragging him in the wrong direction for what felt like forever, as well as bad weather and high seas. His rolling seat was also malfunctioning, leaving him to figure out a solution without the equipment he needed to fix it properly.

But just as you’d expect from this tenacious and crafty mer-man, he has so far been able to surmount all of these challenges, dig deep and find a way around them. For more amazing insights into his solo journey rowing across the Pacific Ocean, we highly recommend checking out our Story Map, which has lots of pictures, video and Tez’s written musings.

Plastiki – 10 Year Anniversary

26 July 2010 saw the arrival of the Plastiki into Sydney Harbour.

Ten years on, the story of plastics in the oceans is mainstream – solutions for eradication or at least management of the problem are emerging.

The Plastiki’s story is fascinating and inspiring and you can relive it all here

The story is not over – Plastiki is now in the UK preparing for another adventure!

David’s Earth Day 2020 Message

In times of chaos, there is nothing more grounding than taking off your shoes so you can feel the Earth under your feet.  This Earth day should probably hold a more poignant place in our hearts than the last 50, as for the last few months Mother Nature has sent us all to our rooms to pause and reflect.

If our current pandemic has reminded me of anything, apart from how vulnerable and precious all life is, it’s also just how deeply interconnected and codependent we all are.  Business, society, Nature, me and you, we’re all part of the same big beautiful web of life.

It’s cliched to say, but if you keep on relentlessly pulling on one thread finally something has to give.  So as we re-emerge from our cocoons, there won’t be any easy answers, no final destination, and certainly no one-size-fits-all solution but the interconnectivity that threatened us all, might just also be our most promising hope for restoring the balance.

If we can take our new found collective consciousness, remain humble and work together with the flow of mother Nature and each other, then we might just find a way to keep on being passengers on spaceship Earth. Tread lightly!

Parrys Raines – Climate Girl

Parrys Raines is a longterm friend and supporter of Sculpt the Future Foundation.

A young woman – an Australian – Parrys has recently posted the following on her sites:

Today is the 11th anniversary of a letter I wrote to world leaders regarding action on climate change on 7 February 2009, when I was 13.  I delivered the letter in August 2009 to the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme at a conference in South Korea where I spoke and ran a workshop about the impacts of climate change.  The letter was also presented at COP15 in Copenhagen, in the same year.  When I wrote this letter I thought at the time that world leaders would do what was best for the planet andthe future of humanity, and take serious action to curb climate change. 11 years on, and with little global action on climate change, I felt compelled to write another letter.  I am truly concerned about where the planet will be in the next 11 years.  I want a different outlook for my future, and for future generations.  So I ask, world leaders, what are you waiting for?