Atlantic Rising - climate change campaingers in our midst...

Posted on 30/5/09 by Maddy in East Sheen (No comments)

[caption id="attachment_6751" align="alignleft" width="163" caption="Atlantic Rising Team"][/caption]

We all know that climate change is happening and is in fact getting worse not better, but are we actually doing much about it? I religiously recycle all my paper, card, plastic bottles, glass, cans, etc. and use low-watt bulbs in my house, but does this really do much to help? And are the negative things I do (drive, fly, etc.) far outweighing the the positives? Quite probably.

Well, not everyone has such a guilty conscience. There is a new charity called Atlantic Rising that was set up last year by three friends from Cambridge University (Tim Bromfield - who grew up in East Sheen, Lynn Morris and Will Lorimer) whose aim is to educate people (particularly school children) about climate change and specifically to highlight the terrible changes that could happen to the coastline around the Atlantic Ocean.  In the next 100 years Atlantic sea levels are predicted to rise by up to 1.5m. Thousands of communities will be displaced, unique landscapes will be lost and the geography of the Atlantic will be changed forever. The project is creating a network between schools around the Atlantic rim, building relationships between places as far apart as the Scottish Isles, West Africa, Guyana and Canada.

Next month the project team sets out on an eight month expedition of the Atlantic rim, where they will be visiting communities and schools, filming and holding workshops to build up a vast network of over 15,000 students, whose futures are threatened by sea level rise. They will be creating links between schools in 13 countries - Belize, Canada, Costa Rica, England, Gambia, Ghana, Guyana, Liberia, Mexico, Scotland, Sierra Leone, USA and Wales. It is a fantastic idea and is really well thought out - they will be setting up a network of schools, which will be hosted by Rafi.ki, an online community of schools that uses internet communication to develop school relationships and the project, its resources and materials are aligned with the UK National Curriculum - so this very important topic really can be taught in the classrooms as an offical subject. As they say "We believe that education is one of the strongest weapons we have to confront climate change.  We do not want to preach, nor lecture people about polar bears.  We want to show people that you can lead a fun-filled life and do your bit for the environment.  The challenge is to make a subject as large as climate change tangible, accessible and interesting to school children."  

Despite the fact that the team are frantically preparing for their expedition and making sure that all elements of the project are set up before they set off, I managed to catch up with one of the founding members of the team, Lynn Morris.

Maddy: How did Atlantic Rising come about? Was it a long time in discussion, before it became a reality?
 
Lynn: We were discussing the idea as far back as about this time last year. But the plans only came together in about September last year which was when we put in our application for the Royal Geographical Society 'Go Beyond' bursary. Since then changes have been made and probably will continue to be made as we refine the plans. It is an evolving idea.

Our schools network is also constantly growing and developing. The more we meet and work with education professionals we realise how we could use the workshops in schools in different ways.So I am sure we will set off without all details in place but we plan for Atlantic Rising to last for a lot longer than just the expedition and so hope it will continue to evolve.
 
Maddy: I know that you have lived and worked abroad – obviously this makes you better prepared for the trip, but is it this the sort of thing you have always wanted to do?

Lynn: I have always loved travelling and working abroad. I think living in Malaysia will have prepared me to deal with the heat in some of the places we have been travelling through. Other than that - I have always had ambitions to be some sort or a roving reporter, writing articles from all over the place and so I suppose the expedition does afford me that opportunity.
 
Maddy: It is always a big job getting a project off the ground – how long has it taken you to get this far and have there been any major setbacks?

Lynn: It has been a big job just to get to this stage, I think it was much harder and more work than we initially imagined. Initially and continually funding has been a problem, but we have managed to get several very generous sponsors on board. Encouraging schools to sign up to our network was challenging mainly because it is very difficult to get through to busy teachers on the phone. And the kitting out of the car is a complicated process but Land Rover have given us lots of help. But we are still in the business of making our final preparations. In general we have discovered that most things take five times longer and cost three times as much as you first thought. So some things have been an exercise in patience. Other things - like getting visas have required a degree of planning as some have to be obtained in London before we leave. We have luckily - thus far - not had any major set backs.

Maddy: What are you most looking forward to on the trip?

Lynn: I think I am most looking forward to the opportunity to visit some really incredible places. I am particularly keen to go to Cartegena in Columbia - I have been wanting to go there for a decade. But I am really hoping that Atlantic Rising can use the media to draw attention to how sea level rise is affecting communities around the Atlantic now. This is not tomorrow's problem it is already happening and every second we don't take action to prevent this the situation gets worse.

Well, I hope the rest of their last minute preparations go well and that the expedition is a huge success. If you would like to know more about the team and their project, please see their Local Groups page http://www.yourlocallondon.com/east-sheen/local-groups/profile/235/?tab=1 or their website: www.atlanticrising.org

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