All entries under Robert Swan

After stopping in the big cities of Seattle and Portland , the sleepy, beach town of Morro Bay, Ca is a welcome change. Being the home port of our Captain, we arrived to news crews and cameras documenting the arrival of our 67 ft. vessel. Considering that none of us had showered in the week long voyage and had barely slept the night before- we were looking like proper salty sailors. Today we woke up to sunshine and a media crew on deck. They interviewed Robert Swan and then we took them for a quick sail so they could experience the wind in their faces, the heel of the boat and (by accident) the douse of a wave. Captain Mark informed us all that there are 2 pairs of Peregrine Falcons that live on Morro Rock, one on the north and one on the south. Peregrine’s had a hard time recovering from the amount of DDT sprayed over crops in the past and considering that Peregrine Falcons usually dominate a 15-mile radius for food and shelter- these 2 pairs have compromised their habits and lived harmoniously together on one rock for a number of years. Maybe as humans we should take heed?

After taking the media crew out for a sail we dropped them at the dock and went right back out for some video footage. We had to tack with a narrow island, Morro Rock and the fishing docks surrounding us…no small feat for a 50 ton vessel. The gusts of wind that blew around Morro rock at the head of the harbor entrance, kept us shuffling back and forth. We tacked, sailed downwind, tacked again, sailed upwind, tacked again….and so on. With about 30 seconds in between each tack and gusts of wind trying to knock us off balance the media crew got the footage they needed- sails up and full of wind!

Hannah Huntley

14:00 The sun decided to come out today for once and I watched our whole crew’s spirits improve. Laughter blossomed like a spring wind: light, airy and playful. We felt so good, we even did some team building exercises on the ropes. We are finally leaving Astoria, after getting postponed by low tide and silt deposits in the marina where we tied up last night. We are headed out the mouth of the Columbia River, with green ridges, snowy mountain peaks, lumber mills, paper mills, and bridges in our wake. Flocks of terns hover over the river and geese fly in a shifting arc overhead. Randy mentioned yesterday that the tern populations are booming for some reason on the Columbia, and they are devouring the local salmon fry in the river. The biologists aren’t sure yet why the population is growing so fast. I wonder: habitat shifts, warmer ocean waters, changes in food supply? It gets me thinking about how climate change is already pitting some native species against each other. Certain species will benefit from the changes, and others will suffer. It is possible that within 10 years we may not even recognize our local flora and fauna in some areas of the world.We are on our way south now, leaving the Pacific Northwest behind. I think back to our entry into the Strait of Juan de Fuca – the clearcuts creating a patchwork of the scenery and dividing contiguous wildlife habitat. I recall the countless lumber mills along the Strait and the Columbia River. I am by no means anti-logging or anti-industry. In fact I have a minor in Forestry and I have done my time in corporate America. Here is the thing…seeing so much along the river has me thinking more about what we are doing right now to make the smartest decisions we can with our resources. I walked into downtown Astoria today, and after the silence of sailing and living at sea, I realized how much noise cars make and I got a real sense of the gluttonous resource use around me. I will be the first to raise my hand to say “I am guilty, I participate”. But things are shifting inside me being on the ‘2041’ yacht. I am re-thinking so much about my impact, my footprint, and how I am personally contributing to global climate change. It is time for action. Recently, while I was in Peru a friend shared a very powerful metaphor with me. He said that when you think about the enormous global problems we face today, we cannot become defeated before we begin to address them. He told me to remember the process of siphoning water through a hose – you start putting in effort and for awhile nothing happens. After a few moments, all it takes is one molecule to shift in the direction you are siphoning, and soon you have a flood of water effortlessly flowing, for as long as there is water to siphon. He looked at me and said “you are one of those molecules, now go find others”. All it takes is one of us to be a catalyst for change, an inspiration to our peers, and soon the positive reaction will become contagious. It is possible that one day we will look back on these times and remember how hard things were and we wont believe that this was how it all started – a global population staring down the barrel of a gun.

In Al Gore’s Nobel Peace Prize Lecture (Oslo, 2007), he stated, “It is time to make peace with our planet…When we unite for a moral purpose that is manifestly good and true, the spiritual energy unleashed can transform us.”

I want to be transformed.

We created this mess, it is time to rise to the challenge, accept responsibility, and take action. The reason I was drawn to Robert Swan’s 2041 organization and the Voyage for Cleaner Energy is that I was impressed by the organization’s action-oriented approach to bringing important climate issues to the forefront of an individual’s mind. ‘2041’ has connected and inspired many “molecules” in the past and I am thrilled to help add to this process on the 2041 yacht.

Tomorrow I will begin introducing our 2 new passengers, who are both working directly on important renewable energy projects. I can’t wait for you to meet them!

Goodnight world.

• Maura Fallon-McKnight

Sometimes you cannot find the right words to describe what Robert’s lectures are like. So, allow me to use the words of the people that have just attended his lecture at the City College of San Francisco today:

“The talk was great. I believe that many of the students in today’s audience were positively affected by both your message and your desire to inspire. Your down-to-Earth demeanor, humor, and message of teamwork and positive thinking made this a talk for all people — all ages — all backgrounds. I hope your success with this project only grows. I am pleased that CCSF was able to be a part of your launch.” — Katryn Weise, Professor of Earth Science City College of San Francisco.

And some feedback from Wednesday night’s lecture:

“Inspirational is the first word I would use to describe the heart-felt presentation by Robert Swan at SFSU. He made us laugh, he had us nearly crying but importantly he showed us the need and gave us hope that each of us can make a difference in the effort to slow global warming and protect Antarctica.” — Patrick Tierney, Recreation and Leisure Professor San Francisco State University.

After returning from the lecture at the City College of San Francisco today we were informed that our office in Truckee , CA has received multiple calls from the San Francisco community requesting that Robert come back. We are very honored by the incredible responses that we have received and foresee that our Voyage for Cleaner Energy will only gain momentum as we travel the west coast.

Our last lecture in the bay area is at UC Berkeley on Saturday. Come early — seating is limited!

Seeing you soon

Melissa Ritti

Larkin Street Youth Center

The connection that Robert had with the staff and the young adults of the Larkin Street Youth Center was an instant one. David Zenoff, an old friend of Robert’s who is involved with the center, kindly introduced him. You could tell that on each end there was a sense of understanding about how hard some situations that happen in life can be. Trust, truth and humor are the things that get you through. One thing that was emphasized by Robert throughout the lecture was that if you have a dream make sure that you pursue it and YOU CAN MAKE IT HAPPEN IF YOU TRY. Hopefully we will see one of these young adults on the next Antarctic Expedition with Robert and his team! We would like to thank Kathie Lowry and Wendy Borden for making this happen.

At the end of the lecture we looked outside the window and saw that Diana, who has taken on almost every role at our company with a smile, had outfitted our bio-diesel Dodge Sprinter van with Voyage for Cleaner Energy magnets. Exciting things are happening every day!

San Francisco State University

Later in the evening Robert conducted a lecture at San Francisco State University . Not only were the professors extremely gracious and excited to hear about Robert’s experiences but the students had to have been one of the most energetic lecture audiences that I have seen so far. Laughter filled the auditorium throughout the hour. Patrick Tierney, a professor at SFSU who is an avid sailor, made the lecture happen – for this we thank him. Directly before the lecture we phoned our crew on the ‘2041’ sailboat, including Hannah Huntley who is SFSU student, and heard that they are doing wonderful!

We were sad to say goodbye to our videographer , David McGraw, and our photographer, Candice Towell, who have both been incredible along the first intense days of our journey and have helped to capture the excitement and pride that we all feel. You will be missed!

We appreciate your incredible support!

Melissa Ritti

Today was huge. The whole team was on hand to launch the Voyage for Cleaner Energy sailing expedition, and a really nice crowd gathered as well. The ‘2041’ sailboat was docked at Pier 1 ½ in the heart of the Embarcadero in beautiful San Francisco, and Jared Blumenfeld from the city’s Department of the Environment was on hand to emcee the event.

Taylor Francis delivered a terrific speech. If you’ve never heard of Taylor, check out his website. He’s an amazing 16-year old from Menlo Park who was trained personally by Al Gore to speak to audiences around the world about climate change as part of The Climate Project. He has spoken to nearly 10,000 people and has been on the front page of the San Francisco Chronicle. This June, he’ll visit China and speak to university and high school students and business and government leaders. Today he captured perfectly one of the critical elements of the voyage. He said: “My generation—the youth of today and the leaders of tomorrow—will inherit this planet in the next few decades, and what type of world we live in will be determined by what people do now about the climate crisis.” Taylor is dedicated to the cause and a true inspiration to young people.

San Francisco’s Director of Climate Change Initiatives, Wade Crowfoot, spoke to the crowd about the importance of civic programs and community efforts on environmental issues, particularly climate change and renewable energy. He talked about the Voyage for Cleaner Energy and proclaimed April 8th, 2008 Robert Swan Day in San Francisco.

With the ‘2041’ crew on deck behind him and the crowd gathered round, Robert Swan said that he was really pleased to be launching the Voyage for Cleaner Energy from San Francisco. He’s looking forward to bringing information about their environmental efforts to other cities, just as he’s looking forward to learning about successful programs in other parts of the world. Robert emphasized the importance of inspiring young people to take action and said that he hoped to make a difference with his global commitment during the next five years.

At the close of Robert’s remarks, we said goodbye and waved to our wonderful crew as they left the dock on their way to Seattle and beyond.

Today was also the start of <i>Voyage for Cleaner Energy</i> university lecture series. Robert spoke at Stanford University to a group of students, professors, and guests hosted by Energy Crossroads. Energy Crossroads is a student-initiated, global movement for a clean, prosperous, and secure energy future. They facilitate collaboration between groups of policymakers, non-governmental organizations, technologists, entrepreneurs, academics, and activists, guided by the belief that their interactions will accelerate progress toward innovative solutions to the world’s energy challenges.

Robert’s presentation was very well received, and the students were excited to hear about his plan to establish a student expedition to Antarctica in 2009. Stay tuned to this site for details.

Thanks to everyone who helped make this launch a successful one, and if you’re on the west coast this spring, keep an eye out for an eco-friendly sailboat with a tall mast and smiling crew.

Cheers, Marnee Benson