Contact:
Geraldine O’Shea +44 1932 861174, geraldine_o’shea@cargill.com
Francis De Rosa +44 1932 861174, francis_derosa@cargill.com
Samuel Gardaz +41 765 636543, samuel.gardaz@antinea-foundation.org
Cargill partners with the Antinea Foundation to raise awareness of marine conservation issues
COBHAM, UK and GENEVA, SWITZERLAND — Cargill is sponsoring the first two years of the Antinea Foundation’s upcoming sea expedition to 100 of the most important marine eco-regions in the world. The foundation, established in Geneva in 2005, is a non-profit organisation with two principal areas of focus. Firstly, it conducts scientific research to better understand the marine environment and its ecosystems. It also aims to raise public awareness of the importance of preserving marine ecology and encourage behavioural change by highlighting things each individual can do to make a positive difference.
The 10-year expedition, Changing Oceans, will be launched in Barcelona on Saturday 4 October. The foundation’s flagship, the Fleur de Passion, will then proceed to visit over 100 marine heritage sites and protected areas that are noteworthy for the richness of their biodiversity.
Cargill is a major global charterer of ships and transports about 185 million metric tonnes of dry bulk commodities each year, spanning the agricultural, industrial and energy sectors.
“The shipping industry is a global community that currently supports 90 percent of the world’s international physical trade”, says G.J.van den Akker, head of Cargill’s Ocean Transportation Business. “In a world of finite resources, environmental stewardship makes good business sense so we are very pleased to support the Antinea Foundation as it helps raise public awareness and highlight the things each individual can do to make a difference.”
“We are delighted that Cargill is on board and the company’s involvement reflects the importance of our expedition”, says Ronald Menzel, director general of the Antinea Foundation. “We know more about the moon than we do about the waters which cover the greater part of our own planet.”
Throughout its journey, the Fleur de Passion will serve as a research and communication platform. At each port of call, a mobile village called “Ocean Experience” will be installed next to the ship and will include multimedia shows, interactive presentations and photo exhibitions that members of the public can attend.
Antinea’s expedition will include research in all major scientific fields related to the marine environment, including medicine, biodiversity, ecology, climatology and underwater archaeology. The results of this research will provide Cargill’s ocean transportation business with unique insights into the environmental impact of shipping on the world’s oceans and will build on Cargill’s existing environmental policies and activities.
The expedition will be launched as part of the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) World Conservation Congress due to take place in Barcelona from 4 -14 October 2008. To celebrate IUCN’s 60th anniversary, “Sailing to Barcelona” will promote the cause of the world’s oceans through a 400 strong parade of boats to be attended by thousands of people including the public and representatives from government, media and environmental groups.
Editor’s Notes:
Cargill
Cargill is an international provider of food, agricultural and risk management products and services. With 160,000 employees in 67 countries, the company is committed to using its knowledge and experience to collaborate with customers to help them succeed.
Cargill has long-term partnerships with a number of global and national environmental organisations, including The Nature Conservancy, World Wildlife Fund, and Conservational International, in addition to local environmental efforts all over the world determined by local employee teams. For more information, visit http://www.cargill.com.
Cargill’s Ocean Transportation business
Cargill's Ocean Transportation business is headquartered in Geneva with offices in London, Amsterdam, New Jersey, Singapore, Shanghai and Tokyo.
Its global team has a unique blend of experience across shipping, commodities and risk management and offers it’s customers a number of ocean freight solutions across all dry market segments and tankers. In recent years, the business has built on its reputation for excellence in risk management by putting a strong focus on raising health & safety and quality standards across the industry. This partnership provides a unique opportunity for Ocean Transportation to build on these high standards and publicly demonstrate its commitment to environmental stewardship.
Antinea Foundation
The Antinea Foundation is a Swiss based non-profit organisation created in 2005 from a desire to play an innovative role in tackling environment issues related to oceans. Within just a few years, Antinea has reached international renown for her integrated approach, that places mankind and his future at the centre of its actions, and involves bringing a wide array of scientific, socio-educational and media projects onboard its expedition ship. The Foundation has created synergies among ocean relevant organisations the world over, proposing a new, collective approach to environment problems that would otherwise be too great to deal with.
The Foundation was presented to the United Nations in New York in 2005, the World Economic Forum (Davos) in 2006 and mandated by the European Union in 2007 and 2008 to organise the events and communication for the launching of its new maritime policy. For more information, visit http://www.antinea-foundation.org/
The Fleur de Passion
The Fleur de Passion is a 50-year-old, 33-metre long boat with a rich history that echoes Antinea’s philosophy in favour of a sustainable world. Built in the 1940s as a motorboat for the German navy, Fleur de Passion was built in such a manner that she could be turned into a sailing boat in the event of an oil shortage. After World War II, the boat was given over to the French navy, where she served until the mid-1970s. In 1976, her military career came to an end when her new owner turned her into a sailing boat. The boat was then used in the Mediterranean and the Atlantic for socio-educational, navigation, diving and scientific projects. Since 2003, the boat has been completely restored, and it recommenced sailing in 2008.