A journey can turn into a mission for life. That is how ithas been for Robert Charles Swan, the first person to walk to the North Poleand the South Pole. In fact, had it not been for those walks, Swan’s attentionwould have never become so focused on how much damage humans have been causingto the earth. Now, Swan targets children to make them realise that it is intheir hands to save the planet from any further degradation. “Teachers have tobecome extra conscious and take up the responsibility of providing the rightinputs to children about protecting the environment and maintainingcleanliness,” he says in the course of an interview during his recent visit toPune.
Born on July 28, 1956 in Durham, England, Swan obtained a BAdegree in ancient history and on completion of his studies was drawn toexploring the world. “I first thought I would see the various countries andlearn their cultures and traditions. But then I found myself attracted to themystery of the polar regions and that’s how I set sail on ‘Southern Quest’ onNovember 3, 1984 to travel the 27,487 km to Antarctica.
“My visits to the poles exposed me to the fact that thatclimate change is definitely harming the landscape. It is now upon us to savethe polar regions,” he says. As such, Swan has found a company called ‘2041’that is dedicated to the preservation of the Antarctic. “My commitment tosaving the environment was made stronger after I was invited by the UnitedNations in 1992 to be a keynote speaker at the first Earth Summit forSustainable Development held in Brazil. In response to the world leaders’challenge to ‘think global act local’, I made a promise to deliver a global andlocal environmental mission involving industry, business and young people,” hesays. In 1996“97 he organised ‘One Step Beyond, The South Pole Challenge’ whichbrought 35 young adventurers from 25 nations together in Antarctica.
In 2002, Swan and his ‘2041’ sailboat embarked on thelongest overland voyage in history. The destination was the 2002 World Summitfor Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South Africa. “We reached out toover 7,50,000 young people across South Africa,” he says. Turning his attentionto India, Swan says, “India has ample sunlight which should be used to generatepower. The use of natural power has become a necessity now and people shouldmake efforts to make solar energy an alternative to other energy sources. Atthe same time, Indians too need to join our global effort to find workablesolutions pertaining to management of garbage. After all, if we won’t save ourworld, who else will?” he ponders.
