Category: Countdown

 

ANTARCTICA DAY – PRESS RELEASE

Antarctica Day 1st December 2021 – The Advent Countdown to the Kent Scouts REQUEST2021 Antarctica Expedition Begins

  • Antarctica Day was established as a way to celebrate the continuation of the Antarctic Treaty, which was signed on the 1st December 1959.
  • The Antarctic Treaty set aside 10% of the planet “forever to be used exclusively for peaceful purposes in the interest of mankind”.
  • The advent countdown to the REQUEST2021 team’s departure begins today.
  • They fly from Heathrow to South America on Boxing Day and then sail from Ushuaia in Argentina for Antarctica on 30th December 2021.

Alan Noake REQUEST2021 Project leader, said:

“With exactly a month to go before we sail; we couldn’t have had a more appropriate day in the calendar to announce our immanent departure to Antarctica after many years of dedicated fundraising and planning. We want to say a huge thanks to everyone who has helped us turn the dream into a reality.”

The ReQuest2021 project is a wider programme of activity centred around the expedition to Antarctica to commemorate the Shackleton-Rowett Expedition of 1921-1922. 100 years after Sir Ernest Shackleton’s ship Quest sailed to Antarctica a ten strong team of Scouts and leaders are recreating the original ethos of the expedition by undertaking their own voyage to the frozen south. The ten participants will undertake research projects whilst in Antarctica on issues such as climate change, energy, exploration, education, health and the environment. Findings will be presented in a range of engaging formats including photography, soundscapes, reports, artwork and interactive forums.

Bear Grylls, Chief Scout, said:

“You are truly following in the footsteps of many legends including the great Sir Ernest Shackleton who set off on his Quest expedition. You are also doing vital work in how we can protect the world around us, which is so important.”

YOUTUBE LINK: https://youtu.be/4yqlb4Rz4Qk

The ReQuest2021, Antarctic Research Project Team will be sailing on board Bark Europa tall ship from Ushuaia, Argentina to the Antarctic Peninsula, a 2000km+ voyage, and crossing the infamous Drake Passage, to the Antarctic Peninsula which the Scouts will be exploring for two weeks.

The Shackleton-Rowett Expedition of 1921-1922 included two Scouts: James Marr and Norman Mooney. On 30th December 2021 the team of ten scouts and their leaders will follow in Marr and Mooney’s footsteps and depart from South America for Antarctica.

The project is based upon three key principles: –


1. PEACE – Young people will form relationships with each other, their communities, other

Scouts around the world, and their environment.

2. ENVIRONMENT – Young people are more concerned about nature than ever and want to protect our environment – one study found that 60% of young people are worried or extremely worried about climate change.

3. HERITAGE – A way for young people to connect with intrepid explorers from the past, through an innovative programme of events, and mark those who went before.

Tracy Edwards, the skipper of the first all-female crew to sail around the world in the Whitbread Round the World Yacht Race said:

“I am very jealous that I am not going with you. Bon voyage! Have a fantastic adventure.”

For more information, please contact alan.noake@kentscouts.org.uk 07525 633435

ENDS

Notes to Editor:

About the Project

  • For more information about the ReQuest2021 expedition and the research projects, please visit http://www.request2021.org.uk  
  • The ReQuest2021, Antarctic Research Project Team will be sailing on board Bark Europa tall ship from Ushuaia, Argentina to the Antarctic Peninsula from 30th Dec 2021 to 20th January 2022.
  • Over the past four years the ten Scouts have undertaken fundraising activities including a rowing challenge, grand auction and online merchandise sales to raise £135,000 for the expedition.
  • A key sponsor of the Request expedition is the East and West Kent Freemasons which have the same core values of supporting young people www.eastkentfreemasons.org  and www.westkentmasons.org.uk  
  • Individual Projects: CLIMATE CHANGE (LUCY), PHYSIOLOGICAL EXPERIMENT (GENEVIEVE), 3D ICEBERG SIMULATION (GEORGE), COLLABORATIVE ARTWORK (DARCEY), OCEAN CURRENTS (SAM), ANTARCTIC SOUNDSCAPE (ALAN), MOTION SICKNESS STUDY (CATHY), PLASTIC POLUTION (HELEN), ELECTRICITY GENERATION (MATT), GEOMAGNETICALLY INDUCED CURRENTS (ALEX)
  • Group Project: THE ANTARCTICA SCOUT KRILL project. Partnership with British Antarctic Survey to study and raise awareness of the importance of Antarctic krill to the Southern Ocean ecosystem.
  • EXPEDITION PARTICIPANT NAMES AND LOCATIONS THEY ARE FROM: –
    • Alan Noake, Deal, Walmer, Sandwich & District Kent
    • Cathy Mummery, Weald District, Kent
    • Matt Wood, Malling District, Kent
    • Helen Smith, Gravesham District, Kent
    • Lucy Morgan, Sevenoaks District, Kent
    • Genevieve Scullion, Deal, Walmer, Sandwich & District, Kent
    • George Stonor, Faversham District, Kent
    • Darcey Holmes, Thanet District, Kent
    • Sam Payne, Inverurie, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
    • Alex Maciver, Aberfeldy, Perthshire, Scotland

About Scouts:

   

  • All genders, races and backgrounds are welcome at Scouts. Every week, it gives almost half a million people aged 6-25 the skills they need for school, college, university, the job interview, the important speech, the tricky challenge and the big dreams: the skills they need for life.   
  • Scouts helps members gain these skills by encouraging them to ask the big questions and listen with wide open minds. It helps them to take a deep breath and speak up, think on their feet, ignore the butterflies and go for it. With Scouts, young people don’t give up – they get back up and try again, often with the support of the friends they’ve made there.   
  • Our volunteers contribute more than 50 million hours of voluntary work each year to their local communities.   

ReQuest2021 Podcast Ep. 20

EPISODE 20 – Tue 1st June 2021 – “Seven months till we sail” and the ReQuest interview with Mark Wood an established speaker, author and explorer who operates within the cold extremes of our planet. His expeditions include guiding film crews to the Magnetic North Pole, leading two expeditions to the Geomagnetic North Pole and completing solo expeditions to both the Geographic North and South Poles. He has been a part of major BBC and Channel 5 documentaries and over the years has trained and led people in the extremes of the planet. He is chairman of The Explorers Club – Great Britain and Ireland Chapter and a Scout Adventurer.

A podcast documenting the Kent Scouts #ReQuest2021 Research Project all the way to Antarctica and back again! Interviews, Scouting historical links, events and research project work recorded along the way. Part of Alan Noake’s Antarctic Soundscapes project.

Show Notes

Mark Wood’s Website:
http://www.markwoodexplorer.com

The book Solo Explorer is the journey from Mark’s school days to reaching the North Pole including the twists and turns of the adventure that led him there.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mark-Wood-Solo-Explorer/dp/1909075523

The photographic book Rock and Ice is a collection of extreme photographs taken on Mark’s journey’s over the past two decades. Bringing to life the path of his own lives adventure.https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rock-Ice-Mark-Wood/dp/1909075531

Visit our Fundraising Ladder for different ways to follow and support the project including our infamous Penguin Badges, Antarctic Top Trumps, Social Media pages and lots more…
www.fundraisingladder.co.uk/ReQuest2021

Only 300 Sleeps Till We Sail!

Hard to believe after all these years of planning that it is only 300 sleeps until we sail from South America to Antarctica now in January 2022!

The team have all now registered on the Bark Europa passenger list. We are starting to look into insurance and flights. Research Projects are taking shape. Fundraising still needs a final push but we are on track despite Covid. Watch out Antarctica – here we come!

Only 400 sleeps till we sail!

It is now only 400 days till we sail to Antarctica from South America. Lots to do in the next year – not least to raise another £40,000 by end of June 2021, launch ‘Antarctica In An Icebox‘ educational resource packs, plan our research projects, book flights (Covid-willing!) and take to time to organise the Tower Bridge PR event for Friday 17th September, 2021.
Plus lots more behind the scenes!
We’ve got an amazing team to make it all happen! Darcey Holmes ~ Alex Maciver ~ Laura Bernard ~ Cathy Mummery ~ Matt Wood ~ Lucy Morgan ~ Genevieve Scullion ~ George Stonor ~ Sam Payne

Shackleton The Penguin Is Celebrating!

Shackleton the Penguin the team mascot for ReQuest2021 has something to celebrate today as the scout team of eight from Kent and two from Scotland have just hit the halfway point with fundraising for their Antarctic Research Project! The team would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has sponsored them so far along the way… Precisely 600 days before the ReQuest2021 Antarctic Research Project Team plan to set sail for Antarctica the ReQuest2021 team have just this week passed the £55,000 mark on the way to their £110,000 target.

The team’s Virgin Money Giving fundraising page can be found on the following link: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fund/request2021

The ReQuest2021 Team are: Matt Wood, George Stonor, Darcey Holmes, Genevieve Scullion, Alan Funstuff Noake, Cathy Mummery, Lucy Morgan, Sam Payne, Laura Bernard and Emma Johnston

In the Winter of 2021/22, the team of Scouts will be sailing on the Bark Europa Tall Ship from South America to Port Lockroy in Antarctica. Exactly 100 years after two Scouts sailed on Shackleton’s final Quest Expedition back in 1921 the project‘s objectives will be: –

  • To participate as members of the crew on the Barque Europa on a voyage to Antarctica.
  • For each of the participants to carry out an Antarctic research project and present the results upon return.
  • To visit Port Lockroy base that was established by Scout James Marr and fly a Scout flag on Antarctica.
  • To unveil an expedition plaque dedicated to Marr & Mooney at Gilwell Park and Port Lockroy in Antarctica.
  • To involve the younger sections in join-in educational fun activities in the form of Antarctica In An Ice Box.

The challenge facing the team now is to raise the other 50% – another £55,000 by the 30th June 2021. It is set to be a busy year of fundraising and the setbacks caused by the Coronavirus lockdown will make it even more difficult to achieve. We are dedicated to making the dream a reality!

The team’s Virgin Money Giving fundraising page can be found on the following link: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fund/request2021

The countdown has begun!

The countdown has begun. We have now installed a countdown timer onto the home page and website sidebar. Counting down the precise days, hours, minutes and seconds until the #ReQuest2021 Antarctic Research Project Team set sail from South America to Antarctica!

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