What is 2041?

Susannah Sayler

Categories: Impacts

Jun 19, 2008 11:03 am

Hi, Susannah here. I have been traveling lately so this is my first Changents blog entry. I wanted to first introduce you all to an amazing organization called 2041 that I worked with in Antarctica. Click here to check them out. You can see photos here that were taken by the amazing 2041 photographer, John Luk and by other members of the expedition here. Some of my photos from the trip can be seen here.

2041 was founded by polar explorer, environmental leader and public speaker Robert Swan, the first person in history to walk to both the North and South poles. Robert has dedicated his life to the preservation of Antarctica by the promotion of recycling, renewable energy and sustainability to combat the effects of climate change.

Why 2041?? 2041 is the year of the review of the Environmental Protocol of the Antarctic Treaty. That's the international treaty that currently protects the environment of Antarctica. 2041's aim is to work towards the protection of this important treaty, so there is never a need to exploit the last great continent on Earth for minerals and fossil fuel.

My thoughts are as follows:

In terms of creating visual evidence of climate change, Antarctica was one of the most compelling locations I visited and I can't thank 2041 enough for their incredible generosity in bringing me along on the expedition. There are many places in the world where at this moment one can witness dramatic evidence of global climate change. For example, glaciers in places like Austria and Peru, which scientists expect to be gone in 20 years. But in my mind, there are two reasons Antarctica is a particularly important place to witness change:

1. The poles are engines of climate change - the rate of warming is twice that of the rest of the earth and the consequences of that melting on the world’s climate are immense. The melting of the poles threatens us with massive sea-level rise (the melting poles did not factor into IPCC projections of sea-level rise, and some feel that observed changes in the poles indicate that sea-level rise could be much worse than predicted). What is amazing is that changes in the poles are consistently happening at a rate far faster than predicted. The Albedo feedback is another important climate driver. (You can read about the Albedo feedback here and many other places on the web.)

2. One of the biggest challenges we face in galvanizing support for fighting climate change is the pervasive sense that we are somehow insulated from the forces of Nature. This feeling is much more widespread that people like to acknowledge. Essentially, I believe we all suffer from it. The massiveness of Antarctica, its unadulterated majesty will break down this feeling of insulation like no other place on Earth. It will inspire and transform any who visit there, inspiring a sense of mission.