the world by human power. emission-free.
The Idea: Why I am using human power to cross our oceans & continents...
A defining decade
The idea to bridge all country borders by human power came to me through a very simple yet powerful realization:
In all likelihood, we are facing the single most important decade in history with respect to establishing good living conditions for future generations of humans, animals and plants. Scientists are outlining that global greenhouse gas emissions will need to be cut in half by 2030 and to net-zero(w) in 2050 in order to be able to avoid the most catastrophic consequences of climate warming. Our actions in the next 10 years are therefore crucial, as our choices give us direct power to shape the world for generations to come!
Only trouble is: Few of us actually believe that we can create a better future for all inhabitants on the blue planet. So few in fact – between 4-6% in most Western countries (as shown in a study by YouGov in 2015) – that we are at risk of acting upon this self-fulfilling prophecy.
Percentage of people who currently believe in a better future (YouGov, 2015).
Clearly, something needed to be done!
Something so “impossible” that when it would actually be accomplished, all of us would wonder what if our preconceived notions were actually flawed? What if we were just looking at things from the wrong perspective? What if the things we consider impossible (like combating climate warming or travelling long distances emission-free) were actually very possible instead?
I decided it was time for drastic action. After years of preparation, I embarked on a fully emission-free and human-powered journey from mainland Europe (Paris, France) to mainland North-America (Pittsburgh, USA). I traveled via bicycle through the land bodies on both continents and crossed the entire Atlantic Ocean from Portugal to Florida in a 7-meter rowing boat that I powered by two oars.
Even among extreme athletes and adventurers, the human-powered passage from mainland Europe to mainland America was considered to be impossible for many, many years – until someone went out and did it!
It took me a total of 40 days of cycling and 131 days of rowing, but ultimately I arrived in downtown Pittsburgh without the need of using any airplanes, cars or any other means of motorized transport.
If we can bridge entire oceans by human-power – isn‘t it also possible to change our habits and create a sustainable and better future?
Anything can be done in a sustainable way
Combating climate warming is a challenge of global scale. I will therefore carry on and bridge all country borders by human-power to continue the call for global cooperation to reduce carbon emissions.
The true change lays in the power of us individuals, however.
Feasible and sustainable alternatives already exist for the the crucial sectors of transportation, energy generation and agriculture/consumer behavior. It is time for us to seek them.
Zerow-Emission Adventures encourages you to think beyond your personal borders and to believe in being able to cross the impossible oceans we face.
Of course, there‘s no need for an actual Atlantic crossing, but we all have our own individual ways and projects that we can do to create sustainable future living conditions.
