Climate activist Thunberg to 'embrace the unknown' on boat trip across Atlantic, skipper says

Record ID: 1426985

  • Title: Climate activist Thunberg to 'embrace the unknown' on boat trip across Atlantic, skipper says
  • Date: 13th August 2019
  • Summary: PLYMOUTH, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (AUGUST 13, 2019) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF SAILING BOATS IN HARBOUR MALIZIA II RACING YACHT, WHICH WILL TAKE CLIMATE ACTIVIST GRETA THUNBERG ACROSS ATLANTIC OCEAN, DOCKED IN HARBOUR WRITING ON BOAT READING (English): "GLOBAL CLIMATE ACTION" VARIOUS OF GERMAN SKIPPER, BORIS HERRMANN, ON MALIZIA II (SOUNDBITE) (English) GERMAN SKIPPER, BORIS HERRMANN, SAYING: "Well the preparation for this trip for the team, it's fairly simple. We are used to do(ing) this, this is our mission, we do a couple of races every year across the Atlantic. For Greta it's different. The difficult thing for her is to find time. But even if she found time, how can you prepare someone? You can't be prepared for something unknown. And taking someone with no sailing experience across the Atlantic on a race yacht, that has never happened. It's something totally unknown and we have to find out." MALIZIA II DOCKED IN HARBOUR SOLAR PANELS ON BOAT (SOUNDBITE) (English) GERMAN SKIPPER, BORIS HERRMANN, SAYING: "She's prepared to say, I find out. And most people would say, I don't know, that scares me, and she doesn't seem to be like that and maybe that has also helped her find the strength- maybe it's also related to her standpoint on climate change. She's saying everything has to change and if everything has to change you don't know how everything is going to be, so it can't stay as it is, we can't continue with business as usual. Probably that's her mindset and she says, ok we embrace the unknown as well a little bit." BOAT'S PROPELLER / WRITING ON BOAT READING (English): "MALIZIA II MONACO" PROPELLER (SOUNDBITE) (English) GERMAN SKIPPER, BORIS HERRMANN, SAYING: "Nowadays with the weather models we have a fairly good idea of where we want to be in terms of the trajectory for at least two thirds of the trip and we adapt this and we adjust this along the trip. And because of this we know it's going to be quite challenging. There are five low pressures in the first 10 days of the trip that we have to deal with. Low pressure each time means - a low pressure system is like a little storm each time, it has the fronts with rain showers and so we work our way south as we need to get out of the strongest winds and waves." ROPE VARIOUS OF MALIZIA II BOAT (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMAN SKIPPER, BORIS HERRMANN, SAYING: "Something like this has never happened before, someone is sailing across the Atlantic Ocean in a racing sailing boat, without any sailing experience. This is absolutely new and nearly impossible to prepare for it. Tomorrow we are starting an adventure with a bit of uncertainty. We are looking forward to it, because we want to see if it is possible to do so." TEXT ON HERRMANN COAT READING (English): "UNITE BEHIND THE SCIENCE #FRIDAYSFORFUTURE / HERRMANN SPEAKING TO JOURNALIST VARIOUS OF MALIZIA II BOAT DOCKED IN HARBOUR (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMAN SKIPPER, BORIS HERRMANN, SAYING: "On our racing yacht Malizia we have solar panels and hydro generators, which are little propellers behind the boat, which are generating power, so we are able to cross the Atlantic without using any additional fuel." BUILDING WITH BRITISH FLAG ON COASTLINE BRITISH FLAG LIGHTHOUSE, SEA IN BACKGROUND LIGHTHOUSE SAILING BOAT AT SEA
  • Embargoed: 27th August 2019 22:26
  • Keywords: Swedish teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg Malizia II United Nations New York Atlantic crossing
  • Location: PLYMOUTH, ENGLAND, UK
  • City: PLYMOUTH, ENGLAND, UK
  • Country: United Kingdom
  • Topics: Environment,Climate Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA001AS1Y3PJ
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Swedish teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg will face a journey into the "unknown", when she crosses the Atlantic in a racing boat, the skipper of the yacht that will take her from Britain to the United States said on Tuesday (August 13).
    To avoid travelling by air, Thunberg will cross to New York for a climate summit on board a 60-ft racing yacht, the Malizia II, fitted with solar panels and underwater turbines that produce electricity onboard, with the aim of making the journey zero-carbon.
    Once there, the 16-year-old, who has inspired young protesters around the world with her warnings about global warming, plans to join large-scale climate demonstrations and speak at a United Nations climate action summit on Sept. 23.
    "How can you prepare someone? You can't be prepared for something unknown," said Boris Herrmann, the German skipper from the sailing team Malizia.
    "Tomorrow we are starting an adventure with a bit of uncertainty. We are looking forward to it, because we want to see if it is possible," he told Reuters in Plymouth, off the English south coast where they expect to depart.
    Thunberg will be accompanied by her father, Svante, and a cameraman for the trans-Atlantic trip which will take about two weeks. As a racing yacht, the boat is not designed for luxury travel but is instead stripped out to be as light as possible.
    Herrmann said they have tried to map a route to avoid the roughest weather.
    (Production: Gerry Mey, Iona Serrapica)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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