 |
travel / adventure zone
| The Adventure Zone |
|
|
Cycling for sustainability
Ironically, it took an 800-kilometre cycling trip across the world's longest,
straightest road during the winter of 2000 — right through the heart of an Australian
desert — for Kevin Hamilton to realize that the Canadian environment needed his help. "It
doesn't take a genius to see that things are going downhill," Hamilton says. "I'm a
believer in making a difference locally and I decided to do something to raise awareness
and be proactive, not reactive."
This summer, Hamilton will mount his bike once again to take a message of
sustainable lifestyle choices door-to-door to communities across the country. Throughout
the cross-Canada trip, Hamilton and a dozen members of the Cycling for Sustainability
(C4S) team will stop at schools to raise awareness about environmentally friendly
alternatives, such as sustainable transportation, which helps reduce greenhouse gas
emissions, and organic farming. They'll also be interviewing Canadians along the way with
the hope of identifying and discussing hot issues facing different communities, whether
it's air pollution or soil degradation.
When the trip concludes in September in St. John's, Nfld., C4S will compile its
findings in a report for the provincial ministers of environment. The goal, Hamilton
says, is to strengthen ties among environmental groups, the Canadian public and policy
makers. "The message of C4S is about slowing down to appreciate the things that are right
in front of us," he says, "like family, community and nature. They are all inextricably
intertwined, and that's where a sustainable world begins."
For more information on Cycling for Sustainability or its cross-country
itinerary, log on to www.cycle.wild.net.au/home.html
|
|
| ADVERTISEMENT |
|
|
|
|
