The Prague Post - In Darwin's wake: Two-year global conservation voyage sparks hope

EUR -
AED 4.188486
AFN 78.38479
ALL 97.394126
AMD 436.325682
ANG 2.040857
AOA 1045.687006
ARS 1563.970193
AUD 1.77585
AWG 2.055455
AZN 1.939061
BAM 1.953676
BBD 2.301698
BDT 139.359341
BGN 1.954073
BHD 0.429968
BIF 3398.70536
BMD 1.140335
BND 1.480191
BOB 7.877437
BRL 6.413478
BSD 1.140061
BTN 99.704614
BWP 15.639998
BYN 3.730645
BYR 22350.573304
BZD 2.289911
CAD 1.582107
CDF 3295.569048
CHF 0.931021
CLF 0.028295
CLP 1110.012675
CNY 8.210928
CNH 8.235068
COP 4774.321928
CRC 575.973875
CUC 1.140335
CUP 30.218887
CVE 110.146711
CZK 24.584447
DJF 202.999325
DKK 7.462731
DOP 69.284683
DZD 149.396961
EGP 55.454398
ERN 17.105031
ETB 157.252355
FJD 2.593522
FKP 0.862509
GBP 0.866666
GEL 3.074412
GGP 0.862509
GHS 11.969988
GIP 0.862509
GMD 82.672525
GNF 9886.602302
GTQ 8.749565
GYD 238.500732
HKD 8.951461
HNL 29.957434
HRK 7.532026
HTG 149.237768
HUF 400.162497
IDR 18837.884222
ILS 3.903978
IMP 0.862509
INR 99.77946
IQD 1493.376591
IRR 48022.371323
ISK 143.006543
JEP 0.862509
JMD 182.861217
JOD 0.808467
JPY 171.61648
KES 147.274177
KGS 99.722426
KHR 4568.034215
KMF 492.067058
KPW 1026.279346
KRW 1601.453099
KWD 0.34905
KYD 0.949967
KZT 618.677453
LAK 24652.201267
LBP 102148.357317
LKR 343.476616
LRD 228.561537
LSL 20.882283
LTL 3.367114
LVL 0.689777
LYD 6.22812
MAD 10.439352
MDL 19.63066
MGA 5174.375079
MKD 61.493152
MMK 2392.959303
MNT 4095.441164
MOP 9.216781
MRU 45.472568
MUR 53.310191
MVR 17.564217
MWK 1976.751128
MXN 21.618342
MYR 4.877784
MZN 72.935412
NAD 20.8821
NGN 1747.23365
NIO 41.954393
NOK 11.814903
NPR 159.527582
NZD 1.945783
OMR 0.438452
PAB 1.139961
PEN 4.095348
PGK 4.80178
PHP 66.280281
PKR 323.467467
PLN 4.275403
PYG 8538.717794
QAR 4.144722
RON 5.074948
RSD 117.15312
RUB 91.68215
RWF 1646.709907
SAR 4.277788
SBD 9.401111
SCR 16.744565
SDG 684.771648
SEK 11.198675
SGD 1.481119
SHP 0.896125
SLE 26.227456
SLL 23912.267097
SOS 651.491781
SRD 41.982019
STD 23602.639886
STN 24.473396
SVC 9.974982
SYP 14826.63088
SZL 20.876306
THB 37.460585
TJS 10.755608
TMT 4.002577
TND 3.391114
TOP 2.670778
TRY 46.375956
TTD 7.726601
TWD 34.127158
TZS 2884.606027
UAH 47.653262
UGX 4086.557615
USD 1.140335
UYU 45.797203
UZS 14468.320302
VES 141.084088
VND 29899.59347
VUV 136.998344
WST 3.160828
XAF 655.244701
XAG 0.031303
XAU 0.000346
XCD 3.081813
XCG 2.054567
XDR 0.79072
XOF 655.201656
XPF 119.331742
YER 274.421555
ZAR 20.902176
ZMK 10264.387335
ZMW 26.076653
ZWL 367.187525
  • RBGPF

    0.5200

    74.94

    +0.69%

  • CMSC

    -0.0170

    22.833

    -0.07%

  • RYCEF

    0.0200

    14.2

    +0.14%

  • BCC

    -1.4900

    82.32

    -1.81%

  • VOD

    0.1450

    10.955

    +1.32%

  • NGG

    1.3800

    71.77

    +1.92%

  • RELX

    -0.2610

    51.629

    -0.51%

  • SCS

    -0.1800

    10.15

    -1.77%

  • GSK

    0.2200

    37.37

    +0.59%

  • RIO

    0.0600

    59.83

    +0.1%

  • BCE

    0.2500

    23.58

    +1.06%

  • SCU

    0.0000

    12.72

    0%

  • JRI

    -0.0520

    13.078

    -0.4%

  • BTI

    1.1350

    54.815

    +2.07%

  • AZN

    0.7050

    73.795

    +0.96%

  • CMSD

    0.0570

    23.327

    +0.24%

  • BP

    -0.3750

    31.775

    -1.18%

In Darwin's wake: Two-year global conservation voyage sparks hope
In Darwin's wake: Two-year global conservation voyage sparks hope / Photo: Robin Utrecht - ANP/AFP

In Darwin's wake: Two-year global conservation voyage sparks hope

After a two-year around-the-world ocean voyage inspired by Charles Darwin, scientists and crew sailed home on a historic vessel into Rotterdam Thursday bearing a warning about climate change -- but also a message of hope.

Text size:

The majestic three-masted Oosterschelde, the last remaining vessel from a fleet of Dutch schooners that criss-crossed the globe in the early 20th century, arrived to a welcome befitting a voyage of more than 40,000 nautical miles (74,000 kilometres, 46,000 miles).

Ceremonially escorted by more than a dozen vessels ranging from tall ships to steamships, all blaring horns, the Oosterschelde received a "water cannon salute" from fire service boats, as hundreds waved and cheered from the banks.

Like Darwin in 1831, the Oosterschelde departed the British port of Plymouth in August 2023 to embark on a voyage of discovery that took in the major stops explored during the British naturalist's world-changing mission aboard the HMS Beagle.

From the Falkland Islands to the southern tips of Africa, South America and Australia, the trip closely shadowed Darwin's voyage that inspired his groundbreaking theory of natural selection described in "On the Origin of Species".

Aboard the Oosterschelde at various points of the voyage were some of the world's best young conservationists, 100 scientists aged 18-25, selected to study a species also observed by Darwin, himself aged 22 at the time of his trip.

Giant tortoises, Chilean dolphins, and howler monkeys were just some of the weird and wonderful creatures the young "Darwin Leaders" investigated, tracking changes since their appearance in "Origin of Species" two centuries ago.

With "online classrooms" onboard and slick social media output, the mission also hoped to inspire a new generation around the message: "Conservation isn't about what we've lost, it's about protecting what we still have."

- 'Barely anything left' -

One of the Darwin Leaders, 23-year-old Lotta Baten, spent a week on the ship and conducted a study into the impact of tourism on forests in Tenerife, Spain.

She said only roughly four percent of the forest that Darwin would have seen from the Beagle is still alive today, with much torn down to support the tourism industry.

"There's barely anything left, mainly the strips around the coast," the Dutch-German scientist told AFP.

She said it was "quite something" to follow in the footsteps of Darwin, but noted that the botanist's legacy is divided, as a European in colonial times.

"He basically explored and discovered things that maybe had already been explored and discovered by people at the places themselves. And then he claimed he discovered them," said Baten.

Science co-ordinator Rolf Schreuder admitted that "it's not a rosy picture", with habitat loss and climate change all transforming the environment beyond what Darwin would have recognised.

"You see the natural world degrading in many places," the 55-year-old told AFP.

But Schreuder, like many on board, found the mission inspiring rather than depressing.

He ran more than 100 local projects during the trip with people seeking to preserve their landscapes.

"We met so many great people that are actually on the ground working on the survival of those species," he said.

He found himself inspired too by the young scientists, "full of ideas, full of commitment and determination to really make a difference."

- 'Do another tour' -

Crew member Daan van Roosmalen was a boy of 17 when he set sail on the Oosterschelde. He returned to his native Netherlands having just turned 19.

"I've just been to so many places. To the Galapagos Islands, French Polynesia. We went so far away and to then sail back up this river and see the skyline of Rotterdam again is just super special," he told AFP.

He said he hoped the round-the-world voyage completed by scientists and crew his age would send a message to his generation.

"I think it's very important that we keep inspiring young people to look after our world, because we are going to be the ones taking over," he said.

"So to see all these young conservationists putting so much effort in Mother Earth... I think that should inspire more people to also take care of our planet."

And what of Darwin, the inspiration behind the mission?

"I would say he would have been enthused by his fellow young people taking care of this natural world, which he described so nicely," said Schreuder.

"I think he would hop on this boat again and do another tour."

F.Prochazka--TPP