Everyone can take part in the world’s longest ever climate relay on 5th November – and stay at home!
Residents of South Wales, who have already taken part in the world’s longest relay ever attempted, are urging others to get involved in the ‘Running Out of Time – The Global Stage‘. This is a special stage on Saturday 5th November to celebrate the relay’s arrival at COP27 and to help show world leaders at the UN climate change summit, COP27, how strongly the public wants them to take action to combat climate change and not just make more promises.
However, this latest part of the relay lets people get involved where they live!
The Running Out of Time Relay unites thousands of members of the public who are running, cycling and sailing 7,767km/4,826 miles, day and night to deliver a climate action message from young people to world leaders when they gather at COP27 in Egypt. The relay started on September 30th in Glasgow and is travelling through 18 countries before arriving at Sharm el-Sheikh on November 5th for the start of the next UN summit about climate change.
Over 70 local people ran or cycled a 10 km (approx) stretch when the relay passed through Wales, and Swansea and South Wales in particular between Wednesday 5th and Thursday 6th October – you can see the full route here. The participants included a running team from the SPECIFIC Innovation & Knowledge Centre at the University of Swansea which is developing an environmentally friendlier form of concrete, and cycling and running teams from Seagrass Ocean Rescue, an environmental charity working to restore the 92% of seagrass in British waters has been lost in the last century. Seagrass absorbs carbon dioxide at a faster rate than rainforests and, although seagrass occupies just 0.1% of the seabed, it holds onto 11% of the carbon dioxide buried in the ocean.
When it passed through Wales, the relay also visited The Carbon Community in Carmarthenshire, which is carrying out one of the largest field-trials in the UK designed to accelerate and enhance carbon drawdown in trees & soil with nature-based techniques, and The Penpont Project in Powys, the world’s first large-scale, intergenerational nature restoration project and a blueprint for how youth action and conservation can bring change.
They’re now urging more people to support the relay’s climate action message by joining in with the ‘Running Out of Time – The Global Stage’. At 10.00 am on 5th November (or as close to that date as possible), people are being asked to run, walk, cycle, dance or be active in some way for 27 minutes – on their own or with friends and family. Then to post those pics & selfies tagged with #RunningOutofTime to showcase unity across the world for combating climate change, and to call on world’s leaders to do the same. More information and registration is at Running Out of Time – the Global Stage.
Bethan Thomas, one of Seagrass Ocean Rescue’s team commented:
“To combat climate change, we need all of us working together. Project Seagrass were delighted to be invited to take part in a few stages for the Running Out of Time Climate Relay and help get a message across to our global leaders. Everyone now has the chance to get involved with the Global Stage to have their voices heard and help convey the urgency of climate action.”
Georgia Bevan, one of SPECIFIC’s team said:
“We’re delighted that SPECIFIC’s low carbon Active Buildings were part of the Climate Relay when it came through Swansea. Several of our staff took part then, and we heartily encourage anyone who couldn’t be there to try the Global Relay. The message that is being carried to the world’s leaders at COP27 is such an important one, and this is a way to add your voice to growing demand for action on climate change. Knowing that you’re running alongside thousands of others from around the world is a great motivation too!”
People can also add their names to the message to help to show the strength of feeling the public have for tackling climate change right now rather than just talking about it. The message will be read out at the Ministerial session on climate change and education, and it’s calling on Governments to provide quality education, skills and resources to enable people to tackle climate change where they live and to protect their communities from the worst effects of climate change. People can add their names to the message and help to meet the target of 500,000 signatures here.
