The surprising thing I learned...
- Jun 27, 2016
- 3 min read
“When you’re a child, anything and everything is possible. The challenge so often is hanging onto that as we grow up...”
£1 to anyone who can explain to me what exactly the Ellen MacArthur Foundation does. I certainly had no idea.
Many of us will recall back to 2005 when Dame Ellen MacArthur broke the record time for sailing around the world solo. She became a household name. I was nine years old and awe inspired by her achievement. I remember my mum being glued to her autobiography, gripped by the excitement of her adventure.
Currently, the average member of the Watson family spends considerable time contemplating all things boat. This week, as my dad and I sailed down the coast of Ireland, on the initial stage of the great Caribbean voyage, my thoughts turned once more to Ellen MacArthur. I had stumbled across her fifteen minute Ted talk from 2015 and, assuming she would be reflecting on her sailing experiences, I gave it a watch. I was astonished by how wrong I was.
As she quite rightly pointed out, few in our society have a genuine understanding about the the concept of finite. Using anecdotes of her time sailing in the Southern Ocean, she highlighted how she gained an appreciation “the finite resource”, the fundamental principle to all economics. In the 71 days and 14 hours that it took her to break the record, she lived on her own, on a boat, in the middle of the ocean, thousands of miles from any rescue, only glimpsing landmass a mere two times. Fair to say she had to make do with what she had and once that was gone there was no replenishment available.
Inspired by her revelations, Ellen set about gaining a broad understanding of resource economics, retiring from competitive sailing in order to pursue this new found passion. A natural interest of her’s was in the issues facing the industry that her great grandfather spent 52 years working in. Coal.
Britain would not be where we are today if it wasn’t for coal. It powered the Industrial Revolution, the World Wars and even today, plays a significant role in powering the world economy. Whilst I can sometimes be skeptical of the accuracy of the figures, there are estimates to suggest that, at our current rate of use, we only have 118 years left of our coal reserves. Throwback to 118 years ago. Back two centuries, in the age before phones, passenger jets and when the only photographs available are faded, grainy, back and white images of another era. It can be hard to imagine living that long ago let alone think forward that far forward in the future. However, as she points out, 118 years ago her great grandfather, whom she knew personally as a child, was born. It’s really not long and the clock never stops.
As with many things in life, the more she researched and understood, the more passionate she became about global economics. As with me, when she was made aware of the concept of the “circular economy” something struck a cord.
The circular economy is the concept of an economy that reuses resources constantly in the production and consumption process, as opposed to our current linear model, where we consume and dispose. Innovation, creativity, reuse and rethinking. It’s big, it’s bold but it’s revolutionary.
So in answer to my initial question, the Ellen MacArthur foundation serves to promote the concept of the circular economy through analysis, education and business. Founded in 2010, it is partnered with global corporations and universities all over the world. Millions have already been invested into this idea but the potential of this project is enormous and has a very exciting future ahead.
Who would have thought it? The sailing Dame with no further education qualification is now committing her life to a whole new but vital cause that is going to affect us all. She has inspired me again. She understands her passions and dares to act. And boy when she act’s does she go big. Her talk was delivered eloquently and I genuinely believe that she, the ideas behind her Foundation and the organisation structure that is already in place deserves close attention for the future.
“They can use their creativity and knowledge to rebuild the entire system”
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