AUGUST 15th 2024 marks one year since the departure of the iconic DARWIN200 voyage which set sail from Plymouth Harbour on an epic two year planetary conservation mission aboard historic Dutch Tall ship OOSTERSCHELDE retracing Charles Darwin’s most famous sea voyage, training 200 young environmentalists along the way.
Since its departure from Plymouth, one year ago, the historic tall ship Oosterschelde has sailed 19,500 nautical miles (around 36,000 kilometres), docked in 20 ports, and hosted 78 exceptional DARWIN Leaders representing over 40 countries. The work carried out has covered a rainbow of critically important conservation projects from endangered giant tortoises to howler monkeys, golden lion tamarins, orchids, penguins, albatrosses, reef fish, dolphins and more. Thousands of children around the world have visited the Oosterschelde and many have sailed aboard her on day trips, attended live events and tuned into weekly educational broadcasts ‘The World’s Most Exciting Classroom’ all inspired by Charles Darwin’s HMS Beagle voyage that famously ignited a scientific revolution almost two centuries ago.
Oosterschelde Director Gerben Nab says, “Now that we are halfway through the journey, have sailed almost 20000 miles and half a globe away from Oosterschelde’s home of Rotterdam, the realisation is dawning on us that we are on an epic journey. Half a globe behind us but also half a globe ahead of us. The story is far from finished!”
The magnificent Oosterschelde has navigated across the Atlantic, south along the coast of Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina, to the Falkland Islands, through the Straits of Magellan, north through the glacier-strewn Chilean Fjords and along the arched western coast of South America. In May the ship finally arrived in the Galápagos Islands, the place that famously inspired Darwin’s theory of natural selection, which became the foundation of evolutionary biology.
DARWIN200 is now sailing between islands of the immense South Pacific and has just left Tahiti heading for the Cook Islands, Tonga and Fiji and is expected to arrive in Auckland New Zealand on 1st October ahead of its grand arrival in Sydney Harbour on 14th November 2024.
Stewart McPherson, Director of DARWIN200 and Sydney resident says: “As we approach August 15th – the halfway mark of the 2 year DARWIN200 voyage, we look ahead to our ship’s arrival in my hometown of Sydney. It fills me with immense pride and excitement that the 107-year old historic tall ship Oosterschelde will visit New South Wales. Our time in Sydney holds deep personal significance, as it’s not just a homecoming but also a vital step in our mission and efforts to showcase Darwin’s important discoveries and adventures in Australia. We will also be looking at how the natural landscape has changed over the last two hundred years, and we have an incredible range of Darwin Leader projects planned to enable young people from across the world to learn from many of Australia’s most inspiring conservation initiatives. We have planned an exciting rainbow of educational projects and outreach activities to engage the community during our time in Sydney and to promote the protection and preservation of Australia’s unique natural environment.”
When Charles Darwin arrived in Sydney on January 12, 1836, during his voyage on HMS Beagle, he encountered a rapidly growing colonial city that was still in its early stages of development. Darwin observed the social and environmental changes brought about by European settlement, including the impact on the indigenous population and the landscape. He also noted the introduction of European plants and animals, which he found interesting in the context of his studies on natural history. Darwin’s observations in Sydney contributed to his broader understanding of species adaptation and the effects of colonisation on native ecosystems.
Research projects during the voyage include surveys of seabirds, so far, over 300 species have been recorded via thousands of observations over the last year, as well as studies of cetaceans, ocean plastics, coral reef health surveys and a comprehensive survey of invertebrates across the Pacific, which has resulted in the discovery of several new species that children around the world will shortly select names for.
