Channel NewsAsia 13 Apr 08;
SINGAPORE : Two German nationals are embarking on a year-long journey around Africa on their bicycles from Monday.
Ragna Schmidt-Haupt, 30, and Amiram Roth-Deblon, 33, are based in Singapore. Their aim is to raise awareness about global warming and climate change. The duo have chosen Africa, saying it is the continent which is most badly affected by climate change.
They will collect video messages from children in Ethiopia and Kenya, and these will be presented at the G8 Summit in Hokkaido, Japan, later this year.
Ragna and Amiram have also come up with S$10,000 each for the trip, and have spent months getting themselves into shape.
Ragna said: "The biggest challenge is probably the physical challenge. We are going to be cycling through mountains, we will be cycling through deserts, we will be cycling through long stretches but there's not going to be a lot of water."
Amiram said: "Second is of course, traffic in big cities can be quite challenging. And then of course malaria, when you don't get a vaccine. That's why we have mosquito-repellent clothing, we sleep in a mosquito net in our tent."
But they are ready to fulfil a dream of travelling to Africa and to raise awareness of how to reverse the negative effects of the climate change.
One way is to use solar panels to produce renewable energy. The panels will be attached to the back of their bikes, to absorb the energy from the sun which will be used to charge their equipment.
This will be their only source of power during the trip which will be used to charge their phones, cameras, and the GPS system.
The pair will also give talks about solar energy.
Amiram added: "We have already established contacts with people from the solar industry in Ethiopia, in Kenya ... we will probably conduct some workshops."
Amiram and Ragna will also plant at least 10 trees in every country they cycle through, as a symbol of what can be done to reverse the effects of deforestation.
It is also part of the United Nations Environmental Programme's one billion tree campaign which aims to have at least one billion trees planted worldwide every year.
According to Amiram, trees in Africa have been cut down to some 10 percent of its original numbers since the 1990s. So re-planting them is the only solution.
Amiram said: "Already some schools in Germany, and some colleagues in Singapore have been inspired and they told us,"we like the idea, please plant some trees for us." So we collect some money and we plant trees on their behalf."
Another part of their green message is their "vehicles". They are cycling to promote sustainable transport systems.
Amiram, who rides his bike to work daily in Singapore, believes it is something which can be done.
You can support their cause and track their journey by logging on to their website http://www.cycle-generation.org/
CNA/de
