Riverview
old boy and AFL player Malcolm Lynch has become one of two indigenous
Australians to set foot on Antarctica for the
very first time. Selected for the World Youth Expedition, Malcolm and fellow
indigenous Australian Narelle Long made history when they arrived in Antarctica this week with 40 other young people from
around the world.
The
expedition plans to set up an environmental school on the icy continent, and,
in a broader sense, aims 'to create a new generation of environmental leaders',
according to the organiser, polar explorer and environmentalist Robert Swan.
Malcolm, who plays for the Western Bulldogs and who is also an Earth Hour ambassador, hooked up via telephone with students
from 22 schools around Sydney
who had gathered at St Ignatius' College yesterday for the second annual Earth
Hour breakfast.
'[Being
selected for this expedition] has really made me more geared to environmental
issues', he told the gathering. 'It's been an experience in learning about the
environment. Just getting the opportunity has been amazing.'
The
breakfast was initiated in 2009 by Riverview's Environment Committee in the
hope that it would raise awareness not only of Earth Hour but also of the
importance of careful stewardship of the earth.
Sharon
McLean, Head of Geography at the school and member of the Environment
Committee, told students at the breakfast that they represented the next
generation of stewards. 'We hope you go back to your schools inspired', she
said.
Her
words were echoed by guest speaker Nick Mueller, a St Aloysius' College graduate
and member of the Australian Youth Climate Coalition (AYCC), who represented
the country at the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen last year.
Quoting
a Native American saying, he reminded students that, 'This land is not given to
you by your parents, but loaned to you by your grandchildren.'
Nick
inspired the audience with examples of the impact that young people around the
world are having on environmental policy. In India, a group of students
travelled the length of the country in solar-powered vehicles, drumming up
community and political support along the way.
'These
few young people managed to reach hundreds of thousands of people with their
message', said Nick.
The
Earth Hour breakfast - and the school-based projects which underpin it - also
received the endorsement of the NSW Department of Environment and Climate
Change, which has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Catholic
Schools Commission, building capacity among teachers and encouraging
sustainable practices in schools.
'It's
fantastic when schools come together to share their experiences. It's really
energising', said Megan Craig, Project Officer with the department. Without
initiatives such as this, she said, 'People [would] often feel alone when it
comes to what they are doing for the environment.'
This year's Earth Hour will commence
at 8.30pm on Saturday 27 March.
www.sustainableschools.nsw.edu.au
www.aycc.org.au
www.earthhour.org
By Catherine Marshall
Pictured: Nick Mueller (photo courtesy St Ignatius Riverview).