Expedition Team Departs To Explore Fault Line Living
Recipients of the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) and Land Rover 2010 ‘Go Beyond’ Bursary have departed the UK to document the lives of hundreds of people who live along some of the world’s most dangerous fault lines.
The team of three will uncover the complex relationship people have with their environment where the natural world catastrophically affects the human one.
The British expedition team who form the group Fault Line Living, will be travelling almost 25,000 km from Iceland to Iran over a 12-week period to gain a detailed understanding of the issues faced by communities living on fault lines.
Before leaving, Serena Davies, Tamsin Davies and Adam Whitaker were presented with their Land Rover Defender 110 and funding of £10,000 at the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) in London,.
Starting in Iceland, where the team may experience up to 78 earthquakes a day, they will then travel to Italy, Greece, Turkey and finally Iran.
Along the way they will be working with school students, seismologists and citizens of each country to investigate how different communities adapt to the challenges of fault line living.
Tamsin Davies of Fault Line Living, said: "It’s taken months of preparation to get to this stage, and we are looking forward to getting started. Between us, we have already visited many communities that experience harsh geographical conditions on a daily basis.
This expedition enables us to go beyond our existing experiences and create a detailed record that we’ll share with schools and other organisations on our return."
Dr Rita Gardner, Director of the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG), said: "This project, made possible through our 30 year partnership with Land Rover, shows the power of geography and its impact on people, places and environments.
"The team will, as well as 'going beyond' their normal limits and boundaries, be supporting one of the Society’s objectives which is to promote the wider understanding of our world."
Journeys undertaken by previous recipients of this award have included last year’s winners, Atlantic Rising, who are currently navigating their way around the Atlantic Ocean by attempting to follow the 1m contour line which scientists forecast could become the new coastline in 100 years.
Land Rover holds sustainability at the core of its business activity, including sponsoring partners such as RGS-IBG. Together with sister company, Jaguar, Land Rover is investing £800m in sustainable technology which includes the development of hybrid technology and the use of lightweight material.
As part of Land Rover’s commitment to sustainability, the manufacturing and mileage of the 110 Defender vehicle are being carbon offset through ClimateCare who run Land Rover's CO2 Offset Programme in the UK, France, Netherlands, Belgium, Norway, Sweden, Austria and the Middle East, China and Japan.
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