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#DARWIN200
The DARWIN200 project is the culmination of a decade of planning and preparations. The epic 2023-2025 Global Voyage, which is the centre piece of the project, follows two very successful smaller test voyages that circumnavigated the UK in 2020 and 2021.
Below is an overview of the core team behind DARWIN200
DARWIN200 project leader
Stewart is an award-winning author of over 35 natural history books and presenter of numerous wildlife TV documentaries. He leads dozens of expeditions across the world each year and has discovered 35 new species. Stewart has witnessed both the destruction of nature and the saving of species on the absolute brink of extinction. He co-founded Darwin200 and is leading this innovative, global adventure. Past projects include organising the donation of conservation resources and books to tens of thousands of schools, libraries and universities.
Commercial director
After a successful career as an entrepreneur, Mike raised the funding for a world record breaking circumnavigation by the trimaran motor yacht The Cable & Wireless Adventurer. This project provided him with first-hand experience of organising a major global voyage dealing with the logistics at each port, as well managing the day to day financial requirements such an undertaking entails and liaising with the PR and advertising agencies.
Founder – the Jane Goodall Institute & UN Messenger of Peace
Jane Goodall is an ethologist and conservationist known for her ground-breaking research into the wild chimpanzees of Gombe. Her discovery in 1960 that chimpanzees make and use tools transformed our understanding of the relationship between humans and animals.
In 1977, she founded the Jane Goodall Institute to support the ongoing research in Tanzania. Today there are 23 JGIs who work to support two sanctuaries for orphan chimpanzees in South Africa and Republic of Congo, TACARE the community conservation programme and Roots & Shoots. Roots & Shoots, founded nearly 30 years ago, empowers young people of all ages to become involved in hands-on programmes for people, animals and the environment in more than 65 countries and inspires the next generation of conservation leaders, scientists and naturalists.
Marine Biologist, Conservationist
Sylvia Earle is a world-renowned oceanographer, explorer, author and lecturer with extensive experience as a field research scientist, government official, and director for several corporate and non-profit organisations.
Sylvia is a passionate supporter of the Darwin 200 project. She is President and Chairwoman of Mission Blue, and is a National Geographic Society Explorer in Residence. Sylvia was awarded the titles Living Legend by the Library of Congress, and Hero for the Planet by Time Magazine, and was the recipient of the TED Prize in 2009.
Charles Darwin’s Great-Great-Granddaughter
I am very supportive of this incredible project. Using Charles Darwin’s voyage on HMS Beagle as a framework to highlight environmental change as well as the beauty of nature is a timely and noble ambition.
The excellent DARWIN200 team is developing novel methods to find and train 200 young people to become Darwin Ambassadors. These young ambassadors, representing 200 different locations around the world, will all have the potential and opportunity to become future leaders in the environmental movement, and to reach and inspire vast audiences worldwide.
