Personal Blog of Ellen MacArthur

Sunday was a difficult day for many with the Olympic torch relay through the city of London.

The events that day sadly have not highlighted the great things which will happen here in 4 years’ time. The millions of people who will be inspired by sports, and the co-operation between nations.

My feeling is that the Olympics should be about uniting nations. It should be about using the platform of the Olympics to inspire people, to share ideas and ideals, to bring countries closer together to increase their knowledge and understanding of one another.

You have to ask the question, would it have been better if all the torchbearers had pulled out and the torch relay had not taken place at all, in which case, there would have been no event at which to protest and share views and messages?

Closing the doors is surely a poor method of communicating, and if the Olympics were not being held in Beijing, then there would not be an opportunity to communicate these matters to this extent on a world stage.

Whatever the future holds, I believe that dialogue is essential for progress and understanding.

Ellen

I walked through the town of Newport on the Isle of Wight today, really fancying an apple. I would have thought that in a high street that would be quite a straightforward thing to find, but it appears not. I was even tempted by an apple logo on a clothes shop!

It made me realise just how much things have changed in the modern towns of today, in that you can’t always find the essentials.

Maybe I don’t know Newport well enough, but it would appear as if I needed a car to get my apple this lunchtime.

I settled for some dried apple instead!

Ellen

The night of the Eco-Island conference (Wednesday 26^th March), I shot over to the mainland for a State Banquet at Windsor Castle with Her Majesty the Queen and her guests. It was in honour of French President Sarkozy’s visit to the UK and it was quite incredible to play a small part in it. The dinner at Windsor Castle was a grand affair, with some very interesting guests; it’s not every day that you pull up to the gates of Windsor Castle for dinner!

The following day was a busy one for me with preparations for being presented with the Légion d’Honneur, France’s highest decoration. I was receiving the award at the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich in the Painted Hall which was an impressive place in itself. I was pretty nervous in the morning having the acceptance speech to give. It’s never easy speaking in front of people anyway, but when you are effectively addressing a nation which has been so kind to you, you want to get it right!

It was just fantastic to see so many friends and colleagues there. Even Mum and Dad made it down to London! Three of the young people from the Ellen MacArthur Trust were there, Sam Ledster, Maxine Duggins and Katie Schuster, who were all nervous like me before the arrival of President Sarkozy and his wife. They seemed to enjoy it though, and were certainly smiling in the photograph! We spent a few moments with the girls outside, then went inside the Painted Hall for the formal part of the ceremony. President Sarkozy gave his speech which was touching and reflective, he spoke of my many adventures in France, courage and determination. It was one of those strange moments in life when you are listening to something, but cannot accept that those words are meant for you. I felt a little bit like I was in a film set, and I was just an actor playing a part. I never have been very good at letting things sink in. Anyway, I did manage to do the speech, without my kneecaps shaking too much!

I finished with the following lines….

“I have been moved beyond words by the way in which the French people have taken me into their hearts and supported me in all my adventures.”

“Pour finir, un grand merci à la France pour toutes les opportunités et les amitiés qu’elle a su m’offrir.”

That kind of sums it up really…

Ellen

Editor’s Note: A video clip of speeches by President Sarkozy and Ellen will be online shortly.

I was asked to speak at the Eco Island conference last week in Cowes on the Isle of Wight. The eco-island project is at the core of the Council’s sustainable community strategy, and is something that personally I am hugely excited about!  There must have been over 300 people there, who all seemed motivated by the island’s plans. These plans include everything from energy to food production, to improving open spaces and increasing people’s contentment in living here. There were some great speakers including Professor Bill Wakeham of Southampton University, Professor Sir Ghillean Prance, Scientific Director of The Eden Project, Eugene Dreyer from Sir Terry Farrell’s architecture practice who are designing a new vision for the island and Tony Galloni, Head of Marketing for Sustainable Energy Solutions at E.ON.

When it comes to making a difference, we have the most amazing opportunity. Not only, like other councils, in that the door of sustainability needs to be pushed open and kept open, but also because the island’s geographical boundaries, being surrounded by water, mean that it is a perfect place to try this initiative as measuring what goes on and off the island is so much easier. I believe that the island can be a shining example to other regions, but there is a terrifically long way to go, and the challenge is simply colossal.

I feel though that if you are trying to understand the solution to a problem, you need to break things down and look at things on a smaller scale. You need to understand the big picture, but so many of the changes you make will be small and incremental. Just hopefully millions of them at the same time!

When I spoke at the conference I used the sailing journey analogy of being out there and simply having to manage your resources. Being aware of and on top of the reserves that you have and looking after them and never wasting them. Our island could be an incredible example for this, we have huge food production, but most is exported. We have incredible amenity value in our beaches and open ground which we need to preserve. In effect we need to leave the island in a better state than when we all arrived here, looking after the place, and managing its resources not draining any other area of the country or world.

I really hope that the Isle of Wight people will get behind this project, and that the island will change as we do to be a happier, and more sustainable place to live. 

Ellen