The Story before the Antarctic(3): Challenges and pieces of advice

Challenges and pieces of advice:

The first challenge I had was to convince my family. For them it didn’t make any scene to go to a no man land with a group of strangers with a vague  mission to preserve the environment. In fact, they were more concerned about my safety and trusting the team.

They had to understand that my concern about the environment was not born in that moment only and it was there inside me since years. I only needed the right direction. Sometimes people don’t know what they are capable of doing and what they want to do until a very late age. It took me almost a week to get a very big green light and huge yes from my family. That week was one of the most difficult weeks in my life.  

Though I was excited and flying with happiness that I was accepted to go to the Antarctic, I was so scared and worried. I needed money to go. The required amount is not something that I can pay by my own especially that I have just become jobless and have no other sort of income. In addition, I have absolutely no idea about how to fundraise an expedition.

Thanks to 2041 team who was helpful and Robert Swan personally was following up my progress. They provided me with sample fundraising tips and pieces of advice. They even gave me suggestions to enhance my proposal. I also got a great support from the 2041 alumnus in Oman especially Bader Al Rahbi who was always giving me valuable advice.

Writing fundraising proposals was challenging and tricky. Though it was all about the expedition what I want out of it and why I think this particular organization should support me, I had to make it strong and up to the point. I had to be carful when choosing the right words that makes the point clear and grabs the reader’s attention.

For those who asked for my suggestions on how to fundraise their expedition, here are some:

1. -       Study the market and learn about big organizations and those who support social projects and initiatives.
2. -       Choose  the organizations that have plans and commitments towards their social responsibility.
3. -       Make a list of organizations with the names of social responsibility department heads and contact details.
4. -       Read about the organization you are targeting and match their common things with your mission.
5. -       Write from your heart and make it simple about why do you want to go to the Antarctic.
6. -       Your mission should be clear and your sentences shouldn’t be that long. Avoid losing the reader’s attention.
7. -       Talk about them (the organization you are targeting) and why they should support you.
8. -       Write about the things you could do in return for them if they support you. If you can propose a timeline that would be excellent though more challenging and requires more careful planning.
9. -       Make a list of sponsorship schemes to give them more freedom to choose  what kind of support they could go for.
10. -       Always leave a room for them to suggest something, but try to close it as soon as you can. You don’t have time to argue as if you were in a big business deal though this might sound a little business.
11. -       Call first, speak to the CSR manager and ask for a meeting to give more details and have a discussion. There is no harm of sending the proposal after the call if the person showed interest. If the person was reluctant and ignorant, speak to someone else in the organization.
12. -       If there is no CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility)department, then target the marketing or the corporate dept. Be aware that sometimes another department might be able to help.
13. -       Don’t send your proposal to the ignorant people.
14. -       Don’t send your proposal to those who say it from the beginning that they don’t have budget unless you demand some other kind of support from them.
15. -       Be nice to those who reject your request and respond gently to regrets. At least they were kind enough to read your proposal and write back to you. Remember that not everyone can support even if they want to. On the other hand there are those who could support but they don’t want to.
16. -       Don’t over promise and don’t underestimate. Value your word.
17. -       If you were invited to a meeting and the person was late and then he didn’t apologize for that, take it as a sign for a No or a bad treatment. Yet, that may not be the case  so keep a little hope.
18. -       Never ever listen to someone asking you to stop communicating with their competitors if they only gave you a verbal promise to support. Once you get it in written and if you were convinced, do what they say.
19. -       Be on time if not before time for your meetings and appointments. Take it seriously and dress well, prepare well and speak well.
20. -       Some people will try to let you down. Don’t give them the opportunity to enjoy it and prove them wrong. You have such a great mission that deserves all your self-confidence and humbleness to be put all together.
21. -       Check your emails more than once a day. But reply only when ready.
22. -       Bare all the stress. You know it from the beginning that it may not be easy at all.
23. -       Always go back to those who can support you with positive energy. Never ever talk to those who would let you down. Believe me, in this stage you will know your true friends and you will know the rest when you come back from the Antarctic.
24. -       Let go all the negative thoughts. The 2041 team is there to support, so always consult them.
25. -       There are those organizations that would ask you to do things that are not part of your mission or don’t relate to you r personality and don’t match with you. Don’t close the door from the beginning and give them your suggestions. If you failed to reach a compromised solution, say thank you and then go away. Never ever give up on your values and standards.
26. -       Be committed and deliver your promises.
27. -       Show appreciation and respect because those who believe in you and support you do really deserve it.
28. -       Open a separate bank account for the funds you receive and be aware of your expenditures. It is good to keep track of them.
29. -       No matter how many organizations you approached. It does matter who supports you.
30. -       If you are doing this for the first time, congratulations. This is one of your achievements already regardless to its results.

For me, fundraising was more challenging than the expedition itself. It was also one of the few things that made me feel special after seeing those many people who made it to the Antarctic without going through this stage.

Look at Shinaz who has been to the Antarctic without having all his expenses covered by sponsors. So, he had loans to pay back after the expedition. It was his great desire to make it happen and he did it. There is also Caroline who spent five years till she made it finally this year to the Antarctic.

Look at me, unemployed but I made it.

Good luck to you all.

The Story before the Antarctic (2): Why Antarctica?

Why Antarctica?

It was truly said that the disaster that doesn’t kill me, makes me stronger. I believe this happened with me. For more than nine months I was struggling in my job though I loved it and I loved the clients I dealt with and the daily challenges. But I couldn’t bare the huge conflict in values and qualities I had with the management. I wanted to sustain the good ethics I was raised up with and fight for them. Hence, I decided to leave my job taking all the load of my financial commitments with no guarantee of getting a good job soon.

It was one of the best things I ever done I was rewarded for my good will with the opportunity to show more commitment towards spreading the good word and the good action. This is what happened when I received Robert Swan invitation to be the first Omani woman to go the Antarctic.

Years ago, I wanted to have the right to vote for Al Gore to be the US president. His “Inconvenient Truth” talk

about global warming and global crisis was the first eye opener to me about things changing in a scary and unwanted way. To tell the truth, I love those stories about how earth existed, the big bang the black holes, etc. Global warming was a sort of an action story that would be good to experience. Of course, I thought of it more seriously after a little while and then it became a concern that I wanted to learn more about.

So, to connect the dots, I wanted to go to the Antarctic because I got this big idea in mind of making a good difference. I wanted to become an ambassador of positive change and contribute as an individual in preserving our earth. Antarctica is a place that I believe as Robert Swan said, has to be left alone. Another thing drove me to go for this challenge was to tell everyone that nothing is impossible and we could eventually do something useful and valuable if we thought of how to turn our negative impact into positive.

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The Story before the Antarctic(1): How did it begin?

How did it begin?

I always maintain a list of dreams and wishes. Some of them noted down in papers and some in my dreams book. The others have just always been there in my mind. However, the Antarctic wasn’t among them months ago. The Antarctic story began in November 2011 when I was one of the Mosaic International delegates in Qatar who got the opportunity to meet in person with Robert Swan.

Being touched by natural beauty and the importance of every person’s responsibility as the first person in history to walk to North and South Poles, Sir Robert Swan OBE has always had the commitment to do something great as a pay back to our beloved earth. In the Mosaic Summit he gave us one of the best speeches I’ve ever heard in my life. A true and real inspiring story that is not a part of a Hollywood movie.

Like all other delegates, I was inspired and taken by his adventures. Not only that, I was more taken by his message to the world and actions towards making it more sustainable, green, clean and for all of us.

After the speech, we were all crazy to take photos with him. How come we don’t feel so with the man contributed in making the history since his first footstep in the Antarctic! I stood anxiously in a far distance and asked him if I can join his expedition to the Antarctic. His answer was immediate: “And why are you standing far away from me? I won’t eat you. Of course you can.”

I was happy to get his business card. Yet, I wasn’t sure about what he said. I thought he felt sorry for me and didn’t want to embarrass me in front of everyone and thus he said yes. Nevertheless, I had no control over the magnificent flow of images and scenes of me walking in the Antarctic. The idea kept on driving me somewhere else since that moment. I decided to embrace this challenge and turn it into reality. I will go to the Antarctic.

Being with 80 delegates from 20 countries discussing global concerns and trying to resolve some issues with our leadership roles made me feel that I can do something good. Many people came from less fortunate places than I, with absolutely no resources and no support, yet they lead people from their nations to a great positive change. The summit was a great relief for me to get closer to myself. I have always wanted to do something good for the society and contribute positively. Things were blurry, there was no guidance and probably my eyes were not opened to such kind of opportunities. I knew then that I also could do many good things.

Earth Day: The History of A Movement

Each year, Earth Day -- April 22 -- marks the anniversary of what many consider the birth of the modern environmental movement in 1970.

The height of hippie and flower-child culture in the United States, 1970 brought the death of Jimi Hendrix, the last Beatles album, and Simon & Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water”. Protest was the order of the day, but saving the planet was not the cause. War raged in Vietnam, and students nationwide increasingly opposed it.

At the time, Americans were slurping leaded gas through massive V8 sedans. Industry belched out smoke and sludge with little fear of legal consequences or bad press. Air pollution was commonly accepted as the smell of prosperity. “Environment” was a word that appeared more often in spelling bees than on the evening news.  Although mainstream America remained oblivious to environmental concerns, the stage had been set for change by the publication of Rachel Carson's New York Times bestseller Silent Spring in 1962.  The book represented a watershed moment for the modern environmental movement, selling more than 500,000 copies in 24 countries and, up until that moment, more than any other person, Ms. Carson raised public awareness and concern for living organisms, the environment and public health.

Earth Day 1970 capitalized on the emerging consciousness, channeling the energy of the anti-war protest movement and putting environmental concerns front and center.

As a result, on the 22nd of April, 20 million Americans took to the streets, parks, and auditoriums to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment in massive coast-to-coast rallies. Thousands of colleges and universities organized protests against the deterioration of the environment. Groups that had been fighting against oil spills, polluting factories and power plants, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides, freeways, the loss of wilderness, and the extinction of wildlife suddenly realized they shared common values.

Earth Day 1970 achieved a rare political alignment, enlisting support from Republicans and Democrats, rich and poor, city slickers and farmers, tycoons and labor leaders. The first Earth Day led to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Acts. "It was a gamble," Gaylord recalled, "but it worked."

As 1990 approached, a group of environmental leaders asked Denis Hayes to organize another big campaign. This time, Earth Day went global, mobilizing 200 million people in 141 countries and lifting environmental issues onto the world stage. Earth Day 1990 gave a huge boost to recycling efforts worldwide and helped pave the way for the 1992 United Nations Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. It also prompted President Bill Clinton to award Senator Nelson the Presidential Medal of Freedom (1995) -- the highest honor given to civilians in the United States -- for his role as Earth Day founder.

As the millennium approached, Hayes agreed to spearhead another campaign, this time focused on global warming and a push for clean energy. With 5,000 environmental groups in a record 184 countries reaching out to hundreds of millions of people, Earth Day 2000 combined the big-picture feistiness of the first Earth Day with the international grassroots activism of Earth Day 1990. It used the Internet to organize activists, but also featured a talking drum chain that traveled from village to village in Gabon, Africa, and hundreds of thousands of people gathered on the National Mall in Washington, DC. Earth Day 2000 sent world leaders the loud and clear message that citizens around the world wanted quick and decisive action on clean energy.

Much like 1970, Earth Day 2010 came at a time of great challenge for the environmental community. Climate change deniers, well-funded oil lobbyists, reticent politicians, a disinterested public, and a divided environmental community all contributed to a strong narrative that overshadowed the cause of progress and change. In spite of the challenge, for its 40th anniversary, Earth Day Network reestablished Earth Day as a powerful focal point around which people could demonstrate their commitment. Earth Day Network brought 225,000 people to the National Mall for a Climate Rally, amassed 40 million environmental service actions toward its 2012 goal of A Billion Acts of Green®, launched an international, 1-million tree planting initiative with Avatar director James Cameron and tripled its online base to over 900,000 community members.

The fight for a clean environment continues in a climate of increasing urgency, as the ravages of climate change become more manifest every day. We invite you to be a part of Earth Day and help write many more victories and successes into our history. Discover energy you didn't even know you had. Feel it rumble through the grassroots under your feet and the technology at your fingertips. Channel it into building a clean, healthy, diverse world for generations to come.

Article from: http://www.earthday.org/earth-day-history-movement

Picture by: Aziza Al Adhobi

TEDxAntarcticPeninsula -- Robert Swan, O.B.E. - From words to action - Lessons from Antarctica