Active Activists
Whatever your idea of adventure is, think about adding an element of environmental activism to keep our outdoors great
Cameron McNeish sounds a clarion call for the protection of Scotland’s environment
AS I approach the biblically-allotted lifespan of three score years and 10, it’s perhaps a good time to reflect on personal things past, present and future. A suitable moment to consider what has been a “life of adventure.”
I highlight that term because adventure is such a loosely defined concept. I remember Hamish Brown telling the story of a woman who sat by the side of the road with a picnic table taking afternoon tea from china cups. For her that was an “adventure.”
I think of Sandy Allan, my neighbour here in Newtonmore, climbing the Mazeno Ridge of Nanga Parbat in Pakistan, a feat described by commentators as one of the greatest mountaineering achievements of all time, a great example of the opposite extreme.
In between lies a variety of experiences that could be legitimately defined as “adventure.” Looking back on my own life – and I’ve enjoyed a fair share of adventure – there is one aspect of it that causes me regret.
It’s a type of selfishness that is perhaps shared by most who climb hills and mountains. I think back to accidents I’ve had, and the worry caused to loved ones. I recall weeks and months away from home on some quest. Even a straightforward task like climbing the Munros, Scotland’s mountains more than 3000 feet (914m), benefits no one but the Munroist.
That’s not to decry Munro-bagging, it can make you more adaptable, practical, aware and certainly physically healthier, but at the end of the day climbing your final Munro doesn’t particularly benefit mankind.
“Stay outdoors!” connected to the great
Someone once wrote, “Your mark upon this world is not made where you have been. Your mark is found in what you are leaving behind for others,” and my personal conscious-salve is the hope that some of my writings may have had a positive effect on others.
Indeed, I’m aware there has been a long and slow evolution in outdoor writing over the years, from straightforward descriptions of mountaineering expeditions to a realisation that the wild places of the world are under threat.
John Muir, along with Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Wando Emerson, were among the first outdoor writers to engage with social and planetary concerns – ecology, the protection of species and global inclusivity. It is my hope that mountaineering and outdoor writing may in fact continue to evolve to help map out some new, creative routes towards a greener and better future.
And that’s the aim of those who would define themselves as adventure activists. I recently attended an event in Glasgow, organised by the American outdoor gear manufacturer Patagonia.
Their Adventure Activists Tour is described as “a grassroots movement for change, focusing on the environmental issues that affect us on a daily basis.”
The aim of the tour was to encourage action and change through a combination of inspiring talks, thought-provoking films from top adventurers, and building awareness of how to get involved through local, active Non-governmental Organisations (NGOS).
On the Glasgow leg of the tour the speakers were rock-climber Robbie Philips and mountain biker, snowboarder and campaigner Lauren Maccallum. Edinburgh-based Robbie is a Patagonia brand ambassador and has competed for Scotland in international rockclimbing competitions. He uses adventure as a means of inspiring others.
Lauren Maccallum is general manager of Save Our Winters, a campaign group concerned by climate change. An enthusiastic advocate for outdoor living, Lauren lives in Aviemore and works on projects that promote outdoor adventure and environmentalism, including a presenting role on BBC Scotland’s The Adventure Show.
I was immediately struck by the youthfulness of the audience. Was this because the speakers were active and adventurous, or was it simply that younger people are more engaged with planetary problems? I suspect it’s the latter. This generation, and their children, will bear the brunt of the environmental issues my generation and those before have created. And youngsters like 17-yearold Greta Thunberg have considerably raised the bar in worldwide awareness of climate change issues.
Climate change was at the centre of the Adventure Activism event. Host for the evening was another adventurer, Kate Rawles from Cumbria. A few years ago Kate cycled from Texas to Alaska exploring the effects of climate change, through a country that is considered to be one of the biggest carbon polluters in the world. More recently, she rode a bamboo-framed bicycle, which she made herself, from Colombia to Cape Horn, following the spine of the Andes, exploring biodiversity.
Kate is a former university lecturer in environmental ethics at Lancaster University and is now an environmentalist and writer. She uses adventure to help raise awareness and inspire action on our environmental challenges, hence her involvement with the Pat ago ni a sponsored tour.
Patagonia is an outdoor-clothing company formed by the climber and surfer Yvon Chouinard, one of the pioneers of extreme rock-climbing in Yosemite Valley. Various development threats to his local surfing area in Ventura, California made him take an environmental stand against the proposals, a stand he eventually won.
It was then Yvon realised the power of individuals in
effecting major change. It’s fair to say that Patagonia, under the direction of Chouinard, is probably the world’s biggest influencer of adventure activism. Patagonia describes its core purpose as “being in business to save our home planet.”
Adventure Activism hopes to find ways of connecting ordinary outdoors-loving folk with these activists, offering diverse audiences a way of moving into activism and achieving more on the environmental front.
Unsurprisingly, all the speakers at the Glasgow event were professional outdoor athletes – folk who had the opportunity, through events like this, to voice concern about such issues. But how could an ordinary outdoor enthusiast, working five days a week, become an adventure activist?
“I think of an activist as anyone who takes any kind of positive action for the environment,” Kate Rawles says. “An adventure activist is someone who harnesses their adventures as part of their activism, or whose activism is inspired or sustained by their adventures; by their time in the outdoors.
“So ordinary outdoor enthusiasts could be adventure activists in a variety of ways. By reducing their own personal impacts; by informing themselves about the issues; by using their adventures to tell everyone about them to amplify the message and to help tackle the issues.
“It’s good to be politically visible, too, and campaign for much-needed structural change in relation to transport, land ownership, food production, waste management, energy and nature-friendly land management. All of these issues affect the environments we love, directly and indirectly. Join the dots and make those joins visible for others in whatever way works best for you. And most important of all, stay connected to the great outdoors!”
But, during my years as an outdoor magazine editor I was often criticised for being too political. Many folk told me they simply wanted to chill out at the weekends and enjoy the hills for themselves, so I wondered how we go about changing that perspective to something that might help the planet? Kate had no hesitation in answering that tricky question.
“I think this is fundamentally about changing the narrative,” she said. “In Western countries at least, the adventure world has long been dominated by ‘conquering’ narratives, which also tend to be individualistic or even nationalistic. We can help shift this focus to include and even emphasise stories of connection with nature, of realising how deeply we are
part of nature and dependent on it and how fabulous that is. We can still enjoy climbing Munros and riding bikes, of course, but let’s celebrate as part of that the realisation that we’re simply citizens of nature – on much the same terms as any other species – and not all powerful, independent conquerors of nature.”
The words of the American forester and naturalist Aldo Leopold came to mind as Kate talked: “When we consider land as a commodity we tend to abuse it; when we consider it as a community to which we also belong, we tend to love and respect it.”
Part of our problem today is that politicians tend to value land in monetary terms and it is difficult for individuals to take on the political system. We certainly have a number of adventure NGOS in the UK who do interact with politicians – Ramblers Scotland, Mountaineering Scotland or the John Muir Trust – but none of these have the membership nor the clout needed. How can we help change that?
“If there was an overarching body with an adventure activism focus that all these organisations supported, then that would add up to a lot of people and some hugely important clout,” Kate said. “Alternatively, finding ways of drawing attention to how many people these organisations represent, and hence how many folk are out there with, at least potentially, adventure activist mindset and values, is also important.
“Having said that, it’s not just about numbers – though they help. It’s also about being effective.”
At the end of the day, most of us want to make a difference and hopefully we can help influence people by our outdoor activities. But for the majority of us our outdoor activities make up a very small part of our lives.
“This is hugely important,” she says. “Our lives tend to be very silo-ed. We have work lives, social lives, home lives and recreational lives and what we eat is also important, what we buy, how we heat our homes, where we go on holiday, what our work is, what we talk about.
“We can do a lot just by thinking and talking about this; by breaking down those divisions and realising that pretty much everything we do reflects our values and has potential to minimise negative environmental impacts and enhance positive ones.”
I left the event feeling optimistic. I suspect I spend too much time listening to prevaricating politicians or people of my generation who simply shrug their shoulders. I was encouraged that so many young people had gathered together to discover what they could do about climate change. And what can I do? In my case, three score years and 10 brings a sense of urgency. Time is running out.
For tour dates see adventure-activists.com
“In my case three score years and 10 brings a sense of urgency.time is out.” running