VIEWPOINT
Sara Campbell
World champion freediver, Sara Campbell explains how living in Egypt gives a different
perspective on dealing with climate change; why she feels the future looks bleak and how she
believes that a return to old-fashioned values could help reduce our carbon footprint.
D
O YOU believe global
warming is happening?
Absolutely. I’m in the
process of researching a dive
in the Arctic Circle to look at how the ice
pack has receded and thinned over the past
years, and how this is affecting the ecosystem
and wildlife. We all know it’s happening, but
I’m hoping that by freediving in these icy
waters I will be able to bring really stunning
and shocking pictures back from my trip to
make people think twice about how they are
contributing to this very worrying change in
our world. Out of sight can no longer mean
out of mind. I am working with a British
company, the Linden Consulting Partnership,
which is carrying out carbon footprinting for
organisations.

What environmentally friendly measures do
you take at home?
Well, I live in Egypt in the desert, so I am
constantly conscious of living as much in
harmony with my environment as possible.
The city council is in the process of
implementing a huge recycling programme to
reduce the impact of the growing population
of Dahab on the fragile desert and marine
environments. In coordination with the NGO,
Hemaya, other city councils in the region of
Sinai have already have great success with
the programme, which includes education,
and enrolling the support of the Bedouins,
who also benefi t by receiving all organic
waste to feed their camels and goats.
Paper bags are about to be banned in
2009, which is a great step forward - I often
forget to take my cotton shopper, and I know
I’m not alone in being well-intentioned but
forgetful. Here there is no getting away from
how our thoughtlessness directly impacts the
environment. On every dive I have to fi sh
plastic bags out of the Red Sea, and the wind
is constantly blowing rubbish that hasn’t been
disposed of properly into my garden. I guess
the most important thing for me is to keep my
water use to a minimum. We don’t have it on
tap - we have to fi ll tanks in our garden and
58 SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS December/January 2009
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