Venice to Copenaghen by bike, highlighting major climate change issues
An Italian environmental expert and a like-minded bike fan have teamed up to create a special project that aims to draw attention to a major event in the analysis of climate change. It’s an issue that obviously effects us all, and future generations worldwide, and what better way than by organising a bike ride that many people can join in with.
But this is no ordinary bike tour. On 31st October, the IPCC’s Fifth Assessment Report on Climate Change will be presented in Copenhagen. It’s an important document in this environmental issue, and to draw international attention to it, environmental technician Daniele Pernigotti and his cyclist friend Claudio Bonato have created ‘Ride With Us’, a tour that heads north across Europe, linking the start city of Venice, Italy with the destination of Copenhagen, Denmark, via a series of linked events. This video explains more of their objectives.
Members of the public are invited to join in with stages as the cyclists traverse through Italy, Austria, Germany and finally into Denmark. The trip starts on 14th October – and there’s still plenty of time for you to join part of the route – or even help with sponsorship! The Ride With Us website gives details of the route, and where you can join in and attend associated events.
Most days start and finish in cities and each days’ rides range from 47 to 124km – although you can do as little or as much as you want. As many route sections as possible have been organised on cycle paths or quiet routes: “in this way it should be very easy for everyone to decide to join us for few or more kilometers,” says Daniele.
But what of the two protagonists? We caught up with Daniele to hear the duo’s plans, motivations and credentials:
Surely there are other ways to highlight concerns about climate change; what motivated you to create such an event?
“The point is that often we feel climate change is a problem very far from our normal life; something outside of our capacity to influence,” says Daniele.
“This is only partially true. For example, one of the main causes of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in developed countries is transport choices and domestic heating systems – things which are absolutely under control of the ‘normal person’.”
And that’s the reason they decided to prepare a series of evening events highlighting these issues and addressing what the ‘normal person’ can do.
“For example in the first evening event in Schio – a small village between Vicenza and Trento – one of the most important climate scientists in Italy, Filippo Giorgi from the International Center of Theoretical Physics in Trieste, will be delivering a lesson to the high school students,” explains Daniele.
“In the same event a bicycle tour operator who we partner with [and who was involved in devising the Ride With Us route] will explain to young people that bicycle could be a real alternative to the car for fantastic holidays.”
“Then at the last stage in Italy, in Bolzano, there’s an evening event organised with a research center to explain the importance of energy efficiency at home, primarily to help combat climate change… but also to save money.”
The Ride With Us website details the events, provides a route map, and explains how people can get involved along the way. Getting locals to join in with Daniele and Claudio is important to give the project a voice. But who are they?
Daniele is the coordinator of a technical working group on greenhouse gases in UNI, the Italian standardization body and the Italian delegate at International Standardization Body level for the same topics. He runs an environmental consultant company,Aequilibria, and is a freelance journalist writing about climate change topics. Daniele has some experience on touring bikes, and organising routes, although he’s more regularly to be found aboard his Brompton folding bike.
Claudio is the passionate cyclist who’d “love to spend every day in the saddle” – and is sometimes to be seen riding through the streets of his native Marghera with pastries from his café. While his competitive cycling days are over, Claudio uses his bike as his main transport – and it’s this spirit that brings the pair together to combine on this project.
By symbolically drawing attention to the delivery of this document in Copenhagen, the Ride With Us pair aim to both push awareness of the overall issues of climate change, and create a very visual reminder of an important thing ‘normal people’ can do to address this – ride their bikes!
All images copyright Ride With Us.
