Ibex Earth is a not for profit organisation that aims to promote global conservation and protect threatened habitat and endangered species. This blog is where all of our latest news and information will be made available first.
Wednesday, 29 December 2010
The Lost World Project - Achievements to Date...
2010 saw the first year of the Lost World Project, and Ibex Earth raising and donating US $11,000 to directly support the conservation of the Guiana Highlands and the conservation of Mount Roraima. We aimed funding through three avenues:
1. Through the Lost World Project, we were able to donate US $3,000 to support the Venezuelan National Parks institute (Inparques, La Luepa branch). This money was used to repair the park authority’s patrol vehicles, which had been lying idle due to disrepair. Through this grant, the local authorities will be better prepared to protect the fragile ecosystem of the Guiana Highlands and continue their work safeguarding the Lost Worlds.
2. The Lost World Project also offered the opportunity to build successful relationships with communities in need across the Guiana Highlands. Local communities hold the key to protecting the fragile landscape of the lost worlds, and so are an intrinsic part in securing a sustainable future for Lost Worlds. As such, Ibex Earth donated US $2,000 to support sustainable development projects in the impoverished Amerindian village of Paratepui, located close to the base of the majestic Mount Roraima where the Lost World Project took place.
3. To further our goal of raising awareness of need for the conservation of the Lost Worlds and their wildlife, Ibex Earth engaged thirty Amerindians from the Gran Sabana to be involved in the Lost World Project and participate in developing an understanding of the need for the conservation of Mount Roraima. Through engaging with Lost World Project participants, and through discussion, training and interviews, we aimed to contribute to developing local conservation awareness, and in the process, contributed US $6,000 in wages to support the developing sustainable tourism industry that holds the key to a secure future.
(Furthermore Ibex Earth also used local 'fixers' throughout the first phase of The Lost World Project, which saw an additional US $4,500 added to the local economy.)
Additionally, in order raise awareness of the need to conserve the region, the Lost World Project set out to produce a non-profit conservation documentary to highlight the importance of Mount Roraima and the need for regional protection. In August and September 2010, we sent ten students from across the UK to the Guiana Highlands along with a critically acclaimed film crew.
The group filmed the unique wildlife, landscapes and threats of the Lost World for two weeks, and the resultant footage is currently being edited into a fifty minute, broadcast quality documentary that will then be premiered at two high profile and prestigious events at two of London’s most famous venues - the Royal Geographical Society and the Zoological Society of London in June 2011. The film will then be broadcast to a global television audiences, raising awareness of this unique region to millions of viewers.
You might have already seen some of our footage during BBC 2's documentary 'Decade of Discovery', which aired on Tuesday 14th December 2010.
Happy New Year from all at Ibex Earth
Saturday, 18 December 2010
Journey to the 'Lost World' - Itinerary April 2011...
- Expedition Itinerary -
Please note the first expedition departs London on Saturday April 2nd, and returns on Tuesday April 12th. The second expedition departs London on Saturday April 16th, and returns on Tuesday April 26th and the itinerary for both expeditions are set out below:
Day 1: Expedition members arrive in Caracas, Venezuela and are met at the airport by Ibex Earth staff. Expedition members will then travel to Cuidad Bolivar and transfer to 4x4 vehicles to travel to Santa Elena (the starting point for the expedition). On route, we stop at the National Parks Office to pick up our permits.
Day 2: The group is taken on a 4x4 jeep tour across the Gran Sabana for familiarisation, and receive equipment training and survival skills from the expedition leader. The tour includes visiting the beautiful Kama Waterfall and the world famous Jasper Creek - a riverbed made of scarlet, semi-precious gemstone. Around sunset, we arrive in the remote Amerindian community of Paratepui where we spend the night, and get our first glimpse of the towering “lost world” plateaus of Mount Roraima and Kukenan Tepui looming on the horizon.
Expedition members will then explore the spectacular scenery and bizarre wildlife of Arthur Conan Doyle’s ‘lost world’. This will include searching for ancient toads, Roraima’s rare Coatimundi and carnivorous plants. After one hour of walking, we make camp in a great cave system in the south of the plateau, cooking dinner as flames flicker on the ancient cave walls.
Day 11: An early start will see the group leave Cuidad Bolivar for Caracas, arriving in time for afternoon and evening flights back to the UK.
The Lost World Project has received endorsement from the Royal Geographical Society and has won the Captain Scott Society ‘Spirit of Adventure’ Award 2010 – if you would like to be part of the adventure of a lifetime then please email chris.livemore@ibexearth.com and you will be sent a full expedition pack for The Lost World Project.
Sunday, 12 December 2010
The decade's top ten new species
As 2010 draws to a close, scientists have been looking back over the array of new species that have been discovered since the beginning of the century.
Some of the weirdest and most scientifically wonderful are featured in a BBC Documentary, Decade of Discovery.
The film-makers collaborated with Conservation International to make the documentary, which has whittled down nature's top ten revelations.
So here is a shortlist of many of the team's favourite new species, listed in reverse order according to how unique, special and surprising they are.
Big red jellyfish (Tiburonia granrojo)
The one-metre-wide jelly was found at a depth of 3,000m
More than 3,000m under the Pacific ocean, researchers from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) used cameras on a remotely operated vehicle to capture the hidden life at that depth.
Out of the darkness emerged a large, one-metre-wide red jellyfish.
Big red, as it has been dubbed, has no tentacles, making it unlike most jellies. Instead, it uses its fleshy arms to capture food. The scientists still do not know what it eats. They say it is a great example of how little we know of the deep sea.
Chan's megastick (Phobaeticus chani)
This is, as its name implies, a huge stick insect.
The largest specimen of Chan's megastick is in London's Natural History Museum
It was found near Gunung Kinabalu Park, Sabah, in the Heart of Borneo and measures more than half a metre in length - the longest insect on the planet.
The largest and one of only a handful of known specimens in the world is held at the Natural History museum in London.
Despite is enormous size virtually nothing is known about it. Scientists believe it lives high up in the rainforest canopy, which has made it hard to find and kept it a secret until now.
Grey-faced sengi (Rhyncocyon udzungwensis)
This sengi or elephant shrew was first discovered in 2006 in Uzungwa National Park, Tanzania. Italian scientist, Francesco Rovero, from the Trento Museum of Natural Sciences caught the tiny mammal on a camera trap.
Elephant shrews share a common ancestor with elephants
The grey-faced sengi is much bigger than any other - roughly the size of a rabbit. It weighs about 700g and has a long, flexible nose which resembles an elephant's trunk.
Strangely, elephant shrews are not related to shrews but they do share a common ancestor with elephants.
Bamboo shark (Hemiscyllium galei)
The bamboo shark, also known as the walking shark, was found in 2006 in Cenderawasih Bay in West Papua, Indonesia.
This area of coral reef habitat has such a high level of biodiversity that some researchers call it a "species factory".
The shark can swim but usually uses its pectoral fins to walk along the reef
Mark Erdmann from Conservation International was the first scientist to lay eyes on this new shark species in 2006.
Although it can swim if it needs to, it usually uses its pectoral fins to walk along the reef and feed amongst the coral.
Scientists raised funds for marine conservation by auctioning the naming rights to the new shark.
Giant slipper orchid (Phragmipedium Kovachii)
This large flamboyant purple flower caused something of a sensation when it was discovered.
It was found in 2001 being sold at the side of the road in the Peruvian Highlands by an orchid hunter and dealer, who illegally imported it to the US.
Giant orchid among the decade's top ten new species
He was duly prosecuted, but the orchid still bears his name. A few legal specimens are now in the hands of a select group of orchid breeders.
With its huge flowers - up to 20cm across - it originates in the Andes mountains of Peru.
Kipunji (Rungwecebus kipunji)
This is the first new genus (or group of monkey species) to be discovered since the 1920s.
It was tracked down in 2003 by Tim Davenport, a biologist from the Wildlife Conservation Society, who was working in the Mount Rungwe region of Tanzania.
He was interviewing local people about the animals they hunted and knew about in the forest. A few mentioned a "kipunji", a large monkey which sounded unlike anything else.
When Dr Davenport saw it he knew it was a new species, but later DNA analysis showed that it was actually an entirely new genus.
There were just 1,117 Kipunji in the wild at the last count, making them critically endangered.
Pitcher plant (Nepenthes palawanensis)
The large pitcher's slippery sides trap its prey
This giant plant was discovered just this year by botanist Stewart Macpherson who has made it his mission to find and photograph every species of these carnivorous plants around the world.
He found it at the very top of a mountain called Sultan's Peak, on the island of Palawan in the Philippines.
Pitcher plants are named after their highly-specialised leaves that form hollow, water-filled "pitchers".
Insects, such as flies, are attracted by nectar in the pitcher, but its sides are slippery so when prey falls in it cannot climb out.
Langkawi bent-toed gecko (Cyrtodactylus macrotuberculatus)
This extraordinary gecko was first discovered in 2008 on an island off North-western Malaysia by Dr Lee Grismer and his team.
It uses its amazing eyesight and grip to catch its forest-dwelling prey at night.
But what made it a discovery of the decade was that this forest gecko has also recently been found in a limestone cave.
The forest-dwelling and cave-dwelling geckos show evolution at work
The cave gecko looks similar to those living in the forest but has some remarkable visible differences.
Dr Grismer believes this could be evolution in the making - a gecko that has evolved to live in a cave.
The lizards may have moved into the caves to avoid predators - specifically pit vipers that live in the forest.
Pygmy three-toed sloth (Bradypus pygmaeus)
This species, discovered on the island on Escudo de Veraguas off the Carribean coast, shows how quickly the process of evolution can happen.
The pygmy sloth, number one on the list, has a surprising talent
The pygmy sloth has been isolated on its tiny island habitat for just 9,000 years - when rising sea levels cut the island off from the mainland.
The sloths are slower and more placid than their mainland relatives and, remarkably, they can swim.
They seem suitably adapted to their Caribbean island lifestyle.
Pygmy sloths are less than half the size of a normal sloth and they only eat mangrove leaves - a low-nutirent diet that explains their diminutive stature.
There are just 200 of them on the island so every mangrove tree counts for these vulnerable creatures.
Decade of Discovery, a collaboration between Conservation International and the BBC's Natural History Unit, will be broadcast at 20.00BST on Tuesday 14 December on BBC Two.
Thursday, 9 December 2010
DECADE OF DISCOVERY - BBC2, Tuesday 14th December...
It will be the first time that anyone has seen the footage that we have taken and will be broadcast to a global television audience. Obviously we are going to recommend that you watch the show to see our clip, but 'DECADE OF DISCOVERY' looks like it could be one of the best nature documentaries on the BBC for quite some time, and is hosted by presenter Chris Packham...
Below is some additional information that we have received from the BBC about the programme, which starts at 8pm on Tuesday 14th December - well worth a watch! The documentary also features an interview with Stewart McPherson, who led The Lost World Expedition to South America's 'lost world'...
The 21st century is already being hailed as the new Golden Age of Discovery. In the last decade scientists and explorers have discovered a staggering quarter of a million new species, so in a celebratory one-off special, presenter Chris Packham chooses his personal top ten favourites, of the most extraordinary discoveries of the last ten years. These are the creatures no one dreamt even existed, the ones that have got the scientists in a spin and re written the text books! We get up close to the new discoveries and hear the extraordinary stories of how they were found – told by the charismatic world-class scientists and explorers who discovered them, the Indiana Jones’s of the natural world.
Some quotes from the scientists...
‘The fact that this lay undiscovered for all these years is almost beyond belief...’
‘It’s the insect equivalent of finding a blue whale or a redwood tree....’
‘The fact that something of this size lay undiscovered till the 21st century is staggering...’
‘Its like discovering a new species of elephant, its mind blowing...’
DECADE OF DISCOVERY proves the Earth can still surprise us.
Working alongside teams of scientists the BBC’s Natural History Unit filmed the most fantastic new species from around the world - from the jungles of Malaysia to the remotest forests of Madagascar. And there are many more weird, or just plain wonderful species also featured in the programme that don’t quite make it into Chris’s top ten.
In Chris’s top ten:
- The rarest mammal on planet earth - the pygmy three-toed sloth filmed swimming for the first time in the waters of the Caribbean. Only 200 left in the world
- a brand new species of lemur discovered during the making of the programme - a phaner lemur which is nocturnal and with forked markings Discovered by Russ Mittermeier, President of Conservation International and a top lemur scientist ( with two lemurs already named after him)
- anyone remember the Clangers? A sengi looks just like one. Sengi is the Swahili name for an elephant shrew. Weirdly not related to shrews at all, but distantly related to an elephant with a prehensile nose
- a huge Tanzanian monkey - the rarest in Africa – with a Mohican hairstyle, which until now was though to be a “spirit animal”. It turned out to be real, and not only that a new genus, more closely related to a baboon
- witness evolution in action with the discovery of a cave gecko – filmed side by side with a forest gecko. The cave gecko has evolved to stay safely away from pit vipers that live outside the cave in the Malaysian forest. What’s known as speciation in the making – the moment when one animal becomes two
- the walking shark – a nickname for the bamboo shark.. A distant cousin of the great white, it appears to walk along the shallow seabed as it searches for prey
- a carnivorous pitcher plant big enough for a fist to fit right inside and , in the remote and new species-rich Tepui mountains in Venezuela on Mount Ruraira, yet more new pitcher plants - in the Lost World that inspired the feature film UP
- the world’s longest insect – Chan’s Megastick – first found in Borneo, and almost as long as a human arm
- the big red jellyfish – revealed by the deep sea explorers of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute
- a giant slipper orchid, three times the size of any orchid seen before with flowers up to 20 centimetres across, which caused a scandal when it was first discovered
Monday, 6 December 2010
Guide to writing an Environmetal Policy
At Ibex Earth we feel that every business should have its own Environmental Policy - for us this is so a business can improve its environmental performance and adopt a more environmentally sustainable business practice. For example, you can ensure that your procurement process takes into account ethical, environmental and sustainable considerations - thus placing pressure on suppliers to ensure that all of their goods are from respectable sources.
An Environmental Policy allows a business to demonstrate its 'green ethos' to the wider world or to show staff that you do actually take your environmental responsibilities seriously - an ever increasing necessity in today's market place, as 'green' issues continue to grow in importance upon the political, business and consumer agendas. Promoting your new 'green' policy can attract publicity and new clientele.
However, if you've opted not to have an Environmental Policy for whatever reason, you really should reconsider because by acting on becoming more sustainable / environmentally responsible you will actually save money e.g. by opting to reduce your carbon emissions you will in the process lower your fuel bill - the same can be said for water reduction and improving the amount of recycling your business can do.
So then, not only does an Environmental Policy help the global and local environment, it also has a great deal of potential to help you reduce your overall costs - surely it is worth considering adopting an Environmental Policy in today's financial market? Below is Ibex Earth's very own Environmental Policy, please feel free to adopt our own policy as yours - you will be surprised how easy it is...
Ibex Earth's Environmental Policy
We recognise the way in which we operate has an impact upon the environment and are committed to ensuring that we run a sustainable and environmentally responsible business practice. We also acknowledge that our environmental performance is important to our staff, clients and other stakeholders and we will look to minimise our impacts and continually improve our environmental performance.
In seeking to improve our environmental performance, we are addressing the following areas, in particular:
Energy Consumption
We will look to reduce our energy consumption and implement energy efficiency measures in our building when economically feasible.
Water Consumption
We will look to reduce our water consumption and implement water saving measures in our buildings when economically feasible.
Waste Management
We have introduced a reduce, reuse and recycle waste management system, in which we will look to minimise the amount of waste that our business produces and improve our recycling rates. We encourage that all correspondence is conducted via email in order to minimise the amount of paper that we use.
Transport
We will look to maximise the use of public transport and avoid private car use whenever possible. If there are alternatives to air travel, e.g. travelling by rail, then we will ensure that we choose the alternative travel method. We encourage all staff to travel to work via public transport
Procurement
We will take into account the environmental credentials of all suppliers when awarding contracts and purchase environmentally responsible products when possible. We will give preference to suppliers who
Communication
We will share our environmental policy and objectives by communicating both internally and externally.
Review
We will review our environmental policy on an annual basis and revise accordingly to ensure that we continue to improve our environmental performance.
Wednesday, 17 November 2010
The Lost World Project - the Participant Experience
If you've been following the Ibex Earth Blog you will be aware that in August 2010 we sent a critically acclaimed film crew to Mount Roraima, Venezuela to shoot a broadcast quality documentary about the plateau that inspired Arthur Conan Doyle to write his famous novel 'The Lost World'.
But did you know that ten people from across the UK won a place on the expedition after spending six months fundraising to help Ibex Earth secure the funding to make the film. Walking non-stop across Hadrian's Wall, cycling the length of the UK and having a duel on Tower Bridge were just some of the brilliant fundraising ideas that got the ten lucky participants onto the plane to Caracas, Venezuela.
The following is an extract taken from a document prepared by the participants with absolutely no input from Ibex Earth - the completed document will soon be up on the Ibex Earth website and will contain exclusive pictures from the participants time on Roraima's summit.
And so it began...
We left for our 16-‐day Venezuelan adventure and the wild blue yonder on the 20th August 2010. After 5 flights, two day-‐long bus journeys (with a sleepover at Canaima National Park headquarters – otherwise known as a collection of huts) and a delightfully bumpy 4x4 trip to the remote Amerindian village of Paratepui we were ready to start the real adventure, our 10-‐day trek to explore and film Mount Roraima and all her wonders!
Sadly, Roraima was shy and didn’t come out of the clouds until we reached our second camp, Rio Tok
at the end of the first day!
Luckily we had a spectacular vista of Kukenan ‐ Roraima’s neighbouring plateau ‐ to remind us why
the blisters were going to be worth it!
Our first day saw us passing through hot, dry savannah with sporadic but much needed breaks under the towering canopies of rainforest that sprout up around small rivers which cut across the undulating uninhabited lowlands that characterised the terrain of our first encounter with trekking on the trip.
To be continued....
The fantastic participants of The Lost World Project |
Thursday, 4 November 2010
Ibex Earth launches the 'Beyond Carbon' Group
Ibex Earth is delighted to announce the launch of the 'Beyond Carbon' Group, which aims to become the leading environmental network for businesses that wish to demonstrate a genuine commitment to 'green' issues.
The BCG's primary objective is to engage with international/City-based businesses from all sectors and move away from the current trend of focussing upon carbon reduction initiatives.
Instead he BCG is set to encourage a shift in corporate thinking and encourage businesses to work on protecting the global environment and its ecosystems. For example, BCG Members can utilise the unique skill sets of their employees to provide free support, advice and assistance to an array of environmental charities.
To achieve this the BCG focuses upon four key areas - the environment, biodiversity, conservation and sustainability - and collaboration with Ibex Earth's 'Environmental & Conservation' Partners to provide BCG Members with the opportunity to work on innovative and unique environmental projects, share best practice through the dynamic BCG Network and fulfil corporate social responsibility objectives in relation to the environment.
Aims & Objectives of the 'Beyond Carbon' Group
* To create a dynamic environmental network of leading professional businesses and environmental organisations from a variety of sectors.
* To develop and establish projects to help protect and sustainably manage the natural ecosystems of the world, in particular, in the world's biodiversity 'hotspots' with emphasis on threatened habitats and endangered species.
* To utilise the unique skill sets of professional businesses in order to provide free support, advice and assistance to Ibex Earth's 'Environmental & Conservation' Partners in order to improve the broader environmental picture.
* To raise awareness, in the UK and globally, of the need for conservation, greater environmental protection and reducing pollution by improving understanding and generating support through education, information and fundraising.
* To establish a regular series of seminars and events to disseminate knowledge and share best practice through a proactive peer to peer network.
If you are interested in finding out more about Ibex Earth's 'Beyond Carbon' Group then please contact Chris Livemore by emailing chris.livemore@ibexearth.com
Monday, 1 November 2010
A few more pictures from The Lost World
Wednesday, 20 October 2010
New Lost World Video by Robbie Miles
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwPWf2HQpkc
Friday, 15 October 2010
Discoveries from the 'Lost World'
1. A new hybrid pitcher plant, which has never before been found on the summit of Mount Roraima. This plant is particularly interesting because although it is a hybrid, the population we found were clearly stable and reproducing, giving rise to a new species. This find not only reveals a plant that is new to science on Roraima, but also exemplifies how many species first develop, including in the 21st century, as is the case here.
2. A new, unnamed species of pitcher plant on Mount Roraima. We have obtained some footage filmed during a helicopter journey from Mount Roraima to a neighbouring plateau called Yuruani. We filmed Stewart McPherson jumping out of the helicopter and searching for the plant on the summit of the mountain, to find the plant which had never been filmed before. We captured some fantastic shots of the plant and also material showing how the plant captures animal prey.
3. We filmed a weasel on the summit of Mount Roraima. Absolutely no mammals in any way related to, or resembling weasels are currently known from the summit of Mount Roraima, and for certain this is a completely new record. We still do not know if it is a new species or not, but this may be a supplemental point showing how little explored the lost worlds are, and how still today, we do not know the range of animal life found atop of the plateaus.
4. The plated millipedes, which have a black body, with scarlet plates, which we found atop Roraima have not been identified by the leading millipede expert of North America, and he has suggested that these represent a whole new genus!
Friday, 24 September 2010
Saturday, 18 September 2010
Wednesday, 15 September 2010
The Lost World Project Filiming Complete!
This was the first time that anything like this has ever been attempted and it looks as though we might have actually discovered a total of four new species (certainly two!), which is an incredible achievement and just goes to show the overall importance of The Lost World Project - if four new species can be discovered in just a four week expedition imagine how many other species remain undiscovered, how many new plants, insects and mammals might be on the base or summit of one of the plateaus that make up the Guiana Highlands.
When expedition leader, Stewart McPherson, returns to the UK I will make sure he puts up a much more detailed description of what we have found during the expedition and will use this blog to keep you informed of our progress - after all, The Lost World Project, does not just stop at making a documentary but will really look to raise the importance of protecting and safeguarding the world's most spectacular natural wonders, such as Mount Roraima.
So what next? Obviously there is the short measure of having to get The Lost World Film produced and find a broadcaster who will show the film on national television, but The Lost World Project isn't just about the film - instead we are wanting to highlight the conservation needs of Mount Roraima and the Guiana Highlands and to promote sustainable and regulated tourism.
We are in the process of preparing a report that we will submit to the United Nations about the initiative, which will be before the Year of Biodiversity comes to an end (so 31st December 2010) - we are getting input from some of the world's leading figures in this area and fingers crossed it will land on the right persons desk! Obviously we are still looking for support and if you would like to get involved in the initiative you still can by visiting www.justgiving.com/lost-world - every donation gets us closer to our goal of raising £750,000 via the initiative.
Thanks for reading the blog and I will make sure we have a lot of new pictures from the expedition on the next one!
Chris
Friday, 10 September 2010
Tuesday, 7 September 2010
What a Relief...
We are absolutely delighted to announce that all of The Lost World Project Participants are back safely from Mount Roraima and from the sounds of it they have all had an absolutely fantastic trip and we are now looking forward to getting all of their photo's up on our various websites (http://www.ibexearth.com/, http://www.thelostworldproject.org/, Facebook, MySpace etc)- we've had a brief look at some photographs already sent across and they are absolutely spectacular. Now we just have to see if their camera work is as good as their photography!
The participants took part in a 14 day expedition led by world leading expert Stewart McPherson and Adrian Warren who has actually worked with Disney Pixar in relation to their animated blockbuster 'UP'. The participants were able to work with Adrian and Jesse Wilkinson (BBC Springwatch) as they learnt how to shoot sequences for a broadcast quality documentary. Having spoken to Stewart the shots that have already been filmed are incredible and we really can't wait to see them when the film crew gets back to these shores!
Hopefully we will soon start generating quite a bit of publicity for the cause, after all The Lost World Project's aim is to safeguard the long-term future of Mount Roraima and the Guiana Highlands, which are sadly under threat from illegal mining, unregulated / unsustainable tourism and the introduction of foreing species - to support project why not visit www.justgiving.com/lost-world and donate - everyone who donates over £10 will be invited to the Premiere of the final film at the Royal Geographical Society in May/June 2011...must be worth it!
The next blog will provide you with a few more details and some exciting news about some new discoveries of species which the group have found whilst on the expedition - its probably now a great chance to say thank you to everyone who has supported this project, without your help this really wouldn't have been possible, so keep spreading the word and keep a look out on the Ibex Earth website for updates about the project!
Cheers
Chris
Saturday, 21 August 2010
What a Day...The Lost World Expedition is GO!
Wednesday, 28 July 2010
The Lost World Project at ZSL London Zoo
What an unbelievable ten days - the climax of a nationwide competition to find ten students at UK universities to join the 'Lost World Expedition', which looks to shoot a broadcast quality documentary about the plateau that inspired Arthur Conan Doyle to write the most famous adventure novel of all time - 'The Lost World'.
Saturday, 24 July 2010
Welcome to the Ibex Earth Blog...
So where to start - this has probably been the busiest few weeks of our lives at Ibex Earth HQ, working twenty hour days, seven days a week and surviving on caffeine, sugar hits and the generosity of friends and Ibex Earth supporters.
We've been going through the final planning stages for www.thelostworldproject.org, which is our first major environmental project - if you haven't heard about it already we are taking a critically acclaimed film crew to the plateau that inspired Arthur Conan Doyle to write what is arguably the most famous adventure novel of all time 'The Lost World' and has most recently been the major influence behind Walt Disney and Pixar's animated blockbuster 'UP'.
On August 20th 2010, ten students from the UK will be joining the film crew (which actually includes Rob Franklin, a BBC Planet Earth cameraman) to help shoot a fifty minute broadcast quality documentary about Mount Roraima and its urgent conservation needs. The final film will be premiered at the Royal Geographical Society in April/May 2011 at what we hope will be one of the environmental events of the year!
If you would like to know more about this project then why not come long to our event at the ZSL London Zoo on August 10th 2010 - the event starts at 18:00 and is being held in the Prince Albert Suite, Lawn and Terrace - it promises to be a great event and for more information please send me an email at chris.livemore@ibexearth.com and I will send you an invite!
The project is all coming to a head now, loads and loads of work, hundreds of phonecalls and some last minute fundraising - but to be fair it has been great fun, we've met people from the WWF, the Royal Geographical Society, National Geographic, the BBC and of course the ZSL London Zoo - wouldn't change this project for the world and will update this blog with photos, updates and more info about Mount Roraima over the next few weeks - we will also be getting other Ibex Earth Directors and staff to start writing up some blogs so we can give you a complete overview about our work.
Hope that you enjoy reading the blogs!