Butterfield has partnered with Emirates GBR SailGP Team’s Purpose Partner, the 1851 Trust, as the Official Bermuda Impact Partner for their Protect Our Future schools programme taking place alongside the Bermuda SailGP event this coming May. Together they will deliver climate education lessons for local schools with a $10,000 Butterfield x Protect Our Future Climate Action Grant on offer.
Launched in 2014 by Sir Ben Ainslie and supported by HRH Princess of Wales as its Royal Patron, the 1851 Trust is a specialist education charity that harnesses the power of athletes and sport to inspire young people globally through STEM learning and climate action. The Trust’s climate education programme Protect Our Future equips young people and educators with the skills and knowledge to understand climate science and take positive action. Since the programme started, climate education lessons have been delivered at SailGP events across the globe, inspiring over 1000 young people to use their voice and tell their own climate action stories.
During the Bermuda SailGP event this May, sailors from the Emirates GBR SailGP Team will work with young people in the local community on climate science knowledge and the importance of climate action, empowering them to use their voices to drive change within their own community.
As part of the programme, a $10,000 Butterfield x Protect Our Future Climate Action Grant is on offer to schools in Bermuda. The grant will be awarded to a chosen project that engages the community around sustainability issues and channels young people’s passion for local environmental issues into tangible actions, inspiring others to follow the lead. All schools are invited to apply for the grant, including primary, secondary, public, and private institutions, and entries can be submitted as a whole school, a class or an eco-club. The judging panel will include Butterfield representatives and Sir Ben Ainslie from Emirates GBR SailGP Team. To find out more, visit: https://protectourfuture.org/butterfieldclimateactiongrant/
“We are delighted to be working with the 1851 Trust, the Purpose Partner of Emirates GBR SailGP Team, as the Official Bermuda Impact Partner for Protect Our Future, a programme which is very much aligned to Butterfield’s own sustainability framework values. With the climate action grant, and as an Official Partner of the Bermuda SailGP event itself, we hope to make a positive impact both on and off the water, ” A Butterfield Spokesperson
“The Butterfield x Protect Our Future Climate Action Grant is an exciting initiative to empower and equip young people in Bermuda with the knowledge and skills to tell their own climate action stories, enabling them to speak confidently and take action on climate change within their own community. As a team, we very much look forward to being back in Bermuda this May and working together with our partners to deliver maximum impact for the community.”
1851 Trust ambassador and Emirates GBR SailGP Strategist Hannah Mills.
SailGP is an international sailing competition that features high-performance F50 foiling catamarans competing on a global circuit around the world. The world’s most exciting race on water returns to race on Bermuda’s Great Sound on May 4th and 5th, SailGP is the only sports league in the world to have a podium for sport and the planet, with teams competing to win the Impact League which tracks the positive action they are taking to reduce their carbon footprint and boost inclusivity in sailing.
Launched as part of Energy Day at COP28, Low Carbon and Emirates GBR’s Portable Off-Grid Power Blueprint provides a manual for sports teams and industries to integrate renewable energy technologies into their operations and tread lightly on the planet.
Global renewable energy company Low Carbon and the Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team have called on sports teams around the world to switch to renewable energy to tackle the climate crisis.
As world leaders, policy makers and environmental experts gather at COP28 in Dubai for its Energy Day, Low Carbon and Emirates GBR launched a first-of-its-kind Portable Off-Grid Power Blueprint to encourage other sports teams and industries to adopt renewable energy into their operations. Sportspeople hold huge influential power, and by taking proactive action to tread lightly on the planet and incorporate renewable energy, they can inspire people across the globe to do the same.
The Blueprint provides organisations with the knowledge, information and contacts needed to integrate renewable energy into their operations. Low Carbon and Emirates GBR decided to create the blueprint due to the success of the bespoke solar and wind installation developed as part of their partnership. The installation, that consists of 38 solar panels and two micro wind turbines, travels around the world to Sail Grand Prix events with Emirates GBR and has taken the Team’s operations off-grid, while also producing enough energy to power other SailGP Teams. It has created 1,376kWh of clean energy across the first five events of SailGP Season 4,which is equivalent to removing 400kg/CO₂.
The Portable Renewable Installation has created 1,376kWh of clean energy across the first five events of SailGP Season 4,which is equivalent to removing 400kg/CO2.
The installation was designed by Low Carbon’s engineers working in partnership with the Emirates GBR Team and is made up of solar panels totalling up to 16kW. This has the potential to provide enough clean energy to power nearly 13,000 fridge-freezers for a whole day. The Emirates GBR SailGP Team and Low Carbon partnered in January 2023 as the two entities wanted to harness the power of sport and athletes to inspire positive change on a global scale. The Portable Off-Grid Power Blueprint is the next step in the partnership and will enable other sports teams and industries to make use of readily available technology and join the fight against the climate crisis.
Hannah Mills OBE and Sir Ben Ainslie announce Athena Pathway squad in the race to win the inaugural Puig Women’s America’s Cup and retain the Youth America’s Cup for Britain.
Mills reunites with Saskia Clark, 8 years after winning Olympic gold together in Rio 2016.
Twelve strong squad share a resume of 6 Olympic and 22 World Championship medals.
British tech innovator Cobham-Ultra announces sponsorship of Athena Pathway.
Cobham-Ultra STEM Education Program to promote science in schools in collaboration with Athena Pathway’s charity partner, the 1851 Trust.
Announcement welcomed by Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, Rt. Hon Michelle Donelan MP.
Hannah Mills OBE and Sir Ben Ainslie have today announced the Athena Pathway squad of sailors that, entered through Challenging Club the Royal Yacht Squadron, will seek to make history by winning the inaugural Puig Women’s America’s Cup and retaining the Youth America’s Cup for Britain.
The team will be supported in this challenge by leading global aerospace and maritime technology innovator Cobham-Ultra, in a continuation of the firm’s extensive investment in UK engineering skills and Cobham’s provision of ground-breaking satellite apparatus in the 2017/18 Volvo Ocean Race.
Athena Pathway was launched in August 2022 by Mills and Ainslie, the world’s most successful Olympic sailors, with the aim of fast-tracking development in high-performance sailing and bringing diversity into the sport and the UK marine industry more broadly. The Puig Women’s and Youth America’s Cups, taking place alongside the 37th America’s Cup in Barcelona in September and October 2024, are a central focus for the Pathway, with the first-time inclusion of a women’s event and the renewed emphasis on supporting the next generation representing major progress for the World’s oldest sporting trophy in achieving gender equity and raising the sport’s profile for young people.
Over 300 applications were received for Athena Pathway’s Cup squad, with an intensive 18-month trials process, comprising on-water and simulator-based analysis, used to assess the hopefuls’ abilities to adapt to the unique skillset required to sail at speeds of up to 100kph in an AC40, the highly technical and data driven foiling monohull which will be used in the Women’s and Youth regattas.
This process was led by Olympian and former Royal Naval Officer Penny Clark, who has extensive experience coaching the British Sailing Team from youth to podium level, and Olympic 49er bronze medallist Chris Draper, an America’s Cup veteran with participations spanning multiple roles, including helmsman for Luna Rossa for AC34 and tactician and wing trimmer for Softbank Team Japan for AC35.
As Athena Pathway’s Sailing Programme Manager and Head of Performance respectively, a key focus for the Clark and Draper was designing a trials process comprehensive enough to reflect the “strength and depth” of the initial pool of applicants. Beyond looking for “proven winners” and athletes who had demonstrated “enormous potential” at varying stages of their careers, the human machine interface of the simulator provided hugely valuable insight into sailors’ capacities to practically apply their theoretical foiling knowledge. The ability to “communicate and stay calm in high-stress situations”, Draper said, was also pivotal.
Mills noted that selection was “a very difficult decision due to the immensely high standard of the sailors who applied”, but that the process offered an exciting glimpse into a bright future for British sailing:
“It’s great to see the level of talent coming through in the UK and Athena Pathway is focused on supporting and developing this talent both on and off the water – with the longer-term aim of inspiring the next generation into, and through, the sport of sailing.”
With a shared resume of 6 Olympic medals and 22 World Championship medals, the 12 strong squad also cements the reunion of one of sailing’s most successful competitive partnerships, with Mills and her 470 crew Saskia Clark set to race together again for the first time since winning Gold in Rio, 2016.
Clark commented: “Very excited is an understatement. Hannah and I had a great Olympic career together and I’m looking forward to reuniting, taking all the learnings from our Olympic experiences and applying them into a broader team environment in a new class of boat”.
Hannah Mills
The other selected athletes include Tokyo Olympic Silver medallist Anna Burnet, who is set to represent Britain at the Paris 2024 Olympics. Burnet is not alone in this double selection, with Ellie Aldridge, Saskia Tidey and Freya Black also selected to race in both the Olympics and the Youth & Women’s America’s Cup competitions. Also joining the team is Mills’ Emirates GBR SailGP teammate and experienced offshore sailor Hannah Diamond, who has previously competed in the Volvo Ocean race and Rolex Fastnet. The final six Athena Pathway picks are Nick Robins, Matt Beck, Alex Hughes, James Grummett and Hattie Rogers.
With the majority of the team’s training to date having taken place on the simulator, preparations are due to intensify over the coming months, aided by the arrival of Athena Pathway’s AC40 in Barcelona. The British senior AC Team, of which Ainslie is Team Principal and Skipper, will continue to play an active role in supporting the development of their female and youth counterparts through facilitating upskilling opportunities within their AC40 two-boating programme. Upskilling is also a focus off the water, with several members of Athena Pathway’s shore crew, including Boat Captain Sophie Heritage and Electronics Technician Suzy Peters, currently working amongst Ainslie’s team.
Mills is confident that the team has what it takes to win in the Autumn and hopes that the campaign will provide a platform to further Athena Pathway’s goal of inspiring positive change, and the next generation, in sailing and beyond:
“It’s an incredible milestone for our sport. These athletes represent a new era of inclusivity and excellence in competitive sailing”.
Beyond a shared commitment to the perpetual, innovation led pursuit of excellence synonymous with the America’s Cup, the goal of inspiring the next generation will sit also at the core of Athena Pathway’s partnership with UK-based technology front-runner Cobham-Ultra.
Building on the firm’s £5 million pledge to support academically talented students from underrepresented groups in accessing top-tier engineering educations, the collaboration will see the launch of a nationwide schools’ programme in conjunction with Athena Pathway’s charity partner, the 1851 Trust. The programme will leverage the real-world context and inspiration of professional sailing to educate and engage students in STEM subjects, with the aim of broadening horizons, opening up career paths and driving forward values of diversity and inclusivity in these fields. Shonnel Malani, Chairman of the Board of Cobham and Ultra Electronics, stated:
“We are delighted to back Britain’s bid to win the first-ever Women’s America’s Cup and retain the Youth America’s Cup. We are also excited to use the partnership to create excitement about STEM in schools across the country by connecting the marvels of sailing to schoolwork. This partnership builds on our £5 million pledge to leading higher-education institutions, which allows the opportunity for students from underrepresented groups to pursue an education in engineering. Ultimately, as we look to inspire the next generation to consider studies and a career in STEM-related fields, we are helping build the skilled workforce of the future in the UK.”
This announcement was welcomed by the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, Rt Hon Michelle Donelan MP, who stated:
“Since my department was formed, time and time again I have heard how skills is one of the key tenets to Britain’s innovation success story. That is why I am delighted to support this partnership. The programme of activities, focused on supporting and encouraging the next generation to explore science, technology, engineering, and mathematics studies will undoubtably lead to many of them ultimately pursuing careers in these important sectors.”
Speaking on an immensely exciting year ahead for Athena Pathway, Ainslie said:
“We couldn’t be prouder of what Athena Pathway stands for – giving youth and female sailors more opportunity in our sport. We have selected a high calibre squad and to have someone like Hannah leading them on and off the water is incredibly inspiring. We will certainly be setting our expectation high as we look ahead to the Women’s and Youth America’s Cup.
“An innovative company like Cobham Ultra is the perfect partner, and big thank you to Shonnel and his team for supporting us and our vision with the 1851 Trust. We look forward to taking this challenge on together as we build and grow Athena Pathway.”
Protect Our Future resources set to equip children and educators with skills and knowledge to understand climate science
Education charity calls for content and funding partners to help future generations take action on climate change
Sir Ben Ainslie and Hannah Mills OBE add their voices to call for businesses, local authorities, schools and scientists to join forces with 1851 Trust
Climate and sustainability education are soon to become part of the school curriculum, yet young people and teachers alike are feeling ill-equipped and powerless to play their part in the vital action needed to tackle the climate emergency. In response to this, the education charity 1851 Trust has today declared its ambition to help 1 million young people take action to protect nature, people and the planet through its new Protect Our Future platform.
The announcement comes as new research1 amongst 11-16 year-olds commissioned by 1851 Trust and environmental charity Hubbub reveals that more than half of children (51%) are worried about what the planet will be like in the future. However, the research also found that almost a third (31%) of 11-16 year-olds say they are unclear on what measures they can take to be more environmentally friendly, which is acting as a barrier to them taking action. Only a quarter feel climate change is something they can fix, while 14% said they don’t feel like their actions will make a difference.
Teachers are feeling similarly at a loss as to what they can do to support learning in this area, with 70% saying they do not feel equipped to teach about climate change effectively.2
The Protect Our Future platform aims to inspire and help young people to understand their role in tackling climate change, empowering them to become independent thinkers and problem solvers. The appealing resources for young people and teachers will be free to use, rigorously researched and packed full of science-based knowledge, inspiration and practical actions, so they can take the lead in climate conversations and take action to help shape a more positive future for the planet.
Protect Our Future is a collaboration between 1851 Trust and forward-thinking young people, schools, universities, brands and charities. It will provide a more holistic education experience, with an emphasis on out of the classroom learning. A pilot programme in Hull is bringing together 13 secondary schools, in partnership with Reckitt and Hull City Council, to work together over the next 18 months to help accelerate low-carbon projects to meet Hull’s net zero ambitions. The pilot was launched on 14 March, with COP26 President Alok Sharma MP and Hannah Mills OBE, the most successful female sailor in Olympic history and 1851 Trust supporter, joining students in a packaging recycling workshop.
Now the charity is calling for more partners to support the expansion of the Protect Our Futureprogramme to other areas of the UK and to accelerate the development of much needed resources for teachers. This call to action is being supported by Sir Ben Ainslie, Hannah Mills OBE and the Great Britain SailGP Team ahead of the final SailGP event of season in San Francisco. SailGP isthe first global climate-positive sporting league, where the teams compete for victory both on and off the water and the battle is on to win the Impact League, a first of its kind sporting competition where each team is assessed on the action they take to reduce their impact on our planet.
The Great Britain SailGP Team aims to use its sporting platform to play their part in the vital action needed to tackle the climate emergency. Change will only be achieved through collaboration and the British team will use their influence and voice as they compete across the globe to support this ambitious target, naming their new-look flying F50 boat Protect Our Future. Its inspiration taken from the reindeer cyclone, a spectacular phenomenon of nature that sees the herd come together to form a moving circle to protect their young and vulnerable.
Olympic sailor and environmental campaigner, Hannah Mills OBE said: “Our planet is at a tipping point and young people are the key to protecting its future. We are not doing enough to empower young people. We need to go beyond the climate headlines and equip them with science-based knowledge and understanding.”
Four-time Olympic gold medallist, Sir Ben Ainslie added: “Protect Our Future responds to this need by providing young people with science-based knowledge to enable them to take the lead in climate conversation. Our goal is to use our sporting success to inspire young people to Protect Our Future and the planet.”
Ben Cartledge, CEO of 1851 Trust said: “Young people are key to protecting the future of our planet, yet our research has shown they’re angry, they’re worried and they are not clear on what action they can take that will make a difference. Protect Our Futureaims to empower both young people and their teachers – giving them the knowledge, skills and voice to speak with confidence about climate change and sustainability.
“We know from our experience of developing science-based resources which are used by over half of UK secondary schools, that young people are inspired by real people who aren’t just talking theoretically.
We are applying this approach to make sure the resources for Protect Our Future inspire real action to tackle climate change. We would love to hear from potential content and funding partners to help us grow the platform and develop new events, resources and content for young people, parents and teachers.”
The 1851 Trust is a game-changing education charity working to raise science capital across society through inspirational context-based learning. The charity is chaired by Dame Louise Makin and Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge is its Royal Patron.
The 1851 Trust was launched by Sir Ben Ainslie and Sir Keith Mills in 2014 and is named after the first year of the Americas Cup race. STEM Crew, the charity’s transformational education programme designed to engage young people in STEM subjects through the power of sport, is used by 50% of secondary schools across the UK. Content and funding partners for the STEM Crew programme have included SailGP, The FA, Henri-Lloyd, AQL, Garfield Weston Foundation and Lloyd’s Register Foundation.
The vision of Protect Our Future is to empower young people everywhere with science-based knowledge to protect our future. The platform is set to launch in June 2022.
We are pleased to announce a new partnership with The STA Group.
The STA Group announces a new Global Partnership with the 1851 Trust to promote its core education programme, STEM Crew. The 3-year partnership was announced at the 2021 Sport Technology Awards.
The STA Group is a communications and events business which champions technology in sports globally, most notably through its annual Sports Technology Awards. It was at this ceremony that the partnership was unveiled in front of 800 sports industry leaders.
The partnership will see the 1851 Trust become The STA Group’s Global Charity Partner. A crucial part of the relationship will be a series of jointly hosted initiatives through STEM Crew that aim to inspire the wider sports industry to support the Trust in its work with school children.
Rebecca Hopkins, CEO of The STA Group said: “The STA Group’s work is driven by championing tech-led excellence in sport – and part of this has to be inspiring the next generation to think about sport as a career. By working with the 1851 Trust, the sports industry can show children that a rewarding career in an exciting, international world is open to them. We’ll know we’ve succeeded when today’s students are tomorrow’s colleagues.”
1851 Trust patron Sir Ben Ainslie said: “This partnership with The STA Group, who like us are driven by emphasising the importance of technology in sport, will continue to amplify STEM Crew’s platform and open new doors as we seek to level the global education playing field and invest and unite for a sustainable future. Innovation thrives through collaborations like these.”
The first 1851 Trust and STA Group insight event will be taking place this summer, to register interest please email megan.cliff@1851trust.org.uk
We are delighted to have been announced as the ‘Race for the Future Purpose Partner‘ of the Great Britain SailGP Team. Helmed by our patron Sir Ben Ainslie, the most successful Olympic sailor of all time, the Great Britain SailGP Team comprises of some of the country’s top sporting talent with Olympic medals across multiple sports.
Together with Sir Ben Ainslie and the Team we have exciting plans to launch brand new, free innovative education resources for secondary school students. Focusing on environmental science, the resource will highlight the causes and impacts of climate change to accelerate changes in behaviours and help the next generation become the environmental problem solvers of the future.
SailGP season two starts in Bermuda this weekend, Hannah Mills, an Olympic Gold medallist and three-time World Champion in the Women’s 470, will be trialling with the team. The Female Development Programme is a new initiative kickstarted by SailGP, it’s an initiative which aims to fast-track the inclusion of female athletes into SailGP. Over the course of the first three events of SailGPSeason 2, Hannah will be the first female in the Great Britain SailGP team. Mills has sated, “I want to work within sport and sustainability and use the incredible platform sport has to help tackle the climate crisis”
We’re extremely excited for the new season to begin and look forward to being a part of this incredible challenge with the Great Britain Sail GP team. We are grateful to have the opportunity to use this platform to continue our work inspiring young people across the UK through our digital education platform, STEM Crew.
Trinity House announce partnership with the 1851 Trust’s Maritime Roadshow for Girls programme.
The 1851 Trust is delighted to announce that Trinity House, in its capacity as the UK’s largest self- funded maritime charity has joined the Lloyd’s Register Foundation as a funder of the Trusts Maritime Roadshow for Girls Programme.
The 2021 Roadshow programme will build on the success of last year’s events which inspired over 1,400 schoolgirls in 12 of the UK’s most deprived towns and cities. As part of the programme the young women will Explore hands-on STEM and maritime activities, meet a diverse range of female role models across the maritime sector and take part in a growth mindset workshop aimed at building confidence and teamwork.
Ben Cartledge, CEO for the 1851 Trust commented:
“The 1851 Trust are thrilled to have received a grant from Trinity House. It is well known that the sector is predicting a skills and labour shortage and our research shows 43% of schoolgirls are put off science and engineering due to poor knowledge of career opportunities and 60% by lack of role models. The 1851 Trust are delighted that thanks to the support of Trinity House and The Lloyd’s Register Foundation our Roadshow programme will break down stereotypes for young women to capture the imagination of 11-14-year olds before they make decisions of GSCE subject choices.
Victoria Muir, Grants Manager for Trinity House added:
“The Trinity House Maritime Charity is delighted to support this important initiative. Giving young women the opportunity to explore a maritime career at this critical point in their education will hopefully inspire them to consider careers that they may have thought were not for them. In supporting these workshops, we hope that more young women will choose a maritime career and discover the opportunities that it brings.”
The 1851 Trust is still looking for Maritime Roadshow partners. If you, or your business, would like to help us to inspire the next generation, please contact ben.cartledge@1851trust.org.uk
