At 3 tonnes , twenty foot high and the size of a London double decker bus, Aurora, the world’s biggest polar bear is surely a beast to be reckoned with. Her magnificent roar was an unmistakable call for all around her to gather support for the campaign to Save The Arctic. She is a worthy mascot for the campaign and looking determined and defiant, Aurora embodies many of the qualities found in her followers. Over 3.5 million of their names were to be found on strips of signed ribbon and cloth as part of her fur.
Last weekend was one of the most widely anticipated Greenpeace events of 2013 and Bristol East members showed their enthusiasm in actively take part in this memorable occasion. The Polar Parade in London was organised for Sunday 15th September as part of a global day of action involving 75 events in 35 countries to mark the Annual Arctic Sea-Ice Minimum.
The Polar Parade attracted up to 3,000 volunteer activists and supporters. During the morning many gathered at Victoria Tower Gardens, adorning themselves with flags, masks and painted faces. Just after midday we were joined by cyclists who had taken part on three ‘Ice Rides’ through London. We then walked over Lambeth Bridge to meet Aurora and you could sense the wonderment as she was hauled into sight. She was truly awe inspiring as she raised her head and roared at her new found friends. The commotion certainly attracted a lot of attention and the traffic just had to sit and wait for us to pass. Our final destination was Shell’s headquarters at Jubilee Gardens where John Sauvan (Director of Greenpeace UK) encouraged the crowd to defy the injunction against Greenpeace and chalk their foot prints on Shell’s property. We also heard the moving words and song from two women from the First Nation of Denendeh, Kiera-Dawn Kolsen and Besha Blondin. Their plea was for the likes of Shell to leave the Arctic well alone so the people who live there can do so without their environment being defiled and polluted. Surely that is their right!
Well done to Fi, Loz, Madeleine, Melissa, Richard L, Rich B, and Sue for their work in their various roles of crowd and ‘bear’ stewards, team leader, ‘meet and greeter’ and communicator!
And here’s a bit of Bristol trivia linked to the event - Aurora’s glacial roar was recorded by Beth Gibbons – singer/songwriter of the band Portishead.
To add your support to the Save the Arctic campaign – click here
To see photos of the day – click here to go to our Flickr account.
In conclusion, a very special day in London which will no doubt spur us on to get the 5 million signatures to present to the UN and Arctic Councils to support the call for an internationally protected area.
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