David Ligouy, a French national, is cycling across North America to raise awareness of the effects of climate change on biodiversity and raise money for solar powered transportation. He was in Medicine Hat this week en route to a U.N. conference in Montreal this December.--News Photo Collin Gallant
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Most of those who choose to ride a bicycle across Canada begin in the early spring, not late summer, but David Ligouy says his journey to raise awareness of the environmental effects of climate change has been given new energy.
In Medicine Hat this weekend, Ligouy trekked north from Central America this year and was in Seattle in late August when the U.S. federal government passed substantial legislation approving massive funds for renewable energy development.
At that point, he decided to extend the sojourn from Vancouver to Montreal in order to attend the United Nation’s conference on biodiversity in mid-December.
“It’s a big change in the United States, and if the 800-pound gorilla is on board, then we have a chance that Canada, Russia, China, others will follow,” he told the News.
His group, “Bank of the Climate,” has three main goals: to ban nuclear weapons, address climate change and protect biodiversity.
The last centres on protection of oceans, where most of the world’s carbon dioxide is processed into oxygen by plankton and algae. Habitat loss through acidification of ocean water will have major impact on climate, he said.
“The Canadians want to organize a Montreal Agreement on biodiversity, which would be an amazing step,” said Ligouy. “Trudeau is very good at words, but let’s see action.”
He has piloted a solar-powered bicycle across three continents, already putting on 40,000 kilometres in Europe and South America on the prototype solar-powered bicycle.
More information on his ride and contact information to arrange speaking engagements can be found on his website (bankontheclimate.com) and related Facebook page.
The goal of a “GoFundMe” fundraising account is to provide materials and open source plans to build solar-powered bikes in Mexico. They can be used to haul small amounts of cargo or act as general long-trip transportation, he said, and the mission will train women in rural communities to install solar panels and maintain electrical components.
