Sailing against climate change
‘We have to act now’
In a quiet Amsterdam harbour, an orange tabby cat is manoeuvring himself around a ten-metre long sailboat, slowly and meticulously sniffing out the far ends of the craft in the hopes of abandoning ship.
He fails, because a retractable leash keeps him from jumping overboard. A girl wearing a big green dress and a frilly white button-up emerges on deck and smiles at the sight of the rescue cat that she found in her home country of Italy seven years ago. She couldn’t bear to be separated from him, so when she came to the Netherlands with her boat to study cultural leadership in Groningen, they became attached at the hip; a captain and her crew.
‘We have to keep him in check’, Gloria Maria Cavalieri says. ‘Mosé has already fallen into the water seven times. He’s only got two lives left.’
Gloria and Mosé have been staying in Amsterdam for two days now. Sixteen days ago, they left their home in the Reitdiephaven in Groningen. They sailed to Dokkum, Harlingen, and Enkhuizen, making their way to Bruges and Brussels via train. Before they return home, they will have visited The Hague and the Beemsterpolder.
Why are they making this journey? ‘To investigate the effects of climate change on cultural heritage sites.’
Waterways and locks
Gloria learned about the destructive effects of climate change on cultural heritage during a course she took as part of her master in cultural leadership. People may be thinking about rising sea levels, about dying polar bears, or severe droughts. But what will happen to the waterways, such as the famous Dutch canals, and the locks that control the water levels, such as the Wouda pumping station? What are the consequences for the old buildings and infrastructures which make up the character of a city, like Bruges’ historic centre and Amsterdam’s Defence Line? ‘There is not enough attention drawn to how much heritage sites are actually at risk.’
Living on her boat Tetide, Gloria feels a special connection to these sites. But now she realised this bond was at stake, for herself and for others. ‘I felt like I needed to defend that bond’, she says. ‘I want to mobilise people to be more active against climate change.’
She came up with the plan to sail through the Netherlands and Belgium, stopping at cultural heritage sites and speaking with the people and institutions that can get things moving.
Her friend Elena Pompilio was just as passionate as she was, so together they applied for the Organisation of World Heritage Cities Young Travelling Scholarship to finance their voyage. Their plan, Navigandum per hereditatem, was chosen from eight hundred other applications.
Abandon ship
It hasn’t been all smooth sailing though, since they set off from Reitdiephaven in early September. ‘Elena fell ill early on’, says Gloria. ‘She had to abandon ship. At that point I feared the whole project would go down the drain, as I don’t feel comfortable sailing alone just yet.’
A cry for help through her social media proved effective, however. Allegra Grillo, a law student from Milan and an old friend, flew over from Italy to join the crew. And now, a week of sailing later, Gloria, Allegra, and Mosé are resting in Amsterdam, preparing for the final leg of their journey.
‘The boat offers a different perspective and a different way of entering a city; one which takes you back in time’, says Allegra. ‘It’s truly incredible.’ They are more in touch with the locals and their traditions this way, they feel.
Strong tides
But sailing has also given them a more unnerving perspective: the effects of climate change are already noticeable on the water. Gloria had to leave the Harlingen harbour earlier than planned, because of exceptionally strong high tides. To delay meant to risk running aground.
At first, she wasn’t concerned. ‘After all, strong tides are normal in the North Sea.’ These exceptionally high and exceptionally low waters lasted for five consecutive days, however, and they also shifted frequently. ‘We weren’t expecting that’, she says. ‘That was quite out of the ordinary.’
The unprecedented tidal shifts were caused by the increased differences in temperature of the water over the past few months. Such strong water movement will eventually erode parts of the coastline, meaning adaptations have to be made to the waterways that are such an integral part of the Dutch and Belgian cultural heritage.
Droughts
Extreme droughts are another problem. Gloria found that when canals dry up, the salty sea water which is brought in to fill them up again impacts the flora and fauna. The soil surrounding bodies of water dries up and crumbles, which leads to buildings and roads losing their stability. ‘If we don’t act soon, the infrastructure of complete cities might crumble.’
In an attempt to manage these problems, locks are already opening less often than usual. For Gloria and Elena, this meant they had to spend two extra hours sailing from Groningen to Dokkum.
Helpless
‘We’re seeing the effects of climate change close up, if only for a few weeks, and we feel so helpless’, says Gloria. In a way, she says, Europe is lucky, as the continent will not experience any major climate-related repercussions in the next ten years. ‘But if we don’t act now, in seven years’ time, it will be too late.’
‘Back home in Italy, we don’t really see the will to change among our representatives’, says Gloria. She feels it’s different in the Netherlands and Belgium. ‘People here have a strong attachment to their cultural heritage.’ In Bruges, she says, all museums and heritage buildings now have dehumidifiers and temperature checks in every room. ‘That’s necessary, since these buildings weren’t built with fluctuating temperatures in mind.’
However, insulating such buildings or placing solar panels on the roof is tricky, because they’re listed, meaning that because of their cultural value, you’re not allowed to change them.
Gloria and Allegra have reflected a lot on sustainability since starting their voyage. ‘You are really mindful of how much water and electricity you’re using, since they come in finite tanks’, says Gloria.
‘Living on a sailboat has taught us to reflect on our ordinary lifestyles and how it impacts the sites that define Dutch and Belgian identities’, says Allegra. This is, in essence, what they set out to achieve with their voyage. ‘Now that I see another aspect of the true impact of climate change, I feel more prepared to fight against it’, says Gloria. ‘For the little that I can do, I feel there is still room for action from my side and from other people’s.’
As the sun sets in the harbour, Mosé is now free from his leash. He has no interest in escaping in the dark. Instead, he stays cuddled up to Gloria, settling down for rest before they set sail again in the morning.