Press Release: Round Britain Low Carbon Sail Culminates in Exeter North Devon sailor and pioneer of low-carbon lifestyles, Mukti Mitchell, will end his circumnavigation of Britain in Exeter next Sunday, 14th October. Fresh from the final run along the south coast of England including a stop at the Southampton International Boatshow where Mukti appeared on national television, the last leg of the “Low Carbon Lifestyle Tour” will be rowing up the Canal to Exeter Quay. There, Mukti will give a talk on low carbon lifestyles and show people around his fifteen-foot yacht “Chance” as part of the grand finale event organised by Co-operative Membership. Mukti’s round Britain sail with no engine has taken six months and visited 40 ports to promote lifestyles that emit low carbon dioxide emissions. Endorsed by Prince Charles, Tony Blair, David Cameron and Menzies Campbell, the tour has reached an estimated audience of 10 million with its message that “low carbon lifestyles are easy and fun, good for the planet, and improve your quality of life.” During his voyage Mukti has given over 40 talks to around 1,500 adults and 1,000 children, appeared in regional newspapers, radio and television all around the coast, and given 1,400 copies of his booklet The Guide to Low Carbon Lifestyles to the Queen, Prince of Wales, Prime Minister and all the Lords and MPs in the Houses of parliament. Leading the way as a National initiative to reduce CO2 emissions, the Low carbon Lifestyle Tour coincides with Devon marketing itself as Britain’s Greenest County. Geoffrey Cox, MP For Torridge and West Devon, played a vital role in the tour by receiving the guidebooks on low carbon living at the houses of parliament, and distributing them to the 650 MPs and 750 Lords via the internal postage system. Geoffrey also gave Mukti a send off at his departure from Clovelly on 8th April and may be there to welcome him back to Devon at Exeter Quay next Sunday. Writing from Swanage, a week before the end of the tour, Mukti expressed his sadness as the trip comes to and end, but said he was looking forward to returning to his home village of Clovelly. “Britain is a beautiful country, and I feel very fortunate to have seen the whole of it’s varied coastline,” said Mukti. “I have sailed past the rocks and rip-tides of the western sea board, the mountains and castles of Scotland, the gentle sands of the east coast and the white cliffs of Dover. It was great to see so many dolphins, seals, puffins and whole seas of jellyfish. But the best thing has been the warm welcomes along the way from fishermen to councillors, and retired sailors to schoolchildren. Britain is a very friendly country, and everyone has shown a great deal of interest in low carbon lifestyles. I think the people of Britain are getting ready to make a change. The change is to a new lifestyle for the 21st Century. This lifestyle gives a higher quality of life and is good for the planet.” And what does the future hold for Mukti? “I want to develop the tour website, lowcarbonlifestyle.org, as a lifestyle resource with one-paragraph reports on everything from super-efficient wood burning stoves to family ski holidays by train, so that any one who wants to can get up-to-date advice on low carbon lifestyles,” says Mukti. “And I’m sure there will be more projects like this one in the future. But for now, I’m looking forward to a cosy winter in Clovelly to reflect on my experiences. A few months of quiet carpentry would be perfect.” Schedule for Sunday 14th October: 1430 Exeter Majorettes Perform in the Piazza 1500 Mukti Arrives in yacht Chance 1515 Official Welcome 1530 Mukti’s talk on low carbon lifestyles 1615 Questions 1630 Book signing 1645 Media interviews 1700 Mukti on the boat to show you around 1730 Programme ends Notes to editors: Press-ready photos and press releases are available on the tour website press page. The website also includes a diary, itinerary, flyer and the guidebook on the downloadables page. For more information contact Mukti Mitchell: Mb. 07779 256635 mukti@lowcarbonlifestyle.org Co-operative membership Exeter event organiser: Faheem Batti: Mb. 07774 268377