Lewis Pugh, UNEP Patron of the Oceans, who has pioneered swims in the most challenging environments on earth, including the Antarctic, the North Pole, the Red Sea and the Himalayas, is pleased to announce that he is collaborating with global non-profit Count Us In to launch the ‘Rivers are Life’ campaign to raise awareness of everyday steps individuals can take to help protect local rivers and overall global health.
- Mr. Pugh, 53, launched an historic, 315-mile Hudson River Swim on Sunday, September 13 at the River’s source high in the Adirondack Mountains. The swim is scheduled to conclude in Manhattan on September 13, just prior to a meeting of the United Nations General Assembly.
“Lewis Pugh’s epic Hudson River swim is a powerful way to call on world leaders meeting at the UN this September to make our rivers drinkable, fishable and swimmable again,” said Count Us In co-founder Eric Levine. “We can all make a huge difference by taking action and backing Lewis’s letter for world governments at iheartrivers.com.”
The 315-mile / 507-km swim, among the most challenging ever attempted by Mr. Pugh, would mark the first time anyone has swum the full length of the Hudson River unassisted.* Mr. Pugh will feature the campaign’s “I Heart Rivers” logo along his Hudson River journey. The campaign also asks people to back Mr. Pugh’s call for world leaders to prioritize healthy rivers as part of the drive to protect 30% of land and oceans by 2030.
“I am so pleased to be collaborating with Count Us In on the ‘Rivers are Life’ campaign throughout the Hudson River Swim,” Mr. Pugh said. “Clean rivers are essential to the fight for global sustainability. Fortunately, they’re accessible to most people, and we know what it takes to get them healthy. I specifically chose the Hudson for this swim because of the environmental progress that’s been made on the iconic waterway in recent years, thanks to a number of wonderful environmental organizations here in New York. Much work is still required, but tangible improvements have been made, setting an example for restoring rivers around the world.”
*An unassisted swim means the swimmer only wears a Speedo, cap and goggles (also known as ‘skins’) as compared to an assisted swim where swimmers choose to use equipment to assist them, for example: a wetsuit, snorkel, gloves, flippers, hand paddles, a craft when going down rapids, etc.
WHAT: Lewis Pugh – 315-mile Hudson River Swim
WHERE: Hudson River, USA
WHEN: Sunday, September 13 2023
INFO: More information on The Hudson River Swim is available HERE | See also Cape Town Green Map
ABOUT COUNT US IN
Count Us In is building the world’s largest and most ambitious community of people and organizations taking action to protect what they love from climate change. Through its 16 science-backed high-impact steps, individuals can significantly reduce their emissions and, at the same time, influence leaders to deliver bold at-scale solutions to mitigate the climate crisis. Every step taken with Count Us In and partner climate action platforms is reflected in the Count Us In Global Aggregator, showcasing the power of individual action taken collectively. Count Us In works in radical collaboration with a network of more than 100 global partners – including the EU, WWF, IKEA, Tottenham Hotspur FC, Netflix titles and more – to reach people through sport, culture & entertainment, and the brands they consume and work for. Learn more HERE.
ABOUT LEWIS PUGH
Lewis Pugh was the first person to complete a long-distance swim in every ocean of the world. He pioneers swims in the most vulnerable ecosystems on Earth to campaign for their protection. In 2007 he became the first person to swim across the North Pole and in 2018 the first person to swim the entire length of the English Channel. He is also the only person to have swum the 217-mile / 350-km length of the River Thames (in 2006) and the only person to have swum down a river underneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet (in 2020).
In 2013, Mr. Pugh was appointed UNEP Patron of the Oceans. In 2016, he played a pivotal role in creating the largest Marine Protected Area in the world in the Ross Sea off Antarctica. The Lewis Pugh Foundation has helped protect an area of ocean larger than Western Europe.
Mr. Pugh is from Plymouth, UK. He worked as a maritime lawyer in London before becoming a full-time ocean advocate.
ABOUT THE LEWIS PUGH FOUNDATION
The Lewis Pugh Foundation works for the preservation and conservation of our oceans for a peaceful and sustainable future. To date LPF campaigns have helped protect over 850,000-mile² / 2,2 million km² of ocean. Their aim is to help fully protect at least 30% of the world’s oceans by 2030.
