The Robert Swan Voyage for Cleaner Energy yacht, 2041, is due to dock in Cape Town tomorrow at 16h00. The eco-friendly yacht is en-route to the 2012 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, which takes place next month. Robert Swan, 2041’s founder, was the first person to walk to both the North and South Poles.

2041 is on its way to Cape Town from her last unscheduled port of call – Port Elizabeth – where Skipper, Conor Fogerty, and the crew made a call to wait out the particularly bad weather along the coast last week.

Here is the unique story behind the initiative:

In 2002, at the 2nd World Summit on sustainability held in Johannesburg, World Leaders gave Robert Swan a global 10 year mission: to inspire young people, industry, and business on the issues of energy conservation, renewable energy, and to promote the positive roles individuals and business can play in the road to world sustainability. Robert will report back at the June 2012 World Summit in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. Yacht ‘2041’ and the Voyage for Cleaner Energy were born from this mission to inspire people throughout the world.

The Voyage for Cleaner Energy is an expedition by Robert Swan and his team at 2041 to increase awareness about environmental issues related to climate change and to inspire young people to lead the way in implementing practical, viable solutions. Starting in Cape Town, South Africa, yacht ‘2041’ has spread the message of renewable energy and sustainability to places throughout the world, including Antarctica, Europe, and Australia, and has circumnavigated the coasts of both Africa and the United States of America. The yacht and Robert Swan have been featured guests of multiple universities and schools throughout the globe, as well as the 2009 UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen. After voyaging almost 120 000 nautical miles over the past 8 years, the Voyage for Cleaner energy has connected with over 450 000 students from around the world with personal talks from Robert Swan. The yacht is fitted with a variety of eco-friendly features, including sails made entirely from recycled plastic bottles.

Click HERE to find out more about the eco-friendly features aboard the vessel like the bio-diesel and veggie engine, and the two wind turbines on the deck that generate up to 400 watts of energy per hour.

[Source: MyPE]