Celebrities line up for Year of Green Action

Environment Secretary Michael Gove has announced endurance swimmer Lewis Pugh, environmentalist David de Rothschild and TV presenter Jan Leeming, among other celebrities, will all help to promote the ‘Year of Green Action.’

The Year of Green Action is a drive to connect more people with the environment and raise awareness about the simple steps everyone can take to improve to the natural world.

Defra hopes the initiative will provide a focal point for organisations, individuals, communities and businesses to learn more about their environmental impact, take action to reduce it, and spread the word on environmental issues.

The full list of ambassadors is below:

• UN Patron of the Seas Lewis Pugh, an ocean advocate and endurance swimmer;
• Adventurer and environmentalist David de Rothschild, who sailed across the Pacific Ocean in 2009 on a entirely recyclable boat made using 12,500 reclaimed plastic bottles;
• TV presenter and newsreader Jan Leeming, a keen supporter of environmental issues, who has also spent time working on cheetah conservation projects in South Africa;
• Ethical lifestyle blogger Besma Whayeb;
• Sian Conway, Green & Eco Influencer of the Year 2018;
• Explorer, entomologist, zoologist and broadcaster George McGavin;
• Professor Tim Jackson, Director of the Centre for the Understanding of Sustainable Prosperity;
• Founded of Earth Changers sustainable travel company Vicky Smith;
• Blogger and social influencer Izzy McLeod; and
• Lucy Finlay MBE, Founder of Social Enterprise Mark CIC.

Lewis Pugh said: ‘I have been swimming for 32 years and over that period of time, I’ve seen our oceans change completely. That’s why I am delighted to support the Year of Green Action and help share the importance of protecting our oceans and tackling plastic pollution.

‘We need urgent action. Our greatest hope is that there are 66 million people in the United Kingdom. Any problem, however colossal, becomes manageable when divided by 66 million. If we all play our part, we can fix this.’