Cochrane Eagle: "Runners with a cause"
BY ALAN MATTSON
COCHRANE EAGLE
MAY 28, 2008
That’s the challenge for Matt Hill and Stephanie Tait, as the couple runs across North America to raise cash and awareness for environmental sustainability.
“We’ve been blessed with about four times more energy that most people,” said Hill, 40. “So we thought, ‘Why not? Why not us? Why not just take a year of our life to . . . hopefully redefine how things are done in North America?’”
The Run for One Planet started with the Vancouver Marathon on May 4. Since then, Hill and Tait have covered more than 600 miles, stopping to speak at Cochrane High May 21.
The duo runs marathons three days on, one day off. Even though both have been running for years and trained hard for the tour, the demanding schedule means they have to take things slow.
It takes between eight and 13 hours for them to cover the standard distance of over 42 km.
“Honestly, some days it’s just a notch above walking,” Tait said. An average time for a marathon runner is about five hours.
Their message with the Run for One Planet tour is that little things — composting, owning reusable water bottles, and avoiding pre-packaged food — can make a difference in the long run.
“It’s really hard to get confused with the message,” Tait said. “It’s very clear, and it’s very easily accessible to everybody.”
During their presentation at Cochrane High, dozens of students signed a sheet committing to a new environmentally-friendly habit, like eating local and organic food.
The tour aims to collect 1 million commitments, and $1 million to start Run for One Planet marathons across North America.
Through its sustainable development project, Cochrane High is trying to be environmentally friendly. The school has 40 solar panels on its roof and a wind turbine that prevents about 150 kg of carbon from entering the atmosphere every month.
Now, student and staff volunteers are fundraising to install a solar water heating system, which would reduce the school’s water bill by about 50 per cent.
Project leader and teacher Stephanie Bennett said they have raised about $19,000 so far — including a $3,000 donation from Lafarge Canada — despite many disappointments.
“This year we’ve tried a lot of things, but they haven’t worked very well,” Bennett said. Their efforts included a letter writing campaign, unsuccessful grant applications and giving out brochures downtown.
Despite the “very lukewarm” response, Bennett hopes the water heater can be installed this summer.
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