Launch
Stop the Clock!
Two days before beginning the journey, I need to make another difficult decision to delay the commencement of the 10 City Bridge Run.
- Do I go now because I said I would and risk being stranded with no cash mid-journey (in the event no sponsorship is raised during the run)?
- Do I just say it is too difficult (and in effect impossible) and give up, refunding all sponsorship received?
- Do I postpone the event, risking the integrity of ‘the bridge’ framed between the September UN Conference and the G20 Summit? Postponing also introduces significant considerations around adverse weather conditions. Soon it will be winter in Korea- not ideal for running.
I started thinking about what I had been learning about the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) over the last week especially through writing my blog:
- The likelihood of failure in meeting these in their entirety
- The excuse of the global financial crisis setting back earlier achievements with the MDG prior to 2008 (this is the reason cited for failing to deliver on commitments to the United Nations by many countries)
- The worsening situation of preventable unacceptable conditions in many locations, particularly sub-Saharan Africa
If you think that a delay of starting the run by a month is bad, consider these MDG.
Of course, there is no going back in time. I can’t make it September again. That is impossible. Neither can we make it 2000 again and retread progress of the MDG.
The reality is that there are not two days to go for the 10 City Bridge Run. There are 1905 days to go until the end of 2015 when the MDG will be assessed. This is what matters.
Rather than be frustrated, I ask you to consider the opportunity presented to optimise the impact of this 10 City Bridge Run.
The 10 City Bridge Run is a creative process of inquiry. It is a challenge. It is testing ‘the impossible’. It requires a little more effort than usual.
The bridge that has been defined between the United Nations Conference (20-22 September) and the G20 Summit on 10-12 November is far from redundant. It has formed the first of many (figurative) bridges that will be crossed. The G20 Summit becomes the near bank supporting a journey that bridges countries, bridges conversations, and bridges the small actions of many.
This journey is raw, real and live.
Thoughts, concerns, questions or advice? I welcome all feedback.
‘Fun Run’- Oxymoron? Go on, come and run 2.4 km for the global launch!
A friend of mine emphatically swears that the expression ‘fun run’ is a non sequitur…he claims never to have experienced a run yet that was fun. Poor soul!
Join us for the Global Launch of the 10 City Bridge Run this Saturday where 100 people will together run 2.4 km from right behind the Sydney Opera House across to Milsons Point, via the Cahill Expressway overpass and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
Arguably the most picturesque route for a short course in Sydney, and so while the running might not be ‘fun’, it will be a pleasant view. Besides, what have you to lose? Let this be the start of your personal ‘get fit for summer’ regime!
RSVP here through Eventbrite.
Bring a camera and it would be great to see how you saw the event.
More details are on the Eventbrite page. Please leave a comment or contact me directly with any need of clarification or questions: phone 0438 007 770.
Global Launch, Sydney- 10 City Bridge Run
Join us for the global launch of the 10 City Bridge Run.
100 people running or walking 2.4 km from Sydney to Milsons Point, meeting for breakfast afterwards just across the bridge.
11 September at 8 am meeting on the Bennelong Lawn, immediately inside the Royal Botanic Gardens, opposite the Sydney Opera House Forecourt. There will be a short brief of what it is about, and how to get to breakfast, then we will set off at 8.30 am. For those who are running, it is a fast course but all uphill climbing all of the way past knockout views of Sydney. If you are walking, enjoy the same view, but it will need to be a brink walk to come in under 30 minutes but easily achievable.
Free to attend. You can register via Eventbrite.
There is a little bit more to just meeting for coffee involved here, so please take time to read the following and also the objectives of the 10 City Bridge Run.
This is the beginning of a journey to frame a pictorial petition to be given to the leadership at the G20 Summit to be held in Seoul this November. In 2015, world leaders and the UN will want to report on their achievement of the eight United Nations Millennium Development Goals, and progress to date has been slow even falling short of what is needed in some areas. If Copenhagen is any measure of what we can expect, leaving important issues only to institutional authorities might lead to further disappointment.
The 10 City Bridge Run is a creative process of inquiry.
Over the course of 30 days later this month I will run 240 km, as detailed in the text a little further below.
To launch on 11 September, 100 people are gathering to run or walk 2.4 km together in under 30 minutes.
This is a symbolic gesture to show that collectively, we can do the same work as one unit in far less time and with far greater collaborative reach.
Starting in New York on 24 September 2010, I will commence the 10 City Bridge Run- a global endurance challenge to raise awareness of the possibly to eradicate extreme poverty affecting children in our current generation.
Running 10 sub-marathons in 10 cities across 10 countries inside of 1 month.
Actually, this project is about much more than just running. Each run is representative of the 24,000 children under the age of five years of age who tragically die daily on average based on the 2008 mortality rate for that year (8.8 million children).
So join us on 11 September. Be part of the difference that makes the difference.
If you are not in Sydney, let us know if you are able to connect with us in one of the other cities where we will be visiting between now and the end of October, and we can hook up with details of dates and locations:
- New York
- Toronto
- Brussels
- London
- St Petersburg
- New Delhi
- Jakarta
- Banda Aceh
- Shanghai
- Tokyo
- Seoul
This is important.
Please take time to ask why you should care.
Thanks for taking time to give this your consideration- see you on the journey!
Building Bridges 