WUNRN
CHINA - WOMAN WATER SPECIALIST &
MOTHER DESCRIBES ANTARCTICA ADVENTURE
ByRebecca Lo - Editor Zhao Liangfeng |
June 12, 2013 - Su Liu's adventure in
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Su Liu taps upon her water resource knowledge to
mobilize mothers to contribute toward climate change and water resource
protection. [ |
When Su Liu was a girl growing up in
"Only men who were very fit - iron men - were given a chance to go,"
she recalls. "It was considered a big deal. To a teenage girl like me, it
was like they were going to outer space. Their journey was beyond what ordinary
people like me could achieve."
Liu, now a mother of two boys and the head of Greater China and Water Policy
Research for Hong Kong-based Civic Exchange, has always been attracted to
extremes. "The tallest mountain, the deepest space. Well, I knew I
probably won't be able to go to the moon. But maybe
She knew that the passage would be her litmus test.
Would she be able to survive the motion sickness common during a journey to the
South Pole? When she studied in
"The team members were all young and fit and handsome," she recalls.
"They were hand selected but still had to undergo intense training. One
told me that to be an Antarctic explorer, you needed an iron stomach.
Literally, you should be able to eat your rice with one hand while reaching for
a bucket to vomit into with the other."
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The last sunset before leaving |
Many years later, Liu's dormant dream of exploring the South Pole came
to life again through an unexpected channel.
At a climate change conference in
"My children met him and he invited me to join him on his next trip to the
Antarctic," Liu says. "I made excuses, citing my sea sickness. But I
realized that I was the one setting the limitations. Why can't I go? My dream
awoke."
Liu's work made her realize that
"They have been ruined by hydropower development," she says. "We
use so much power that it's destroying our homeland. The Antarctic contains the
biggest fresh water reserve in the world: 70 percent of it."
She tapped upon her water resource knowledge to initiate a global program,
mobilizing mothers to realize their own dormant dreams while focusing on
climate change and water resource protection.
"Women are by nature collectors and their children's first teacher,"
she says. "
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Antarctca fur seals, photo taken on March 6, 2013.
Liu sets foot on the icy continent earlier this year and finds the experience
almost spiritual. [ |
Even something as common as how we use the toilet can make a difference.
According to Liu, the average
"Toilets that use seawater still require energy to get it to every
household," says Liu. She suggests that with half of the water used in the
shower, simply by putting a bucket to catch shower water and using it for
flushing can save about one seventh of total water consumption.
When Liu finally set foot on the icy continent earlier this year, she found the
experience overwhelming.
"It was the end of summer there when we arrived and there were still lots
of snow and ice," she recalls. "The continent's serenity and
grandness was almost like a religious experience for me. I wanted to kneel
down: I was so overcome with emotion. It made me realize how small humans are
compared to that eternal silence. We are only temporary."
Along with 80 people from 28 different countries, Liu set off from Argentina
and reached Antarctica in less than two days because of the favorable weather
conditions and "gentle" waves that were one or two meters.
"We camped on the ice for one night," she recalls. "The hardest
part was getting up to go to the toilet in the dark. It was so cold! And my
shoes were frozen."
While Liu and the rest of Shaw's team learned about climate change and spent
time cleaning the remnants, she found time for fun activities such as diving
into the chilly waters for a swim or getting up close and personal with
penguins.
Now that she has finally realized her dream, would she return to
"I want to inspire more mothers to take action," says Liu. "If
that's the case, then I will go back."