RSS Feed

Related Articles

Related Categories

Land Rover celebrates 8th anniversary with CERS

14th November 2011 Print
Land Rover

The Land Rover In Action Exhibition week (14 – 18 Nov 2011) at the prestigious Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) in London will coincide with Land Rover's 8th Anniversary with China Exploration & Research Society (CERS), one of Land Rover's six Global Humanitarian and Conservation Partners.
 
Together with Land Rover, the partnership with China's 'greatest living explorer' and fellow of the Royal Geographical Society – Wong How Man, has expanded his exploration work to conservation of some of China’s most endangered natural and cultural heritage. Wong famously led CERS expeditions that pinpointed the sources of the Yangtze (2005), the Mekong (2007) and the Yellow River (2008). 
 
In 2011, the focus of CERS' summer expedition was to reach the Salween River source, a geographic undertaking that has evaded geographers and scientists for decades.  Despite immense difficulties and setbacks, including a sudden and bitter snow storm at the height of summer, the CERS team reached the source on 14 June.
 
CERS' latest wildlife projects include researching the Tibetan Antelope calving ground at the Arjin Mountain Nature Reserve, an extremely remote region of Xinjiang, fringing upon the Tibetan plateau, as well as the rare and exotic breeds of; the Asiatic Beaver, Wild Yak, Black-necked Crane and Musk Deer.
 
The CERS' caving teams were also recently featured on a CCTV 10 Beijing, a major state television science channel, for discovering of a new species of cave-dwelling blind fish and there are plans for four further caving expeditions in 2012. This week CCTV Channel 12 primetime will be airing three new half-hour episodes on a variety of CERS' projects and expanding into full-hour slots for three episodes in 2012.
 
Cultural preservation is another focus for CERS and the teams have preserved 15 traditional thatch-roofed houses of the Li minority people of Hainan Island in southern China, in support of the Lisu Hill Tribe community, as well as successfully saving one of the world's last remaining timber courtyard houses of the Lisu hunting/collecting tribe of remote Yunnan Province in southwest China. Their future plans will include beekeeping research, a pressing issue worldwide.
 
Wong How Man, Founder of CERS and world-renowned explorer said: "CERS takes on multiple expeditions and projects throughout the year with a large, diverse team from around the world. For our explorers and scientists, Land Rover not only provides a means of transportation through some of the most difficult and inhospitable terrains on this planet, but also act as an essential shelter in the world's most extreme weather conditions along the way."
 
Bob Grace, President JLR China added: “We are proud of Land Rover’s achievements in preservation of fragile environments and endangered wildlife around the globe.  In China, we are glad to work with China Exploration and Research Society to bring our philosophy in sustainability to the local community. For the future, we will continue to expand the scope of our care for nature and continuously reinforce the commitment to making our environment better.”
 
The Land Rover In Action Exhibition will feature the work of Land Rover's six Global Humanitarian & Conservation Partners;  International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Born Free Foundation, Biosphere Expeditions, China Exploration & Research Society (CERS),  Earthwatch Institute and Royal Geographical Society (with IBG).

More Photos - Click to Enlarge

Land Rover