In coming issues of Articulated, we’ll be highlighting the work of each of the five organizations Land Rover’s Global Environmental Sponsorship program supports. Here we look at the Born Free Foundation:
Land Rover and the Born Free Foundation
LRX shows its more personalized side
LAND ROVERS TO THE RESCUE When the Born Free Foundation needed a vehicle to help fight animal poaching in Kenya, Land Rover provided two rugged Defenders. When the Borneo Orangutan Survival organization needed a vehicle to transport rescued orangutans, Land Rover came in with an LR3. And when a Methodist church in Kenya looking after AIDS victims could no longer afford to maintain its fleet of aging Defenders, Land Rover provided the funds for a mechanic and spare parts to keep them on the road. Since 2001, Land Rover has quietly been supplying vehicles and support services for some of the world’s top environmental groups as part of its Global Environmental Sponsorship program. “We think of it as supporting organizations that share our passion for global conservation and the great outdoors,” explains John Lloyd, Land Rover’s experiential marketing manager. This year, Lloyd and his team will supply around 26 new Land Rovers primarily to five key global conservation organizations to help with their ongoing projects. They include: » Royal Geographical Society to support its education program in the UK and a bursary vehicle to be used, this year, by a team of college students to circumnavigate the globe along the 50 degree latitude to look at climatic and social differences between the countries. »B iosphere Expeditions for its wildlife conservation projects across the planet including snow leopards in central Asia, Arabian leopards in Oman, lions and cheetahs in Namibia and pumas and jaguars in Brazil. Please visit www.biosphere-expeditions.org/landrover
» The China Exploration and Research Society to help its work protect endangered wildlife and cultural heritage in China, Tibet and Mongolia. »T he Born Free Foundation for its work in protecting endangered species in Kenya, South Africa and Ethiopia. Please visit www.bornfree.org.uk »E arthwatch Institute for its wildlife conservancy work in Samburu, Kenya, Glacial research in Iceland, forestry projects in the UK and Brazil and its project on growing sustainable coffee in Costa Rica. “Our single-minded aim with our support for each of these organizations is to make a difference. The Land Rover vehicles we provide are essential tools in helping them to carry out their programs,” explains Lloyd. And this year, Land Rover will introduce a new annual program to get its workforce involved in its conservation efforts. This summer, a group of 12 Land Rover employees who took part in an internal competition, will travel to Iceland to work with the Earthwatch Institute researching the impact of glaciers on the world environment and how climate change will affect this. “In addition to providing support to some great causes for Land Rover, these programs put our vehicles in the tough environment they were designed for,” adds Lloyd.
It was founded in the early 1980s by the stars of the movie Born Free, Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna. Today, headed up by their son Will Travers, the Born Free Foundation has grown into a major international wildlife charity working throughout the world to prevent captive animals suffering and protect threatened species in the wild. This year, Land Rover will provide nine new vehicles to the foundation, including a specially-reinforced Defender 130 that’s used as a baby elephant ambulance in Sri Lanka. Another two Defenders went to Kenya to help fight poaching. “Land Rover’s support gives us the backing we need to carry out front-line conservation on a daily basis,” says Born Free Foundation’s CEO Will Travers. For Land Rover experiential marketing manager, John Lloyd, one of the most fun parts of Land Rover’s work with Born Free is their joint sponsorship of the ‘10 to 4’ charity mountain bike race down Mount Kenya. “The race is held over 32 miles from 10,000 feet down to 4,000 feet and runs partly through a game reserve full of lions – hence the nickname of the cyclists as ‘meals on wheels’. We use Born Free Land Rovers to rescue any injured riders, or riders with punctured tires. This year we’ll give six Land Rover Gear mountain bikes as prizes for the amateur Black Mamba cyclists, many of who make their own bikes out of bits of scrap metal. It’s just the most amazing event.” For more information on Land Rover’s support of the Born Free Foundation, go to www.bornfree.org.uk and click on ‘Who we work with’, then ‘corporate partnerships’, then ‘Land Rover’.
Land Rover showed another side of its stunning LRX cross-coupe concept—how easy it would be to personalize. After unveiling the all-white LRX concept at January’s North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Land Rover’s design team followed it up with a striking black and silver version at the Geneva Salon earlier this month. After its Geneva reveal, the black and silver LRX made its North American debut on the Land Rover stand at the recent New York International Auto Show. This new, more off-road capable LRX features a removable carbon composite roof panel with built-in anchor points for carrying snowboards, skis and other sports equipment. Black roof bars provide another option for roof-top load-carrying. More carbon composite is used for front and rear protective underbody plates, while new, lightweight alloy wheels feature a more rugged off-road tire design. “We were hugely excited by the positive response that the original LRX concept generated when we showed it at Detroit,” says Phil Popham, Land Rover’s managing director. “But we’ve always seen scope for LRX to provide a whole showroom of different models, with a range of powertrains including hybrids and bio-fuel capable engines.” Popham adds that no production plans have been confirmed yet for the LRX concept, but says that both versions will be used to gauge public, retailer and media response. With its more compact size (5.9 inches shorter than the LR2), its lighter weight and sustainability-focused technologies, LRX would appeal to new buyers in the luxury sector who want the benefits of an SUV but in a more compact package.