On 4 July, Zennstrom Philanthropies organised a seminar on the Baltic Sea environment in connection with the AF Offshore Race. It was followed by a fundraising event that may set new trends in Sweden.
For the second year, Zennstrom Philanthropies – set up by Niklas Zennstrom and his wife Catherine in order to fight for human rights and help protect the natural environment – organized a seminar on sustainability issues in theBaltic Sea in connection with a big Swedish sailboat race previously known as Gotland Runt (now AF Offshore Race). This year, the event was co-hosted by AF, Newsec and Stockholms Segelsallskap.
Niklas Zennstrom opened the seminar, speaking about his engagement for theBaltic Seaas a passionate sailor and someone with strong links to the Baltic coast and archipelago. Over the years, he has seen theBaltic Seachange for the worse. Through his work with Zennstrom Philanthropies, he expressed a strong desire to help tackle the environmental issues threatening the Baltic and a hope to inspire other business leaders to do the same.
After the seminar and a buffet dinner, a unusual – forSweden– way of raising funds for environmental work was introduced to the guests: an auction was held in support of organizations that Zennstrom Philanthropies work with, including FISH, Coalition Clean Baltic, Oceana and the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation. Fetching the highest price, was a seat on Zennstrom’s boat during part of the race. There was some hesitation in the crowd that evening, but maybe it will set a new trend for the future.
In the race, Zennstrom’s sailboat Ran was first to cross the finishing line, but second runner up in its class.
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