Glasgow hosts starting point for 4,800-mile non-stop Cop27 baton relay

The baton relay will begin at Glasgow Green and travel more to Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt, where Cop27 will take place in November.
Glasgow will be the starting point for the Cop27 baton relay (Jane Barlow/PA)
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Lauren Gilmour30 September 2022

Glasgow will host the starting point for the world’s longest non-stop baton relay ever attempted as it passes hosting duties to Egypt for Cop27, having hosted Cop 26 last year.

Thousands of runners, cyclists and sailors will work together to pass a relay baton hand-to-hand from Glasgow across more than 4,800 miles (7,800km) to Sharm el-Sheikh as part of Running Out of Time.

Starting at Glasgow Green on Friday, about 2,000 school pupils from across the city will join organisers for a mile-plus (2km) run around the green.

The relay baton message will be read out by a pupil at Sunnyside Primary School before being sealed inside the baton as its 4,826-mile (7,767km) journey to Sharm el-Sheikh gets under way.

The message contained within the relay baton will, I’m sure, continue to convey that strength of feeling that we saw here in Glasgow last year

Susan Aitken, Glasgow City Council

It is expected the baton will take 38 days to reach Sharm el-Sheikh and the journey will be completed in 732 stages at about 6.2 miles (10km) each.

The baton, which has been designed by Glasgow-based company 4c Design, will pass through 18 countries via land and sea, including Scotland, Wales, England, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, Greece, Cyprus and Israel, before arriving in Egypt.

During its route through Scotland, the baton will visit special projects such as the Glasgow Food Policy Partnership and the Tarras Valley Nature Reserve in Langholm, Dumfries and Galloway.

Leader of Glasgow City Council, councillor Susan Aitken, said: “Cop26 shone a light on just how dire the situation facing our planet is and that collective and accelerated action is the only option to save humanity from a global catastrophe.

“While nation states make pledges, it is cities, like Glasgow, that are delivering on a low carbon and climate resilient future and must remain central to future policy decisions and action.

“Now we must keep up the pressure on world leaders and governments to make sure that commitments of the Glasgow Climate Pact are delivered.

“The message contained within the relay baton will, I’m sure, continue to convey that strength of feeling that we saw here in Glasgow last year.

Our aim is to deliver a powerful message to the decision makers at Cop27 with so much support that it is impossible to ignore

Jamie Hay, Running Out of Time

“Participating in the Running Out of Time relay to Cop27 is another opportunity for Glaswegians to have their voices heard and to show their continued commitment to fighting climate change.”

Running Out of Time co-founder Jamie Hay said: “This is our most critical mission yet. Our aim is to deliver a powerful message to the decision makers at Cop27 with so much support that it is impossible to ignore if we’re to have a hope of securing a transition to a safe climate future.

“Running Out of Time symbolises the very essence of climate action – it’s an extraordinary, bold, ambitious plan that will only succeed because everyone has worked together. I know we can do it.”

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