Make a stopover at the Botanical Garden! The Base Camp of the Sedna IV's 1000 Days for the Planet mission

MONTREAL, June 20, 2012 /CNW Telbec/ - Nature lovers: Cast off and be part of a grand adventure! Beginning June 22 and for 1000 days, the Montréal Space for Life plays host to the Base Camp of the Sedna IV's 1000 Days for the Planet expedition, presented by Radio-Canada. The Base Camp is the mission's earthbound anchor point and a setting for get-togethers and exchanges - an essential stop for anyone who loves nature, who is sensitive to its beauty and its fragility. Visitors will be able to follow along with the mission day by day, and will enjoy the privilege of communicating live with the crew of the Sedna IV. The Base Camp promises exceptional encounters, not only with the scientific communicators on board the boat but also with impassioned researchers and scientists who day in and day out work in the field to safeguard biodiversity.

"In partnering with the mission of the Sedna IV," explains executive director Charles- Mathieu Brunelle, "the Space for Life confirms once again its commitment to preserving and safeguarding biodiversity. We invite visitors to make the commitment themselves and to enjoy an experience at the heart of life, an adventure filled with courage and hope."

"For 1000 days," adds Montréal Botanical Garden director Gilles Vincent, "our visitors will be able to experience the Sedna IV mission close up and to take the pulse of our planet. The Base Camp is an extraordinary fusion of sciences and emotions, combining interactive installations, videos, and artifacts testifying to the state of biodiversity on our planet."

Artists behind the realization of the Base Camp
The Vous êtes ici team is responsible for the creation, design and realization of the Base Camp in collaboration with the Space for Life. Backed by artists and craftspeople from various environments, "K" and Mélanie Crespin - one a multidisciplinary "ecocommunicator," the other a designer, including for the theatre - conceived and supervised the project. The mandate was ambitious: initiate a collective movement of commitment aimed at magnifying efforts devoted to biodiversity conservation and protection. In hooking up with collaborators from all over the world, in addition to relying on the expertise of Space for Life teams, Vous êtes ici has created the most original sort of experience, one that harmoniously blends science and nature, knowledge and emotion. In a space that manages to be both welcoming and eye-opening, recycled materials from the Sedna IV sit side by side with cutting-edge technology over a circuit that arouses amazement, the exhilaration of discovery, even reverence. The excitement of a live hookup with the crew of the boat thousands of kilometres away melds with areas of unusual experiences that call continually on the visitor's intelligence and senses.

"The Base Camp of the Sedna IV mission is one of a number of projects falling within the framework of the Imaginer-Réaliser Montréal 2025 program, which is supported by a $140M package allocated by the Québec Ministry of Municipal Affairs, Regions and Land Occupancy (MAMROT) with the goal of sustaining Montréal's development," explains Laurent Lessard, Minister of MAMROT, which is a financial partner of the Base Camp. "Our government hopes that this earthbound component of Jean Lemire's mission will help visitors become more conscious and better informed about approaches that have been implemented in aid of biodiversity - in particular thanks to solutions proposed by researchers located here, in Québec - and that their experience of nature will improve as a result."

Space for Life in time with the 1000 days
The opening of the Base Camp also signals the arrival of a complementary summer program taking place right across the Space for Life. Whether in the Botanical Garden, the Insectarium or the Biodôme, offerings abound: special activities, workshops and artistic installations invite visitors to explore the thousand and one facets of biodiversity. Can you recognize, for example, the tastes and smells of plants? What would you say to knowing more about Algonquin legends and ceremonies? Circuits - artistic, little-bit-of-everything, thirsty-for-knowledge - lead you along pathways of discovery, with all your senses on full alert!

Nadine Fortin, Communications Coordinator
514 868-3053/ 514 250-7753
[email protected]

François Ouellet, Communications Assistant
514 872-3232
[email protected]

Julie Boivin
Press Attaché
Office of the Minister of Municipal Affairs,
Regions and Land Occupancy
418 691-2050