Thursday, April 07, 2011

Irish And Canadian Natural Wonders Working Together

With just over seven months left to run in the global New 7 Wonders of Nature contest representatives of the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland and the Bay of Fundy in Canada have met to discuss how both candidates can appeal together to voters in Canada and Ireland. 

Terri McCulloch, Executive Director of Bay of Fundy Tourism and Katherine Webster, Director of the Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience met at the Cliffs of Moher to share ideas and plan how the Cliffs and Fundy can both ensure they end up in the final 7 when the results of the global vote are announced on 11th November 2011.

The Bay of Fundy lies on the Atlantic coast of Canada between the two Canadian provinces of Nova Scotia and New Brunwick.  The 270km ocean bay is famous for having the highest tides in the world with 100 billion tons of seawater flowing in and out of the Bay twice daily.  Tides in the Bay can reach heights of 16 metres and it is home to a complex marine biodiversity, extraordinary geological features and rich culture and history.

The Cliffs of Moher lie on the opposite side of the same mighty Atlantic ocean and form a 200 metre tall buttress along the North Clare coastline on the west coast of Ireland.  Stretching for over 8 kilometres they are home to a wide variety of seabirds and marine wildlife as well as spectacular geological features and formations.  Tourists have been visiting the Cliffs of Moher for hundreds of years to marvel at nature’s work.

Both locations are among the 28 global finalists in the ongoing campaign to find the New 7 Wonders of Nature.  Established by the Swiss based New 7 Wonders Foundation the contest is based on a global online vote that has been continuing since 2008.  Organisers expect that a total of one billion votes will be cast over the course of the campaign.

“The Cliffs of Moher and the Bay of Fundy are both Atlantic coastal landscapes and it makes sense for us to work together on this campaign.” stated Katherine Webster  “Both candidates have a lot of common and there are have been long standing links between the two regions.”

Many of the same species are found in both areas – with Puffins, Razorbills and Kittiwakes to name a few.  A great variety of whales can be found in the Bay of Fundy during their annual migration patterns and some of these species also migrate past the Cliffs of Moher.  Much of the geology of both areas is from the same Upper Carboniferous era.  The cultural links between Ireland and the eastern seaboard of Canada are very strong with many Nova Scotians & New Brunswickers claiming Irish ancestry.

Terri McCulloch has been visiting Ireland on a private trip and included the Cliffs of Moher in her itinerary.  “I couldn’t miss seeing the Cliffs of Moher on our visit to Ireland and it’s a great opportunity to share ideas on the New 7 Wonders campaign given the similarities between both candidates. Seeing as the new7wonders online voting platform requires voting for 7 of the 28 finalists we’re happy to encourage votes for both the Cliffs of Moher and Bay of Fundy..”

Ideas on shared educational programmes through webcasts from the Cliffs of Moher to Canadian schools and the Bay of Fundy to Irish schools are being explored.  Both candidates also plan to link up social networking connections via Facebook, Twitter and Youtube and further opportunities for shared promotional activity are being considered.

Meanwhile on a very windy O’Brien’s Tower at the Cliffs of Moher the representatives each donned the garb of the other’s candidate and carried the Irish and Canadian flags for a recent photo call with Webster in an ice hockey shirt emblazoned with “VoteMyFundy.com” and McCulloch sporting a Puffin T-shirt with the message “Vote for the Cliffs www.cliffsofmoher.ie”

Votes can be cast in the New 7 Wonders of Nature contest for both the Cliffs of Moher and Bay of Fundy on www.new7wonders.com. Each voter gets seven votes.