Dippy the Dinosaur inspires more than 9,000 pledges to protect the planet
From cycling to work every day to recycling more and using less water, Dippy the Dinosaur’s visit to Norwich Cathedral has inspired more than 9,000 visitors to make pledges to help protect the planet for the future – and some of these pledges will soon be heading to the international climate change conference COP26.
Dippy the Dinosaur has spent the summer at Norwich Cathedral- the eighth and final stop on a nationwide tour.
As part of the attraction- a special Reflection Zone has been created at the Cathedral where people are asked to think about what they can do to help the planet- and pledges have included 'walking to school every day' and 'not drinking bottled water.' Others include:
Put a jumper on instead of whacking up the central heating
Plant vegetables and fruit in our garden to decrease food miles
Stop running water when brushing my teeth
Plant wildflowers to help pollinators like bees
Not be a slave to fast fashion – charity shops all the way
Buy eco-friendly cleaning products
Buy loose vegetables and fruit and use less plastic packaging
Walk, scoot or cycle if you can. Don’t drive if you don’t have to.
Some of these pledge-filled leaves are actually destined for COP26 which is due to be held in Glasgow at the end of October. They will be delivered by the Bishop of Norwich, the Rt Revd Graham Usher, when he joins fellow delegates at the conference.
The Revd Canon Andy Bryant, the Cathedral’s Dippy Project Manager, said that throughout October the Cathedral also planned to countdown to COP26 by highlighting people’s pledges from the Dippy on Tour Reflection Zone on social media, and that he hoped this would encourage even more people to add their own pledges to the trees.
He said: “It has been wonderful to see so many of our Dippy visitors wanting to make a pledge to help our planet. We have had people of all ages having conversations about the changes they can make to address the issues of climate change. The sheer number of leaves on the trees are a real dinosaur roar of hope for our planet - people really do want change and want to play their part in bringing about that change.”
Dippy on Tour: A Natural History Adventure is at Norwich Cathedral until Saturday 30 October 2021.