Grant has his eye on Earthwatch

By Sarah Schwager
A CRANBOURNE man is raising awareness of global environment watcher Earthwatch in the hope of being sponsored to help out.
Grant Gilding, who works for packaging manufacturer Amcor as a printer, also has a passion for protecting native species.
He has been involved in research to protect dolphins in Port Phillip Bay to help them coexist with swimming with the dolphins operators and is the second of three generations of environmentalists.
His mum Avril Gilding and his son Cory, 16, are off to Brazil in July to study carnivores in the area.
Worldwide, Amcor sponsors eight of its workers each year to take part in an Earthwatch project.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Mr Gilding said.
He has his heart set on a project in Scotland observing dolphins and whales off the coast or studying the reef and oncology off the Bahamas.
Other projects include studying lions in Africa and elephants in Namibia.
Mr Gilding said even if he was not chosen to participate in the program, he still wanted to raise awareness about the non-profit organisation.
“They advertise by word of mouth. I think it’s important to recognise the work they do,” he said.
He has been letter dropping the neighbourhood to let people know about the important work Earthwatch does.
The organisation engages people worldwide in scientific field research and education to promote the understanding necessary for a sustainable environment.
Ninety cents from every dollar donated to Earthwatch goes directly to their programs.
The group has achieved many groundbreaking results and locally helped create a new charter so that people are no longer able to physically touch dolphins at Port Phillip Bay.
Mr Gilding thanked Amcor for providing the opportunity to its staff and thanked the staff at Moorabbin for their support.
For more information on Earthwatch visit www.earthwatch.org/australia.