By Rob Adams
Sentinel Reporter
A Swiss couple gave up their everyday life to try to make a better planet by living on a boat sixteen years ago by living on a boat and conducting research to find solutions for conservation.
That expedition — of over sixteen years — has led them to Greenwich.
Dario Schwoerer, a Swiss mountain guide and climatologist, hosted a presentation at YMCA of Greenwich on February 8. Dario’s wife Sabine, and their five children assisted in the presentation with video, photos, and stories of their travels around the globe.
“They’re a spectacular family,” said Bob DeAngelo, Chief Executive Office of Greenwich YMCA. “They’re really super ambassadors in several respects.”
DeAngelo said the Schwoerer family was invited to be members of the YMCA for the duration of their visit to Greenwich, and they quickly made themselves comfortable.
“The kids jumped in the pool to play water polo and dive,” he said.
While pool time was certainly fun, the Schwoerer’s had a more important message to pass along.
“They can really talk about how important our planet is, DeAngelo said. “They’ve met so many people around the world.”
Dario Schwoerer spoke of the need to protect the planet, in acts so simple as picking up trash.
“They challenged every to pick up trash and protect the planet,” DeAngelo said. “You can slim down and be really happy.”
DeAngelo said the crowd on hand at the YMCA to hear the Schwoerer’s was a mix of ages, with many families in attendance as well. He felt it was people that love the planet and are adventurous, which is a big part of the story of the Schwoerer family.
Dario and Sabine met in Switzerland, and found that they had desire to protect the environment in common. They started with an aluminum boat and outfitted it over time.
“The boat didn’t show up fully equipped on day one,” DeAngelo said.
In a 2015 interview with the Orange County Register, Dario Schwoerer said they lived very simply.
“The boat was an evolution,” he told the paper. “For the first Atlantic crossing, we only had a hand-held GPS, nothing else. We didn’t have a fridge for the first six years.”
Since setting sail in 2000, Dario and Sabine have not only grown in terms of their boat, but in terms
of a brood as well. They have five children, ages one to 11, and the family as a whole has only known their boat as their home.
That, of course, can draw criticism, but DeAngelo said the kids are well-adjusted.
“The kids were confident without being cocky,” he said. “The played musical instruments and performed for us.”
The journey has carried them to over 100 countries and more than 100,000 nautical miles as part of the TOPtoTOP Global Climate Expedition. The purpose of the which is to document and champion environmental concerns of climate warming, pollution, and use of renewable energy sources.
There have been rough times, such as bad weather and rough seas, along with issues that kept them off the water for three years, but they’ve soldiered on, living off the land the kindness of strangers.
“Improvise is a word they use a lot,” DeAngelo said. “Dario said in the they’re extremely proud of how in all of the countries they went to, there was never a spot where they didn’t welcomed or safe.”
One message that DeAngelo passed along was that the Schwoerer’s believe one does not need a lot of “stuff” to be happy.
“Their house is their boat. It’s as simple as that.”
The Schwoerer’s want to spread their mission to schools around the world.
“The thing that was impressive to me — I think they’ll be lifelong friends – is that I think they truly care about the planet,” DeAngelo said.
For the moment, the family is without their boat, as Dario Schwoerer went back to Switzerland to work in his position as mountain guide and climatologist. To that end, the family has made their way to the top of some of the world’s highest peaks.
“He (Dario) makes his living taking people into the Alps,” DeAngelo said.
So for now, their trusty boat is in Greenwich, before the Schwoerer’s return in Greenwich in the spring.
Another visit to the YMCA will likely be in order in late March or early April.
