The Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation's Ocean Champions visited the Darwin200 ship

On Friday, April 25th, our Ocean Champions had the exciting opportunity to visit the Darwin 200 ship. Eduardo Villouta, the global coordinator of all Darwin 200 projects, guided the group and shared his knowledge and passion for the initiative.

What is the Darwin200?

The Darwin200 initiative centres around the 2023 – 2025 Global Voyage, a journey that retraces Charles Darwin's historic route aboard the HMS Beagle. The project aims to stop at 50 key ports around the world (each one visited by Darwin himself) as part of a mission to achieve three main goals:

1. Empower young conservationists
2. Inspire a global audience
3. Help solve urgent conservation challenges

To learn more, visit their official website: Darwin200 | Journey of Discovery | Global Voyage Launches 2023

Aboard the Oosterschelde

Eduardo introduced the group to the Oosterschelde, a beautifully restored, 50-metre-long, tall ship that originally served as a cargo vessel in Europe. Built in 1918, it has since been fully restored and modernised, including the addition of an engine. Out of 200 similar vessels, it is the only one still sailing today.

The Oosterschelde is crewed by a dedicated team of seven permanent members. Eduardo gave a fascinating tour of the ship, showing the Ocean Champions everything from the original steering wheel and compass to the intricate sail systems.

The voyage so far

The Darwin200 voyage began in Plymouth, UK, on 15 August 2023. Since then, the ship has completed 32 legs of its global journey. A core part of the mission involves 200 young conservationists - known as Darwin Leaders - who are selected from across the globe. Each leader is placed in a different country to gain insight into unique environmental challenges and local conservation practices.

Our local involvement

During their time in Cape Town, two Darwin Leaders shadowed our teams at the Turtle Conservation Centre and the Marine Wildlife Management Programme. As part of their experience, they produced short documentary films, which were previewed to the public at the Two Oceans Aquarium on 26 April 2025.

Looking ahead

We wish all the Darwin Leaders and everyone involved in the project continued success and safe travels. Their mission to inspire change and protect our planet is one we fully support. Together, we can all play a part in preserving the natural world for future generations.