HIGHLIGHTS
Purpose and Values
Venice, Barcelona, 7th June 2024 – Today, Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli and UNESCO announce the launch of a new partnership to spread the message of ocean conservation to an international audience at the 37th America's Cup. The UNESCO and SEA BEYOND logos will be displayed on the sails of Luna Rossa during the competition.
This announcement comes on the opening day of the first Ocean Literacy World Conference (Venice, 7th and 8th June), organized by UNESCO and the Prada Group as part of the SEA BEYOND education program, a project established in 2019 to promote ocean education to younger generations.
Max Sirena, Skipper and Team Director of Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli, said: «I am very proud to launch this collaboration. To know that our team and our boat have been chosen to promote ocean literacy and the protection of the marine environment worldwide alongside UNESCO is a great honor and we will strive to be worthy of it».
Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO, said: «Through the Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli boat, it is the protection of the ocean that will participate in the America’s Cup. It’s a wonderful way to strengthen the partnership between UNESCO and the Prada Group on ocean education».
The shared interest of UNESCO and the Prada Group in ocean literacy is at the core of the SEA BEYOND program, which, since 2019, has combined educational activities with support for the dissemination of scientific research and the development of humanitarian projects, both dedicated to the ocean.
Lorenzo Bertelli, Executive Director of the Prada Group and Patron of the Ocean Decade Alliance, commented: «Knowing that Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli has been recognized by UNESCO as ambassador for the protection of the ocean is a source of great pride for us all. As Patron of the Ocean Decade Alliance, I am personally committed to launching this synergy that will help us spread knowledge and share our love for the sea».
The decision to launch this partnership with Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli is part of a long-term project by UNESCO to support and observe the oceans through sailing, which has involved sailors from the Barcelona World Race, the Ocean Race and the Vendée Globe over the years.
LUNA ROSSA PRADA PIRELLI
The Luna Rossa team was born in 1997 when Argentine yacht designer German Frers proposed to entrepreneur Patrizio Bertelli to challenge for the 30th America's Cup to be held in New Zealand in 2000. Since then, the team has taken part in five editions of the America's Cup, winning the Challenger selection regattas twice - the Louis Vuitton Cup in 2000 and the PRADA Cup in 2021 - and competing in the final in 2007 and 2013. In the 36th America's Cup presented by PRADA final match against the Defender Emirates Team New Zealand, Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli achieved the best score ever by an Italian challenger in the history of the America's Cup. Luna Rossa will represent the yacht club Circolo della Vela Sicilia once again in its challenge for the 37th edition of America's Cup to be held in Barcelona, Spain in September and October 2024.
UNESCO
UNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. It contributes to peace and security by leading multilateral cooperation in the fields of education, science, culture, communication and information. As part of this mandate, UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission promotes international cooperation in marine sciences to improve management of the ocean, coasts and marine resources. UNESCO also leads the United Nations Decade on Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030). With 194 member states, UNESCO employs over 2000 people, has offices in 54 countries and coordinates a network of over 2000 protected cultural and natural sites. Its headquarters are in Paris and its current Director-General is Audrey Azoulay.
SEA BEYOND
Conducted in partnership with the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (UNESCO-IOC) to raise awareness of sustainability and ocean preservation, SEA BEYOND is an educational program supported by Prada Group since 2019. The project has contributed to the progress of ocean education on a global scale, through a series of training initiatives dedicated to younger generations. Since its debut, and over the course of three editions, the educational module has shared the principles of ocean literacy with more than 35,000 secondary students around the world. Moreover, the “Kindergarten of the Lagoon” project – outdoor education activities in Venice for children in pre-school – was launched in 2023 with the aim of creating a link between kids and the lagoon ecosystem. While the main focus remains education, in 2023 SEA BEYOND extended its scope beyond education with two new areas of focus: support for scientific research dissemination and humanitarian projects, both dedicated to the ocean. This is thanks to the fact that, as of July 2023, 1% of the proceeds from the Prada Re-Nylon Collection support SEA BEYOND.
The most recent projects undertaken are:
Through SEA BEYOND, Prada Group has also trained its more than 14,000 employees worldwide on ocean literacy principles via VR educational content and the AWorld app, the official platform selected by the United Nations to live more sustainably.