UK’s House of Lords to debate the impact of the Moon landings and The People’s Moon
Members of the House of Lords (the upper house of the UK Parliament) will join the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the Moon landing with a special debate on Monday 15th July. (www.parliament.uk/business/lords)
Lord Andrew Mawson OBE will lead the debate, giving a national focus in the UK for the anniversary of a phenomenal human achievement. The Apollo 11 programme was accomplished through the efforts of more than 400,000 people coming together and achieving an amazing feat: landing two men on the Moon and getting them back alive.
“The debate will explore the impact of the first Moon landing on science and technology and our understanding of ourselves, and more importantly what its implications will be for future generations,” said Lord Mawson. “It’s an opportunity for reflection on what we can learn from this achievement when applied to the culture we create for our own achievements, through simply believing something is possible.
“I received a phone call from the Aldrin Family Foundation in the US and the Hackney artist Helen Marshall, who asked if I would be willing to work with them on The Peoples Moon project. This initiative brings people from across world together to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing on the 20th July 2019, inviting them to upload their photos and stories to be part of a giant photo mosaic. This giant art installation, a picture of the Moon made up of thousands of peoples pictures and ‘giant leaps’, will be in the Kennedy Space Centre as a reminder of our time, 50 years on of what we have learned from these extraordinary events in the history of human kind and the impact they have had on our lives and our economy. Time to take out your phone and send in your picture and of course some words of what a ‘Giant Leap’ might mean for you!”
“The People’s Moon is an opportunity for the British public to join all of the world’s citizens to become a part of a living legacy time capsule,” explained artist Helen Marshall, who creates innovative photo mosaic artworks and installations at the leading edge of design and technology. She is Founder of The People’s Picture and has pioneered the concept of marking historical anniversaries, human achievement and communities in giant archive images recreated in a mosaic of pictures of people from all walks of life from her East London studio.
“Everyone on Earth has a dream. The idea behind The People’s Moon is to come together to inspire the world to dream the impossible again,” said Marshall. “We want to encourage people from around the world to be a part of our grand endeavour to create a giant art installation revealing an iconic image of the Apollo 11 Moon landing, made up of thousands of photos submitted by the public,” added Marshall.
Other speakers in the debate include Lord Giddens, Lord Henley and Lord Rees, the Astronomer Royal.
Lord Mawson, a social entrepreneur, is also using the anniversary to help inspire young people to take up careers in science, through his work with the St Paul’s Way Trust Science Summer School, hosted by Professor Brian Cox. On July 4, St Paul’s Way Trust School involved 400 young people and experts from across the sciences in The People’s Moon workshops as part of the Apollo 50 celebrations worldwide. Together they made their very own ‘Apollo 50th’ photo mosaic using historic photos and selfies captured on the day. This will be exhibited on a giant touchscreen and on the website. St Paul’s Way Trust Science Summer School is generously supported by AXA XL and Ibstock PLC.
Alongside this, Lord Mawson is co-leading a charity campaign called ‘Over the Moon’ to fund inspirational events encouraging children and young people to get involved in science, to raise attainment and create employment opportunities for their future – https://wellnorthenterprises.co.uk/lift-off-for-over-the-moon-charity-challenge/
You can watch the debate, which will be streamed on the Parliament website after 2.30pm on Monday 15th July, at https://www.parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/aa4db6ee-2c9e-4ab3-93d5-fd48c3a872b5
The official People’s Moon website is: www.thepeoplesmoon.com
Social Media tags: #thepeoplesmoon #mygiantleap #apollo50
Twitter: @PeoplesPicture @ThePeoplesMoon
Instagram: @ThePeoplesPicture
Facebook: @ThePeoplesMoon @ThePeoplesPicture
Press content can be downloaded here: www.thepeoplesmoon.com/news
Latest Promo Video: www.thepeoplesmoon.com/news