Documentary film about alumnus Andreas FathSwimming for the environment: 2,700 km in the Danube
Alumnus Andreas Fath, chemistry professor and passionate long-distance swimmer, repeatedly attracts attention with spectacular swimming campaigns in the service of water protection.
His latest transnational project "cleandanube", in which he swam around 2,700 kilometres down the Danube to draw attention to microplastic pollution, has resulted in a documentary film that will also be shown in Heidelberg in autumn.
The Danube washes more than four tonnes of plastic into the Black Sea every day – that's more plastic particles than fish larvae. Andreas Fath retraced their path to a certain extent when he swam the entire swimmable stretch of the river from its source in the Black Forest to its mouth in the Black Sea for two months in spring 2022, travelling through ten countries in the process. The journey included a mobile laboratory to regularly analyse water samples, an interactive knowledge workshop and information materials, as well as events such as swimming and paddling activities and lectures in collaboration with local organisations at numerous stops along the way.
HAI will be showing the documentary film about the project exclusively in cooperation with Heidelberg's Gloria cinema on Wednesday, 23 October 2024. The screening will be followed by a discussion with Andreas Fath and Max Jungmann, Managing Director of the Heidelberg Center for the Environment (HCE) at Heidelberg University, in which both will talk about the background and experiences of the campaign. In autumn 2018, the documentary film "Two Rivers – One Mission" was shown as part of the HCE colloquium "Heidelberg Bridge", which focused on Andreas Fath's first two swimming campaigns: in 2014 he swam the entire length of the Rhine and in 2017 the Tennessee River in the USA to draw attention to water protection. Andreas Fath, who studied chemistry at the University of Heidelberg from 1986 and received his doctorate from Ruperto Carola, is a professor of chemistry at Furtwangen University, where he works primarily on water analyses and wastewater technology.
The screening of the documentary film on the ‘cleandanube’ project is part of our well-known ‘HAIlights’ event series, in which we have been providing exciting insights into the lives and work of our members, such as Andreas Fath, and other people associated with the university for more than 10 years. We have already been able to present impressive projects, inspiring activities, unusual hobbies and much more to HAI members in our HAIlights. A look behind the scenes of our university, the joint exploration of new or seemingly familiar topics, facilities and places in Heidelberg are also part of the HAIlight programme.
Are you also interested in experiencing culture, city history, university life, facts and figures, specialised or entertaining topics together with other HAI members? Then simply treat yourself to this or an upcoming excursion into new topics ‘after work’ – organised by Heidelberg Alumni International.
If you are interested in the film screening in October, you can send us a message now. We will then put you on the invitation list and send you the official invitation in due course. Please send an e-mail to hailight@alumni.uni-heidelberg.de