Wind of change

by Jenny Fuchs

July 6, 2019. In Hamburg harbour, more than 150 volunteers, family members and friends are awaiting the cargo sailing ship Avontuur of the German shipping company Timbercoast. Its fourth trading voyage brings home fair trade coffee, cocoa, rum, red wine, sea salt and honey from the Caribbean, Canada and Atlantic islands to Germany. The crew consists of both volunteers and experienced seafarers.  

Today, more than 90 percent of global trade takes place in giant container ships at the expense of the oceans and the global climate. Timbercoast relies on the power of wind and sail. Valuable knowledge from the past of traditional seafaring is being used for modern, eco-friendly commercial shipping. A lot has happened since the pioneers of the Dutch shipping company Fairtransport opened new and sustainable trade routes in 2009. Something has been set in motion on the seas and in people's minds.

In Hamburg, the cargo is unloaded manually like it was 200 years ago. The kegs of rum and sacks of coffee go through many hands and eventually find their way onto cargo bikes and into a nearby warehouse - also emission-free. The documentary shows photographs of a group of idealists and visionaries who spare no effort to support sustainable global transport and to set out for new shores.