As a self-described “enthusiologist”, Philippa Ross has been using magnetic energy to help her clients for years.
But if you take into consideration her family history, it’s no surprise – she’s the great, great, great granddaughter of the man who discovered the Magnetic North Pole – Sir James Ross.
Philippa, who relocated from the Isle of Wight to Waipu eight years ago, is now using her family’s history to help Greenpeace protect the Ross Sea, a deep bay in the Southern Ocean that her famous ancestor also discovered.
“It’s his legacy, my family’s legacy,” says Philippa.
Greenpeace is asking their supporters to send an email to the government urging them to support plans for a comprehensive marine reserve in the Ross Sea. You can view that here at www.greenpeace.org.nz/savethelastocean
Greenpeace reached out to Philippa, asking her to sign a petition aimed at protecting the Ross Sea by phasing out all commercial fishing.
“It’s the only complete and balanced ecosystem in the world and people don’t realise the severity of the situation.”
Having been aware of her family’s huge part of history, Philippa didn’t hesitate to be a part of the campaign, as well as attend the premiere of the film The Last Ocean – a documentary about the continual erosion of the fish population in the Ross Sea.
“I had a lump in my throat watching it, that’s for sure,” she says.
One day, she hopes to visit Antarctica herself to see which parts of the continent James discovered.
“Hopefully I’ll get my dad there first, he really wants to go too.”
In the meantime, Philippa will keep working as an enthusiologist – “I don’t like titles, they put people in boxes, so I made it up,” she laughs – at her business Cherish Wellbeing.
“The whole experience of being apart of this campaign has been mind blowing,” she says.
“It’s what James would have wanted.”
The Last Ocean is playing in main centres as part of the NZ Film Festival. The screening schedule and the trailer can be viewed here.
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