2 ESSEC Students Acting for Soft Mobility

One will walk from Paris to Athens, the other is travelling from Paris to Cape Town on a solar-powered bicycle. These sporting challenges also have an environmental and solidarity aim, as Edgar Savigny (E25) and Raphaël Romand-Ferroni (E24) explain. 

ESSEC Alumni: Can you tell us about your projects?  

Edgar Savigny: I’m about to walk from Paris to Athens, starting with the Paris Marathon on 13 April, then along the major hiking trails through France, Switzerland, Italy and Greece, via the Alps. I’ll end by taking the ‘original’ marathon route from Marathon to Athens. That’s 35 kilometres per day! I have two aims. Firstly, to show that the legacy of Paris 2024 endures by linking the first modern Olympic city with the most recent, and secondly, to promote walking.

Raphaël Romand-Ferroni: On 25 January, I set off on an 18,000 km journey by solar-powered bike, from Paris to Cape Town, via the Atlantic Coast. Why Africa? Because with a daily solar potential of 4,000 to 6,400 kWh, I’m sure to get enough energy to power my battery and support motor. Beyond technological and sporting performance, the aim is also to show that solar power can revolutionise mobility in the African continent.

EA: What environmental impact are your targeting with your project?  

E. Savigny: First of all, by opting to walk, I avoid a Paris-Athens flight, i.e. 200 kg of CO2 emissions. Secondly, my hope is that this challenge inspires others to follow suit. Sure, not everyone can set off on such a journey, but walking is still an accessible activity for a very wide number of people. I want to prove, for example, that for a large proportion of our travel, we can decide to walk for 20 minutes instead of driving. This is something I already do on a daily basis. 

R. Romand-Ferroni: My efforts are going to avoid 1,877 kg of CO2 emissions. I’m also going to produce 720 kWh thanks to my solar-powered bike, which was manufactured within a (very) short circuit. I designed it myself, after several discussions with pioneering French manufacturers in the sector and thanks to my dual training as an engineer. In practical terms, the bike is similar to a standard electric model. It’s equipped with a rear-wheel motor, powered by two batteries via a power controller. Its specificity lies in the addition of two solar panels on a trailer, which recharge the batteries in good weather. On a sunny day, I can be fully autonomous in terms of power. 

EA: How do you prepare for such an expedition?  

E. Savigny: In addition to the very time-consuming logistical aspects, you need to find funding, and I’d like to take this opportunity to thank my main company partner, Stanwell Consulting. Then there’s the physical preparation. I’m naturally very sporty. I’m a former tennis player and I now run half and full marathons on a regular basis. I also completed the GR20 hiking trail 18 months ago. I nevertheless follow a specific training programme, which notably includes hikes of several days, with a rucksack, to get used to long-distance effort. 

R. Romand-Ferroni: I read up a great deal on adventurers who accomplished similar feats, such as Virgile Charlot, Tim Dubois and Timothée Gacquière. On the physical side, I play a lot of rugby and I run, so pedalling 100 km a day is not impossible for me. The remaining issue is the duration and weather conditions. The cold temperatures of the French and Spanish mountains are already a challenge, so I’m expecting the worst with the heat of the Sahara and Namibia, and the humidity of the West African tropical forests. Coping with these aspects is above all a question of mental preparation. Not forgetting mechanical and technical mishaps. Before setting off, I had to learn to repair and readjust my equipment, even out in the wild...and I had a breakage on the first day. But I overcame that hurdle.

EA: Your project is also a way to support a good cause...  

E. Savigny: I’m using the communication around my initiative to provide visibility to the Kabubu charity, which works to promote the social and vocational integration of exiles and refugees through sports activities, awareness-raising workshops around migration issues, plus tailor-made training, integration support and guidance towards employment. I’ve also set up an online collection to support them; don’t hesitate to make a donation.  

R. Romand-Ferroni: In a similar vein, I created my own charity, L’Échappée Solaire, to facilitate access to education and encourage the use of renewable energy in Africa. What’s the link between these two causes? Half of the African population, 40% of whom is under the age of 16, does not have access to electricity. In other words, around 260 million children don’t have the light they need to read, write or study once night falls. That’s why I came up with the idea of distributing solar-powered backpacks to the rural schools along my way, such as Bagoué and Worodougou in the north of the Ivory Coast, where there’s a particularly urgent need. I work in partnership with the Ivory Coast company Ecoplast Innov, which produces backpacks from recycled plastics; Green Student, a student organisation at Félix Houphouët-Boigny University, and the French-African company Lagazel, which designs solar lamps with an integrated mini-panel for recharging. The backpacks are financed thanks to an online collection at HelloAsso, and there is still time for people to contribute. You can also buy the t-shirt celebrating the adventure, all the proceeds from which will go towards fund raising. 

EA: How has ESSEC Alumni helped you?  

E. Savigny: ESSEC Alumni supported my search for partners by giving me visibility and initiating contacts. In particular, I spoke to the Switzerland Chapter, the Italy Chapter and the Greece Chapter about organising an event in every country I travel through, at a symbolic venue and with local graduates and students. On that note, it’s always a great pleasure for me to discuss my project with classmates, so don’t hesitate to email me at my @essec.edu address or to react to the posts on my Instagram account. 

Interview by Louis Armengaud Wurmser (E10), Content Manager at ESSEC Alumni 

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