swiMIPIM 2019 – Latest
On the 13th March Elliott Wood and dMFK Architects co-hosted the second annual swiMIPIM event, raising over £9,500 for chosen charity Streets of London.
Being engineers and architects, we feel a responsibility for how the built environment is lived in, and not just its structures and design. For us, engineering a better society goes beyond our projects, ensuring the people who use our cities, streets and buildings are safe and thriving. Streets of London is a UK charity that funds projects
where the money will make a real difference to the lives of homeless people in London.
Last year we started with 5 swimmers, this year 23 people braved the challenging weather conditions (wind – not sun!) to complete the event. Relative beginners to world class athletes swam with a great sense on camaraderie, kept safe by our local partners Agence Seafirst with kayak and boat support. The swim starts and lands in front of the London Stand and was watched by the crowd with an air of supportive incredulity!
This is an event we aim to grow year on year, if you are interested in taking part in swiMIPIM 2020, please email events@elliottwood.co.uk to put your name down. However if donning a wetsuit doesn’t appeal, donations are still being gratefully accepted https://mydonate.bt.com/events/swimipim/484363?currentPage=1&update=new#donationsList.
Quotes
‘Great idea, nice break from the rigours of MIPIM, and great bunch of fellow swimmers’
Atholl Noon – Markide Associates
'Exciting, exhilarating, exhausting, daunting and all in all lot tougher than I had expected… but hey, so is life!
For most of us whom did not know each other beforehand, we supported, encouraged and helped each other along the way and by the end of it, there was a great team feeling between us all and a sense of achievement.
This is was great initiative by DMFK and Elliott Wood and I would like pay thanks to them all for organising this event for their chosen charity.
Well done to all the fellow swimmers…. Until next year…..?’
Diana Hunt Borland – Harrison Hunt
‘Thank you and the team, who made this refreshment possible. It was a perfect start into a busy MIPIM day. For some it was an ultimate unification with the glittering sea, keeping the wetsuits for the next appointments during the day.
Benjamin Ploppa – BNP Paribas
“The freshest start at MIPIM, the ideal preparation before heading into the rigours of the day (although I’m not sure that ‘networking in rubber’ will ever catch on!). A really well organised event, safety first but fun and camaraderie at the heart. Thank you to Elliott Wood for organising what I hope will become a great MIPIM tradition.”
Alex Ferguson – Delta Simons
swiMIPIM was an excellent addition to the conventional ways of hooking up with people in Cannes. A swim was something we’d longed to do for a while, but struggled to justify whilst running between espressos searching for the next project. So it was fantastic to find a way of combining the two activities with architects, structural engineers, M&E engineers and clients alike all taking a dip in the Med.
We were particularly pleased this year to be able to draw attention to Streets of London. Supporting a homeless charity felt particularly important given the recent sharp increase in people sleeping rough all around us in the capital.
With over £6k raised going directly to providing much needed accommodation or food for London’s homeless, the event was testament to the generosity of sponsors and participants.
It was also a very simple illustration of the impact we as individuals can have when work together and our aim is to engineer a better society.
Mark Goodbrand
'The success of SwiMIPIM 2019 has really sealed the event as a permanent fixture - people just loved it, with a fair amount of dropped jaws when the swimmers entered a very choppy and cold med.
Not only is this a great fun event, we are also focussed on raising funds and awareness for Homelessness charity Streets of London. While at MIPIM, we want to gently remind people of the 7,500 people sleeping rough in London each year and to use this event as a way of raising awareness and money.
Last year we were 5 swimmers, this year we were 25. In 2020 we will be aiming for over 50 so if it sounds like your bag, get in touch.'
Julian de Metz – dMFK Architects
Check out more highlights and videos on our Instagram page - https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/17844560140376761/
