On 9th April 2011, Brunel the Bear, mascot for the ICE set off from ICE Headquarters in Westminster, London on a sponsored tour of the United Kingdom.
On his ‘Big Journey’ Brunel visited civil engineering structures such as bridges, buildings and railways that were all planned, designed and constructed by Civil Engineers. Each stage of the ‘Big Journey’ was led by teams of civil engineers from different regions who were required to travel by sustainable means.
Named after the inspiring Victorian Civil Engineer, Brunel the Bear is a mascot for ICE members who support and promote charities that use engineering knowledge and skills to make life better for people and communities around the world.
Participants on each stage of the Big Journey raised funds for an engineering charity. In Northern Ireland, the G&S Committee chose to support Habitat for Humanity NI and WaterAid.
Brunel the Bear’s fundraising campaign in Northern Ireland proved to be a massive success with events including a launch night at the Lyric Theatre, a tour around civil engineering offices in the Nissan ‘Leaf’ Electric Car, a cycle to Strangford, Brunel the Bear brunches/coffee mornings, tours around Belfast, an afternoon in W5 and a trip to the Giant’s Causeway.
The ICE NI G&S committee raised £4541.20 which was a fantastic achievement against the £4000 target. This was divided equally between the two chosen charities. The fundraising event is a massive undertaking for the G&S committee, who were thankful of the wonderful the support of the Civil Engineering companies throughout Northern Ireland.