This blog post was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

Dominic Meiklejohn

Part of UK in USA [New York]

28th May 2010 New York, USA

The Poles North and South

Biggest news from the Consulate this week is the opening of the American Museum of Natural History’s exhibit on the Anatarctic expeditions of Scott and Amundsen to the South Pole.

 
Why is the Consulate involved?  Leaving aside the compelling history of the "race to the Pole", it’s a great way for us to get across messages on climate change.  The Antarctic is the site of some of the most important climate research, as well as being a barometer or climate change itself.  The UK believes that climate change  is one of the gravest threats we face, and that urgent action at home and abroad is required.  We need to use a wide range of levers to cut carbon emissions, decarbonise the economy and support the creation of new green jobs and technologies. Prime Minister Cameron has said he wants this Government to be the greenest ever – both in terms of action at home and internationally.
 
Important as the underlying scientific messages are, the most affecting parts of the exhibit are those to do with the day-to-day realities of exploring the Antarctic nearly a century ago: the huts, the books, the food and the clothes.  If you’re in New York, the exhibit, in one of New York’s finest museums, is well worth a visit. 
 
Strange as it is to write about Polar exploration in 90 degree heat, I wanted to end on a contemporary expedition.  Visit the Walking with the Wounded website and you’ll find a message from HRH Prince Harry about a remarkable undertaking, an unsupported walk to the North Pole by a team including British veterans who have lost limbs on active service.  British and American troops continue to serve together in Afghanistan and we hope to build links between the organisations which help veterans in both countries- a theme I’ll come back to in the next couple of weeks.

About Dominic Meiklejohn

I was born in Woking, outside London, in 1967 and attended Merton College, Oxford University, graduating in Politics, Philosophy and Economics. After university, I worked for HM Customs and Excise…

I was born in Woking, outside London, in 1967 and attended Merton College, Oxford University, graduating in Politics, Philosophy and Economics.

After university, I worked for HM Customs and Excise before joining the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1990. After working for the European Community Department, I learned Polish and began a posting at the British Embassy Warsaw, where I headed the British Know How Fund for Poland (1993-96). In 1997, I worked for the OSCE Mission in Albania, before heading up the India team in the South Asian Department of the FCO. In 2000, I was posted as First Secretary to the British Embassy Warsaw, with a particular focus on European Union issues in the run-up to Poland’s accession to the EU. In 2003, I returned to the UK as Deputy Head of the Environment Policy Department. From 2004-2005, I led the FCO’s Knowledge Management Programme. During this period, I led two deployments of the FCO’s Consular Rapid Deployment Team– to Sri Lanka, after the tsunami in 2004 and to Pakistan, after the earthquake in 2005. From 2006-2007, I served as Deputy Consul-General, Basra, Iraq. From June 2007 I worked with the FCO’s Change Unit.

I took up my current appointment on 22 January 2008. My wife Joanne and I are the proud parents of Olivia. Outside of the office, I cycle around Manhattan, play soccer (football) and, when parenting duties allow, enjoy the cultural riches offered by New York. I try hard to understand baseball.

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