Swimming lessons promote nature conservation at the Forum

The sea can teach us about sustainability and inclusivity, speakers will explain at the Festival of the New European Bauhaus in the Parc du Cinquantenaire, Brussels, next month. For four days, from 9 to 12 June 2026, the Festival will host a Forum of high level and expert speakers discussing affordable, sustainable and inclusive living as part of a European clean transition. (See here for a list of Forum speakers and here for the full Festival programme). 

Chloé Léger Witvoet and Matthieu Witvoet, the founders of Swim for Change, an initiative raising awareness about ocean protection through swimming, will be among the keynote speakers at the Forum.  

In an interview ahead of the Festival, Matthieu said their "mission" is aligned with the New European Bauhaus emphasis on sustainable living. "[This means] caring for other people and for the life that surrounds us, providing us with oxygen, food, water, and wellness.”    

The husband-and-wife swimming duo say their number one goal now is to get “ocean protection” onto the school curriculum. 

“As open water swimmers, we have witnessed the deterioration of the ocean for over 10 years, from coral bleaching and the rise in plastic waste to the effects of overfishing,” they explained. “The ocean is the reason we breathe and are healthy; its disruption has major economic, ecological, and health consequences.” 

Supported by a team of four and one boat, the pair set themselves the challenge of swimming 3,800 kilometres across the Atlantic between Marseille and Guadeloupe.  So far, the journey has included the first ever relay swim around Guadeloupe. An earlier adventure saw the pair swim 550 km between Marseille and Barcelona in ten days. 

Matthieu explained that now “we want to bring the ocean into the city and, through the eyes of children, make people realise the strategic value of preserving the ocean.” 

The idea of the “child’s eye view” of the ocean and of environmental protection is at the heart of Swim for Change.  

Asked how children respond when the pair of swimmers talk about, for instance, swimming across the Atlantic, Chloé said that “children are especially curious about the animals we encounter. That's why we created the Mission Ocean show for schools, which has so far reached more than 100,000 children all around France. In just three months, the children have become true ambassadors for the ocean, and their curiosity and knowledge are astounding.” 

Chloé and Matthieu are bringing Swim for Change to the Festival of the New European Bauhaus on 12 June, where Forum attendees will hear first-hand how the Witvoets are reconnecting France to underwater life.