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On March 14th 2015 the conservation movement Freedom will undertake a challenge to set a new world record by flying an Eagle, equipped with a camera, from the top of the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Using cutting edge technology - one of the world’s smallest action cameras, a Sony ActionCam Mini, the flight will record an extraordinary bird’s eye perspective of the landscape, capturing unique footage that will be broadcasted to the world. If achieved, the White-Tailed Eagle’s flight from the top of Burj Khalifa, which stands at a height of 829.8 metres, 2722 feet, will represent a world first and set a new world record as the highest recorded bird flight from a man-made structure. The charity Freedom works in collaboration with a leading conservation initiative, SOS - Save our Species and United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) to raise awareness of the plight of endangered animals, many of which are recorded on the IUCN Red List of Endangered species. The Eagle attempting the flight, named Darshan, is an example of a threatened species, which has been successfully rehabilitated through global conservation programmes, and will act as an ambassador for endangered animals all over the world. The eagle, once on the Red List of endangered species, has been saved from extinction. Birds of prey are rooted in the heritage of culture of the United Arab Emirates - the Golden Falcon is the nation symbol of the United Arab Emirates, and Dubai firmly supports international effort in protection of threatened species such as Freedom Conservation. Despite its rapid development as a major regional business centre, Dubai has long recognised its responsibility towards preserving its environment, mainly its unique desert habitat. Over the past three decades, many natural reserves, along with several laws, have been established to protect threatened animals. The United Arab Emirates, in general, has always been active in conservation of endangered animals like creating over 15 natural reserves around the country and planning a number of rehabilitation programmes. Freedom’s Eagles have flown from iconic landmarks across Europe, including the Eiffel Tower in Paris (301 m) and St. Paul's Cathedral in London, recording unique footage that have attracted record audiences to its conservation efforts. Images recorded by Freedom’s Eagle were the most viewed online animal images of 2013/14. Freedom’s Eagles are trained by world-renowned falconer Jaques-Oliver Travers, who has pioneered new techniques to increase the reintroduction rate of endangered eagles to the wild, that include paragliding, skiing and kayaking to teach vital survival skills. He has since been dubbed ‘The man who teaches Eagles to fly’.
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