Castleacre were pleased to join a select group of UK & global companies supporting explorer Rosie Stancer in the final of three desert expeditions that were designed to highlight climate change and community resilience in extreme desert environments.

The drive behind the Desert Trilogy expeditions was to attract international attention to environments that are now on the brink of habitability. In Part II of the trilogy, Rosie Stancer and her team looked at the challenges faced by communities of the Sinai Peninsula as a result of climate change. In Part I,  Rosie and Pom Oliver crossed one of the world’s newest deserts-the Aral Kum desert – to learn how this emerging man-made desert was impacting local communities.  Since her visit to the Aral Kum in 2021, Kazakhstan has successfully rejuvenated the shrinking Aral Sea and reversed desertification through strategic water management, undoing one of the world’s worst man-made environmental disasters.

Rosie Stancer’s ambitious 2025/26 Anglo-Saudi expedition, following the ancient incense route, has been a remarkable 2,000-kilometre journey on foot, stretching the length of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia – tracing the same route along which traders traditionally brought frankincense and myrrh from Southern Arabia to the Mediterranean.

The expedition team, led by Rosie and her deputy Pom Oliver, with Arabella Dorman, Rose Cecil, Lee Watts, and Andrea Tennant, travelled north-west across two deserts (the Empty Quarter and the Nafud), the rugged Sarawat Mountains, and key cultural centres such as Hima, Mecca, and Medina before concluding in NEOM.

This expedition represented the final of a wider “Desert Trilogy” that was specifically designed to examine how climate change is impacting environments already subject to extreme conditions, from water management to community resilience and the ways in which these societies are adapting to shifting weather patterns.

Collaboration was central to the final Incense Route expedition. Rosie and her team aimed to highlight how Saudi Arabia’s vision for a sustainable future is rooted in rich cultural heritage as well as more recent progress and innovation. This includes the evolving role of women in Saudi society. HH Princess Abeer Al Saud, an international development professional, was an important key expedition advisor. Throughout the expedition, the team engaged with a broad spectrum of Saudi women from a variety of backgrounds and walks of life, from Bedouin in the desert to successful business women. This aspect of the expedition gave a refreshing perspective on the more centralised role of women in Saudi’s evolving society.

By retracing the historic Incense Route, the expedition showcased how the Kingdom is drawing on the past to shape its future. A revival of traditional crafts, achieved through the teaching of heritage skills, has created new commercial opportunities. Alongside this, extensive archaeological excavations and restoration projects are breathing new life into important heritage sites.

The journey provided an opportunity to explore Saudi Arabia’s commitment to sustainability. The expedition team learnt first-hand about large-scale developments, such as the renewable energy projects that are underway to promote innovative models for sustainable living. These initiatives support the nation’s transition from an oil-dependent economy to a more environmentally conscious future.

The expedition highlighted Saudi Arabia’s development of heritage sites, promotion of cultural exchange, adoption of innovative technology, and progress in social policies to tackle climate change and build a sustainable future. As a collaborative Anglo-Saudi initiative, the final expedition of the desert trilogy also aspired to strengthen cultural, social, and commercial ties between the UK and Saudi organisations and build foundations for future cooperation.