Louis Palmer is touring the world in a solar powered car, but the Swiss teacher's journey to Dunedin today will be made by more conventional means. 
Mr Palmer, who is about halfway through a 50,000km, fivecontinent, 15-month world trip, has put his car on a boat bound for Australia and is travelling from Christchurch to Dunedin in a fossil-fuelled vehicle.
Not that it bothers Prof Thomas Bley, head of the University of Otago's design school, who never expected the world traveller would be able to make a quick detour to Dunedin.
‘‘I emailed an invitation to him about a month ago, but I am absolutely surprised he is coming. New Zealand wasn't in his itinerary at all, let alone Dunedin,'' Prof Bley said yesterday.
Mr Palmer will give an illustrated presentation at 5.30pm today in the university's Centre for Innovation, St David St. Despite the short notice, Prof Bley said he expected a sizeable audience.
‘‘The idea of ‘green' vehicles and solar-powered vehicles . . . is of interest to quite a few people. Also, we have been told Mr Palmer is a great character with a lot of stories to tell.''
Mr Palmer began his world tour in July, driving a twoseater car powered by a large solar panel towed on a trailer. He was planning to visit Australia but not New Zealand, until he met
Greenpeace New Zealand members at the United Nations climate change conference in Bali and was offered a passage to Whangarei for himself and his car aboard the
Rainbow Warrior Two.
The car was loaded on to a freighter in Christchurch yesterday for its four-day voyage to Sydney. Prof Bley said Mr Palmer decided he had time to visit Dunedin before flying to Sydney.
He will also visit Queenstown but will not give a public lecture there.
Prof Bley said he hoped there would be time to show Mr Palmer initial research carried out by a group from the univers ity and Otago Polytechnic which is developing an urban car fuelled by alternative means.
The project was still in its early stages. Cars powered by solar energy, air power and a Fisher and Paykel dishwasher motor were being tested. - Allison Rudd
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