Dear friends and family - outside the UAE,

We are currently battling storms as we row 5,000km across the Atlantic Ocean from La Gomera, off the coast of Africa, to Antigua in the Caribbean in a boat a little bigger than a car.

Out on the ocean, we are entirely on our own – carrying all the food, medical equipment, navigational aids and survival gear we might need. The 3 of us rowing in shifts; 2-hours on, 2-hours off, all day and all night for the 50-days we think it will take to cross. Solar panels power the electrics and water for drinking is desalinated by a small device onboard.

Considered one of the greatest adventures on our planet, more people have been into space or climbed Mount Everest than rowed across an ocean.

The row is being completed in partnership with the UN Environment Programmes ‘Clean Seas’ initiative and be used to raise awareness about environmental sustainability, combatting plastic pollution and renewable energy.

Aside from the personal challenge of rowing across an ocean, we want to use the crossing to inspire everyone to push their boundaries and have the courage to follow their dreams.

We also want to engage schoolchildren and university students in discussing our oceans and their importance. Over the last six months, 20,000 people in three different countries have engaged with our #BePartOfIt community programme. We have completed media interviews globally and spoke at the UN's Ocean Conference in Lisbon about the plight of our oceans.

A donation of any amount means that we are a step closer to our goal of reaching Antigua. Any help is greatly appreciated.

You can follow our adventure here:

• Instagram: @ArabianOceanRowingTeam

• Facebook: Arabian Ocean Rowing Team