There's nothing new about people taking on physical challenges to raise awareness for a cause they believe in.

TV news stations and community newspapers across Canada are bombarded each year by earnest individuals trying to change the world, and looking for coverage of their story.

But a Newfoundland man's plan to swim the entire length of the Great Barrie reef, from within a solar-powered shark cage, is one that stands out from the crowd.

Rob Hutchings, a native of Corner Brook, N.L. who now lives in Adelaide, Australia, hopes his 2,300-kilometre quest will raise awareness of global warming and the threat it poses to the reef.

"I'm a regular guy with slightly irregular ideas about how to enjoy myself," the 33-year-old chiropractor told CTV.ca from his home.

The swim, which Hutchings hopes to begin on Nov. 1, 2009, will be akin to making 90 crossings of the English Channel, or swimming from the Canada-U.S. border to Miami, Fla.

"The whole idea is to call attention to the fact the reef is going extinct from CO2 emissions," Hutchings said.

The reef -- and by extension the millions of species that live on it -- is considered especially vulnerable to changes in water temperature, and therefore climate change.

Coral bleaching, and a high proportion of female sea turtle hatchlings, have already been identified as symptoms indicating the reef is sick.

And microbes, fish, marine turtles and seabirds -- creatures that depend on the reef to survive -- are all believed to be at risk of extinction, if climate change isn't halted.

He compared the potential death of the reef to the loss of icebergs off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador.

"It's the best icon I can think of to show 'look, this enormous reef that is the size of Japan, the biggest in the world by far...it will go extinct,'" Hutchings said.

"And if the largest reef in the world can go extinct, the only living organism visible from space, what else will happen that can affect Canada and the rest of the world? It's not an Australian issue, it's a global issue."

Hutchings, who has been competing in triathlons since the age of 13, and represented Canada at the 1997 world championships, came up with the idea while on a hike with his wife.

"I kind of suggested it as a joke, but by the end of the hike we were discussing how to make it happen because it had never been done before," he said.

Since then he has embarked on a rigorous training schedule, swimming during his lunch hours and often logging 20 kilometres in the pool on Saturdays and Sundays.

He is also running, cycling, doing power yoga, pilates and weight training, to prepare his body and mind for three months of eight-hour days in the Pacific Ocean.

With favourable wind and currents, barring injury, Hutchings estimates he can swim about 30 kilometres per day during his sojourn.

But he acknowledges the swim could take up to five months if conditions work against him.

Beyond the physical preparation, Hutchings has also been building a support network, raising sponsors and donors, and simply getting the word out about his cause.

He's also trying to ensure the carbon "splash-print" of the event is as small as possible.

The Pelican, the eco-friendly support boat that will follow Hutchings, is a sail-powered catamaran that burns only a few litres of fuel per day. The Pelican's crew will also perform scientific research along the way, host educational seminars and bring volunteers from remote communities, onboard.

The custom-designed shark cage he will swim inside of -- protection against sharks, crocodiles and stingrays -- will be propelled by a solar-powered electric motor, with a gas powered back-up motor, if necessary.

All of the money raised by the event will go towards installing solar panels on community and sports centres around Australia.

For more information, or to learn about supporting the initiative, join the Facebook group: Great Barrier Reef Swim for Climate Change.