In English, "I care" refers to a person showing concern for others. Elsewhere, it refers to an attempt to escape.
Both definitions could be fitting to describe a trip being taken by Marc Muller, a 28-year-old native of Lausanne, Switzerland.
He is going around the world to conduct research about alternative forms of energy through his "ICARE Project" and said the project represents his desire to escape from the oil system.
His 18-month journey started in May and brought him to Tiffin over the weekend. He is traveling in a car that uses solar and wind energy for power.
The 24-foot-long vehicle has a windmill and 33 solar panels, creates its own energy from the sun and stores the energy in lithium batteries. Muller said it has a small electric engine and a generator that uses biofuels in case of emergencies. It can travel 80 miles with its stored energy, and its maximum speed is 60 mph.
Goals of the global project are to visit alternative energy projects around the world and show what has happened in the world in relation to energy and new forms of it.
Muller said he is not in the U.S. to sell a product or do marketing. Also, he is not making the trip to increase awareness. Instead, he is in the country to listen to people and create articles and reports.
He started his voyage in Switzerland in May and traveled to Italy, Tunisia and Morocco before he had his car shipped to New York. He said it took 50 days to have his car imported, and he arrived about a month ago.
Muller spent several days in Ohio and arrived in Tiffin Saturday night. When he is between cities, he camps or stays in hotels.
While in Tiffin, he charged his batteries and camped in a local field.
"It was so cold," he said.
Muller stopped in Tiffin at Paulette's, 238 S. Sandusky St., for a meal of eggs, sausage and bacon Sunday afternoon.
He planned to leave that night to head to a meeting with Ford engineers in Detroit Wednesday. He said from there, he will go to the University of Michigan because it has a solar car. Then, he is to head to St. Louis and Dallas before finishing his time in the United States in California. His trip is to continue to South America, India and possibly Russia.
Muller said he has to take the shortest path possible with his vehicle and tries to avoid cities and places where there are a lot of people. He said he spends four to five a hours a day traveling, and the rest of his time is spent talking to people.
"I take my time (traveling)," he said.
Muller, who created the car, said it took 14 months from the time the idea was born to the start of the trip in May. There are two engineers in the organization, and about 60 people spent thousands of hours building the vehicle.
The car, Muller said, has three functions. It must drive him around the world, offer him a place and the power to produce articles and reports, and serve as his house for 18 months. The car offers Muller space for equipment needed for cooking and camping.
"It's uncomfortable," he said.
As Muller travels, he is interviewing people about sustainability.
In Morocco, people are involved and active in energy and alternative energy, while in Tunisia, the involvement is slightly less, he said. The United States, he said, is 20 years behind Europe.
He attributes it to three reasons. The first, he said, is Americans have a strong belief in independence and liberty. Second, the U.S. is large. Other countries, such as France, Germany and Switzerland, are developed, and generally, citizens know the environment is fragile because of the lack of space for development, he said.
"It's so big," Muller said of the U.S.
Third, he said, is that the administration of former President George W. Bush didn't sign the Kyoto Protocol, which deals with decreasing carbon dioxide emissions.
Muller said he believes the world needs to hasten the transition to alternative energy. A push for alternative energy would mean jobs would stay in the U.S., he said.
