Bancroft and Arnesen during their 2001 cross-Antarctic expedition/credit: YourExpedition.com
When explorers Ann Bancroft and Liv Arnesen teamed up in 2000, they caught the attention of millions of kids around the world as they each pulled a 250-pound sled more than 1,700 miles through Antarctica, becoming the first women to sail and ski across the icy continent.
The journey took more than three months, and the explorers offered Web updates and related curriculum for teachers and students.
Throughout their many expeditions -- alone and together -- both women have made efforts to engage and educate kids, to inspire girls and women to reach for their dreams, and to draw attention to environmental issues.
In their next expedition, Bancroft and Arnesen will be focusing on water. Setting off in November 2012, they’ll lead a team of six women on an 800-mile, 80-day-long trek to the South Pole. Each woman on the team will come from a different continent and will represent her continent’s main water woes.
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They hope to broadcast the adventure to 2 million classrooms and 50 million kids.
Why water? The expedition website explains:
There is no substitute for fresh water. It is more crucial for human survival than any source of fuel.But fresh water is becoming scarce. One in eight people lack access to clean water and more than 3 million die each year from water-related health problems. Battles for water are creating tensions between people, interests groups and regions. In some cases, they are causing armed conflicts. Left untouched, these challenges will only worsen. Within just 15 years from now, nearly 2 billion people will live in areas of severe water scarcity. The consequences are clear.
We can solve the water crisis by bringing it to the forefront of the global agenda. This means raising awareness on water access issues, promoting resource efficiency and cooperation on the problems of pollution and climate change.
Tags: Snow Sports
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