Archive for the ‘Leadership’ Category
06/01/2012
Graeme Dingle, New Zealand mountaineer does good
Graeme Dingle is fast becoming one of my role models, and I’ve never met the man. I intend to though. Maybe if I’m fortunate, we may collaborate on a co-venture project helping to connect people to the mountains, who knows. The more I learn about Mr. Dingle, the more I like and respect who he is, what he stands for, and what he’s accomplished in outdoor education.
Here’s an article from the Directions Magazine
By Laura Crooks
Inspiring New Zealand teenagers to reach their potential was a plan born during a trip to the Arctic by adventurer Graeme Dingle and partner Jo-anne
Wilkinson in the early ’90s.
Why did you think New Zealand needed a specific programme to help the country’s youth?
I set up the Sir Edmund Hillary Outdoor Pursuits Centre (OPC) in 1972 and I thought that was my contribution to New Zealand in terms of young people. But it was really just the start, because I learnt so much about youth development through it and I got to thinking about the business of dealing with harder kids than those we met at OPC. I felt that for kids who had low confidence and low self-esteem, a one week experience in the wilderness wasn’t enough – it needed to be a continuum of things that really built on what had been learnt in that first period. I then set out to do the first continuous circumnavigation of the Arctic and in the Arctic you get a lot of very unusual communities – they’re very isolated and they live in such extraordinary circumstances where it’s light half the year, then continuously dark the other half of the year. They have very high rates of suicide, the kids don’t have too much to look forward to, and that started us thinking. But it didn’t really hit home until we got back to New Zealand – that here we lived in paradise and yet we had one of the highest rates of youth suicide, youth incarceration, dropouts from school unplanned teenage pregnancy – the works. The main catalyst was going to see Once Were Warriors – that was the thing that finally made us say: “Let’s do something about this”. So, Jo-anne and I invented Project K. basically. The Project K Trust grew into the Foundation for Youth Development (FYD) with nearly 20,000 young people in programmes each year. The FYD runs programmes for kids aged 5 – 18, and Project K is one of these. (more…)
Tags:Artic, Experiential Education, Graeme Dingle, Jo-anne Wilkinson, Mountain Spirit, Outdoor Pursuits Centre, Outward Bound, Project K, Sir Edmund Hillary, teenage suicide, Youth at Risk
Posted in Experiential Education, Inspirational People, Leadership, Mountain People, New Zealand, Service | Leave a Comment »
30/11/2011
Successful Gold Mining Protestor
Copper and gold mine project in Peru suspended in face of protests
LIMA, PERU, AND BOGOTA, COLOMBIA — Faced with increasingly violent local opposition, the developers of the giant Conga gold and copper mine in northern Peru suspended the project late Tuesday night, saying they were bowing to a demand from the government of President Ollanta Humala.
Much of the northern district of Cajamarca has been paralyzed the last six days by general strikes called by Conga opponents that closed businesses and schools. Residents were concerned that the massive gold and copper mine could pollute the region’s water supply, a charge the mine’s operators, led by Colorado-based Newmont Mining, strenuously denied.
The situation became more violent Tuesday, as protesters burned an office at the site of the proposed mine and clashes between protesters and police in the area left 17 injured and two arrested. Thousands of demonstrators massed in the central square of Cajamarca, the region’s largest city.
As proposed, Conga would be a giant open pit gold mine similar to the Yanacocha mine 20 miles to the north, which is also operated by Newmont. But it would include a copper mine and smelter.
Newmont has proposed investing $4 billion in the new project, which could produce between 580,000 and 680,000 ounces of gold a year. The government had projected it would receive royalties and taxes totaling $800 million annually once the mine was fully operational after 2014, income the left-leaning Humala government was counting on to finance social and infrastructure project. Read the rest of this story..
Tags:Cajamarca, Environment, Mountain Spirit, President Ollanta Humala. Copper and gold mines, protect the environment, protests, protests successful, success, Suspend mining due to protests
Posted in Conservation, Environment, Fair Trade, Health, Indigenous Wisdom, Inspirational People, Leadership, Peru, Service, South America, Sustainable Living/Communities | Leave a Comment »
29/09/2011
From: Snatam Kaur’s Blog
Snatam Kaur on Yoga
Life has such an ebb and flow. One minute you can be riding the wave, the next minute you are under the wave. One minute you can feel safe and secure in your life, and the next minute you can feel totally threatened by something.
I find that when I meditate it helps me to separate myself from the sting of something to realize that it is all coming from God’s Divine Will. Usually the most emotionally charged things aren’t really that big of a deal anyway. (more…)
Tags:Blog, Chi, Kundalini Yoga, Mountain Spirit, Snatam Kaur, Ten Bodies Yoga Set, Yogi Bhajan
Posted in Blogs, Health, Holistic Living, Inner Work, Inspirational People, Leadership, Music, Service, Spiritual, Sustainable Living/Communities | 3 Comments »
09/09/2011
Humala at Bagua Convention
Humala Signs Prior Consultation Law During Jungle Ceremony
by Andean Air Mail & PERUVIAN TIMES
President Ollanta Humala enacted the prior consultation law on Tuesday during a ceremony in the north jungle town of Bagua.
The bill was unanimously approved by Congress and has been strongly supported by international and national rights organizations. It is intended to ensure that Peru’s local laws are in compliance with the International Labour Organization’s Convention 169.
The convention requires the State to consult indigenous people prior to adopting administrative and legislative measures, as well as investment projects and development plans, that could affect their communities.
“This law has the objective of [promoting] development for native peoples, of the Amazonian communities and the entire region,” Humala said. “That is the spirit of this law.”
“Today we have taken an important step in the construction of a nation, the construction of a republic,” Humala added.
Ex-President Alan Garcia rejected a similar prior consultation bill during his recent term, expressing worries that the legislation would provide veto powers to indigenous communities that could deter mining and energy projects.
Humala and members of his Gana Peru party have said the new law will help address the more than 200 social conflicts in Peru that have impacted projects in the extractive industries.
The president’s signing of the law in Bagua was a clear sign Read the rest of this post…
Tags:Amazon, Congress, Humala, indigenous rights, Mountain Spirit Instittue, Peru, Sustainable Communities
Posted in Indigenous Wisdom, Inspirational People, Leadership, Peru, South America, Sustainable Living/Communities | 1 Comment »
08/09/2011
Teddy Roosevelt on "Staying in the Arena"
What does it mean to be a good citizen these days?
Teddy Roosevelt had some definite ideas on the subject. Below is an excerpt from his speech Citizenship in a Republic.
And from where does the term Tenacity of Pursuit come?
Kurt Hahn, the founder of Outward Bound considered “the tenacity of pursuit” to be one of his key outcomes of a good education.
Kurt Hahn
Says Hahn, “I regard it as the foremost task of education to insure the survival of these qualities: an enterprising curiosity, an undefeatable spirit, tenacity in pursuit, readiness for sensible self denial, and above all, compassion.”
TR’s life shows us that hard work, tenacity, and a desire to do the right thing can get you far in life. In the most memorable section of his “Citizenship in a Republic” speech, Roosevelt captured his life philosophy in just a few sentences. “The Man in the Arena” tells us that the man we should praise is the man who’s out there fighting the big battles, even if those battles end in defeat. In our day, when cynicism and aloof detachment are considered hip and cool, TR reminds us that glory and honor come to those “who spend themselves in a worthy cause.”
The Man in the Arena
It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.
Tags:Citizen in a Republic, Community, Kurt Hahn, Mountain Spirit, Service, Tenacity of Pursuit, The Man in the Arena, Theodore Roosevelt
Posted in Experiential Education, Inspirational People, Leadership, Quotes, Service | Leave a Comment »
07/09/2011
Louv's second book
“The future will belong to the nature-smart—those individuals, families, businesses, and political leaders who develop a deeper understanding of the transformative power of the natural world and who balance the virtual with the real. The more high-tech we become, the more nature we need.”
—Richard Louv
The immediacy of Richard Louv’s message in Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder galvanized an international movement to reconnect children with nature. We’ve touched base about his first book here on MSI’s blog.
Now, in The Nature Principle, Louv reaches even further with a powerful call to action for the rest of us.
Our society, says Louv, has developed such an outsized faith in technology that we have yet to fully realize or even adequately study how human capacities are enhanced through the power of nature. Supported by groundbreaking research, anecdotal evidence, and compelling personal stories, Louv shows us how tapping into the restorative powers of the natural world can boost mental acuity and creativity; promote health and wellness; build smarter and more sustainable businesses, communities, and economies; and ultimately strengthen human bonds. As he says in his introduction, The Nature Principle is “about the power of living in nature—not with it, but in it. We are entering the most creative period in history. The twenty-first century will be the century of human restoration in the natural world.”
Richard Louv makes a convincing case that through a nature-balanced existence—driven by sound economic, social, and environmental solutions—the human race can and will thrive. This timely, inspiring, and important work will give readers renewed hope while challenging them to rethink the way we live.
Editor’s note: I saw Mr. Louv speak in Park City about three years ago. He was a down-to-earth, (one would hope with a subject such as he covers) and passionate speaker. If you get a chance, go hear him speak, you can see his schedule on his website’s Appearances Page and if you can hear him speak, do so. Better yet, read his three books.
We’re honored to see that Mr. Louv has started to follow Mountain Spirit Institute‘s Twitter account. We’ve been at it since 1998, and started this blog in 2008 with 64,000 views since. We feel a kindred spirit with Louv, with our mission “to facilitate one’s connection to the natural environment, to each other and a deeper connection to one’s self”. Mr. Louv has had great success in spreading the word about getting kids of all ages outside, and we’re effectively joining him in that cause.
Tags:Last Child in the Woods, Mountain Spirit, Nature Deficit disorder, Richard Louv, The Nature Principle, Twitter
Posted in Blogs, Books, Experiential Education, Health, Holistic Living, Leadership, MSI News, Power of Place | Leave a Comment »
10/08/2011
Mtn Guide & Writer, Ken Wyle
When the Mountain Bites Back, And What Are the Lessons To Be Learned
Mountain guide, writer and longtime friend from Outward Bound days, Ken Wyle is writing a book about his accounts the day he was caught in the La Traviata avalanche in Canada that killed seven people. I had heard through the grapevine that Ken had been caught in a big one, and I felt a wrench in my gut. Mountaineering accidents, in which friends are involved affect me more than most things in life. Alan Bard was one of my ski-guiding mentors, and he goes and dies on the Grand Teton. One’s teacher isn’t supposed to do that. There was a cloud over me for a time after I had heard the news, and I did’t feel comfortable on the rock for a time too. There have been other friends too that are no longer with us, and I ask myself the same questions that we all do about events like this, and the meaning of it all.
Reading a few of Ken’s Facebook posts and on his blog, give me the impression, he too has been asking some questions. And while the answers are secondary, the questions he’s asking have weight, at least from my humble perspective. While compassion is one of outcomes of teaching an Outward Bound course, it looks like Ken is living it.
I caught up with Ken on Facebook last week, and he suggested I check out his blog The Energies of Adventure. Some glimpses of what will most likely be included his book can be seen on his blog.
Here’s the lead-in to his first post on that blog:
Seven Cairns
Chapter 1, “Lost in the Fog”
January 20th 2003, deep in the Selkirk mountains of Canada’s British Columbia. It is overcast and white out. Snow flakes are lightly falling from the clouds. The air is moving softly out of the southeast. Two groups of backcountry ski tourers collect at the frozen, snow covered, Tumbledown Lake for our first tea break of the day. My smaller group of read the rest of this story..
Tags:Alan Bard, Grand Teton, Ken Wyle, La Traviata avalanche, Lost in the Fog, Mountain Spirit, mountaineering accidents, Outward Bound, Randy Richards, Selkirk Mountains
Posted in Books, Climb/Ski/Mntneering, Experiential Education, Holistic Living, Inner Work, Inspirational People, Leadership, Mountain People, Spiritual | 3 Comments »
08/08/2011
Peru's new President Humala
A Topsy Turvy World:
The more I read, the more it’s looking like the world is indeed being turned upside down. The southern hemisphere is looking better all the time. In addition to the article below, also check out : Chinese investments in Peru to reach $10 billion in five years and Fitch Ratings sees Peru’s economy growing over 6 percent in 2011
South America Unites Against “Irresponsible Debtors” in the North
By: Mario Osava, Inter Press Service
North American Funny Money
Default, insolvency, fiscal irresponsibility, debt crisis and similar terms form part of the vocabulary used to describe countries in the developing South in the 1980s and 1990s. A decade later, the world seems to have turned upside down.
The “irresponsible debtors” are now in the industrialized North, and the countries of South America, victims of the “lost decade” of the 1980s and the subsequent financial crises, are now working hard to protect themselves against contagion from the crisis in the United States and Europe.
A meeting of economy ministers in Lima Thursday Read the rest of this story…
Tags:alternative press, censored news, China investment Peru, Economy ministers meet in Lima, financial crisis, Fitch Rating, Mountain Spirit, Peru, South America growth, supressed news
Posted in Leadership, Peru, South America, Sustainable Living/Communities | Leave a Comment »
02/07/2011
Linking History...
From: Alpinist
Working his bare-feet up the face, the climber takes a knotted sling from his shoulder and places it around a stone horn. He takes a second sling, deftly unknots it and feeds the cord carefully around his hempen lead rope and the slung rock. With the rope now connected to his natural protection he ties the second cord back into a sling and climbs on….
Before Otto “Rambo” Herzog first conceived using carabiners, climbers had only two options for connecting their ropes to protection: tie the rope and protection together, or untie and run the rope directly through the gear. Neither option was quick or especially safe.
In Alpinist 35 we examine the history of the carabiner; why Otto “Rambo” Herzog first thought of using the device, how it was modified over the last century and how the carabiner got its name.
Rambo Herzog
Rambo
Otto “Rambo” Herzog earned his nickname seventy years before the Sylvester Stallone movies. “Ramponieren” in German means “to batter” or “to bash,” and Herzog got his nickname, “Rambo,” not for flailing up climbs but for the hours he spent ramponieren specific problems. Today, Herzog is remembered for introducing the carabiner and breaking Hans Dülfer’s grading system. In 1913, he climbed the south wall of the Schüsselkarspitze (2537m) with Hans Fiechtl, a route that reached the limit of grade V (5.8/9), the highest grade in Dülfer’s I-V scale. In 1921, Herzog, together with Gustav Haber, climbed the “Ha-He Verschneidung” on the Dreizinkenspitze (2306m). Today rated 5.10, Herzog and Haber’s climb was so difficult that grade VI had to be added onto the I-V grading scale.
Today all climbing carabiners are made from solid metal. But in the 1970s SALEWA introduced a hollow design, that weighed only forty grams. This model was not only revolutionary because of its form but also because of the safety testing done on every unit. For the first time, each carabiner was individually tested before hitting the market. The slight indent on the curve of the pictured ‘biner, is the mark left by the 1000kg test. Many climbers will look at the empty interior and imagine that hollow carabiners were unsafe. However, in a recent interview with Alpinist, SALEWA’s former General Manager Hermann Huber said the hollow designs were abandoned because of breakthroughs in cold forging that allowed for lighter and stronger designs from solid aluminum. Read the rest of this story…
Tags:Alpinist, Carabiners HIstory, Climbing, Mountain Spirit, Otto Rambo Herzog, Salewa
Posted in Alps, Climb/Ski/Mntneering, Leadership, Mountain People | 5 Comments »
30/05/2011
See the movie China doesn't want you to see
The film 10 Conditions of Love, is the story of Rebiya Kadeer from East Turkestan, the other Tibet, (which the Chinese call Xinjiang Province), and her dramatic fight against the ruthless oppression of 20 million people and the obliteration of 1500 years of Uyghur culture, of the global politics of energy, of super power politicking over the War on Terror, and the pain of a deeply loving family torn violently apart.
Tags:10 Conditions of Love, China, East Turkestan, Jeff Daniels, Mountain Spirit, Other Tibet, Rebiya Kadeer, Uyghur people, Xinjiang Province
Posted in Inspirational People, Leadership | 2 Comments »
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