cleaning up everest
October 2008
I've just been reminded by photographer Damon Coulter that 20 years ago I
set off for Nepal as the joint leader of an
expedition to clean-up Everest Base Camp.
Looking back, I'm amazed it happened at all. It's hard to believe that one off-the-cuff remark triggered a chain of events that led to 47 people of all ages and walks of life picking up rubbish at the foot of the world's highest mountain.
Like Damon, the experience had a profound impact on the direction that my life has taken over the past two decades.
I still don't know why Nick Steven and John Barry took a teenager's clean-up suggestion seriously, but they did. I will always be grateful to them for the faith they showed in me, and for encouraging me to run with the idea.
Looking back, I'm amazed it happened at all. It's hard to believe that one off-the-cuff remark triggered a chain of events that led to 47 people of all ages and walks of life picking up rubbish at the foot of the world's highest mountain.
Like Damon, the experience had a profound impact on the direction that my life has taken over the past two decades.
I still don't know why Nick Steven and John Barry took a teenager's clean-up suggestion seriously, but they did. I will always be grateful to them for the faith they showed in me, and for encouraging me to run with the idea.