It has been an amazing year thus far and we all have been feeling the effects of climate change. This year I have been fortunate to travel the globe from POLE to POLE and have witnessed some amazing and alarming environmental changes. Last Nov, I lead 107 skiers, boarders and adventurers to the Antarctic Peninsula. We were blessed with unseasonably incredible weather, great snow conditions and calm seas that are notorious for the roughest seas in the world. I then travelled to the Brazilian Amazon which had some of the highest river levels in some time. There was widespread flooding throughout the region and much of the Brazillian Amazon has been deforested. More than a million squarte kilometers have been deforested since 1970. DEFORESTATION IN BRAZIL: 60-70 percent of deforestation in the Amazon results from cattle ranches while the rest mostly results from small-scale subsistence agriculture. Despite the widespread press attention, large-scale farming (i.e. soybeans) currently contributes relatively little to total deforestation in the Amazon. Most soybean cultivation takes place outside the rainforest in the neighboring cerrado grassland ecosystem and in areas that have already been cleared. Logging results in forest degradation but rarely direct deforestation. However, studies have showed a close correlation between logging and future clearing for settlement and farming. After a 2 week expedition up the Rio Negro I trvlled to the Arctic Ocean for several expeditions to the Geographic North Pole. I was guiding a 15 year old Parker Liautaud. The conditions were some of the worst conditions I have experienced in over 10 years. We battled negative drift, open water leads that we needed to navigate by kayak. I spent the next month in the arctic skiing and experiencing significantly warmer temperatures than usual but accomplished some incredible skiing and climbing in Spitsbergen, Norway. The Norway segment will be featured in this years Warren Miller Movie called “Wintervention” The arctic is an early warning sign and wat to continue to work with the scientist with my observations and testing to help out and figure a way to reverse the effects of climate change. Check back soon for updates on our exciting fall, winter and spring schedule. I am planning a small sailing vessel to the Antarctic Peninsula, Leading 2 handicapped skiers to the South Pole, Back to the Amazon, Magnetic North Pole Expedition, Geographic North Pole Expedition, and several more expeditions to Spitsbergen, Norway. For more info. check out www.gearexpeditions.com or www.iceaxe.tv

 Antarctic Peninsula  Nov 2009 http://www.iceaxe.tv/expeditions/antarctic-peninsula-2009/

Amazon Awaits Jan 2010 http://www.iceaxe.org/kids/amazon2010/

The Last Degree April 2010  http://www.facebook.com/TheLastDegree

The Last Degree April 2010 http://www.iceaxe.tv/expeditions/doug-jack-reach-the-north-pole/

Spitsbergen, Norway May 2010 http://www.tetonat.com/2010/05/skiing-in-spitsbergen-and-the-mountains-of-norway/

Writer Dez Bartelt

Need some adventure in your life? Want to take a romantic cruise aboard a sailboat but feel like you can’t afford it? You want to get away but the economy is not allowing you to take a vacation. Why not stay home this summer save some money for next year and read an amazing true story of Bryan Carson sailing across the high seas in the adventure book Bula: Sailing Across the Pacific.

At age 29, Bryan Carson realized that working for the corporate world was not his calling. Day after day, he sat in his cubicle plotting his escape. He wanted to put himself in the hands of fate, so he decided to buy a boat and sail across the Pacific. Two thousands miles from land, his crewman “Figman” begins having nightmares that they are lost at sea. The boat is slowly sinking, but he can’t bear to tell him. They arrive in Tahiti alive. Bryan sails north to Hawaii alone in the savage seas and runs into a storm that nearly sweeps him over the side. The trip continues deeper into the South Pacific until he runs aground. The boat partially damaged, he sails onward through the cradle of Polynesia where he meets “Muzzy” who shows him the dark passage to the Kingdom of Tonga. In this narrative nonfiction, Bryan discovers himself through facing dangers on the high seas while sailing to Australia.

An excerpt from
Bula: Sailing Across the Pacific

I threw on the raingear and harness and quickly came out of the cabin. I stopped to stare at the dangerous flapping sail. I didn’t want to go up there. Trembling and scared, I was thinking of any possible way to get out of that mess. I thought to myself, you’re the stupid one who wanted to do this alone. I clenched my teeth with a mean sense of determination and crawled up to the bow. My harness line snagged on every entrapment that I passed, so I unlatched the carabineer to make it forward but forgot to reattach it to the safety jack-line. I had to pull the headsail down completely. I released the halyard and began pulling the sail down. It whipped about, pounding me in the face. I couldn’t do anything but take the lashings. A flailing sheet ripped another pair of storm glasses off my face and into the ocean. I saw them sinking into the abyss. Once I got most of it down, the wind was pulling the sail and me over the side with the waves washing over the deck. The sail dangerously filled with seawater. I was hanging onto the sail for my life that was full of hundreds of pounds of seawater. I was having horrible thoughts that if I lost the headsail I could triple my time to Hawaii. I couldn’t let go of it either because the folds of the sail had wrapped around me. I was slipping into Davy’s Grip. I locked into survival mode. I wasn’t prepared to go over the side forever. I managed to get the sail back on the boat and wrestled it to the cockpit in two pieces. You have to laugh at death—you can’t let it laugh at you

About the Author
Bryan Carson grew up in Texas and moved to San Diego where he attended university and wrote for the magazine Revolt in Style. He has traveled to over eighty countries writing about his adventures in some of the most remote and dangerous places in the world. He has been captaining sailboats all over the Pacific and Caribbean for the past ten years. He presently resides in Rincon, Puerto Rico where he captains a charter sailboat.

to order a copy bulathebook.com and it’s also available on amazon.com

Writer Dez Bartelt

Hero of the Pole!
Global warming and the rising sea levels might be a scare in every individual’s mind today. Air pollution, droughts, floods, deforestation and more are the results of global warming and keep us curled up in most drastic natural disaster situations. The climate has changed in the past few decades and the climate is changing now, and may still continue to change in the future. However, there are things we can do to adapt, to slow down, to stop, or to even reverse any negative impacts
Working and traveling to some of the most remote places on earth comes with a lot of harsh conditions to bear with. There is a man who has done this in the last few decades to ensure that the future does not die out. He says he is no longer emotional about getting to the pole (34 to South Pole and 48 to the North) as it is all about making a difference according to him. Our carbon footprints are very large while taking a trip and so he does not take anyone to the pole unless they are willing to raise money for charity. He too has a charity www.iceaxe.org where he has raised up to four million dollars in the last 10 years of individual charities. This concept has done wonders. There are a number of student food programs and inner city at risk, youth have musical instruments.
However fighting against the regular human conditions he chose to travel to this harsh climate, where the annual temperature varies from between -41 degrees and -21 degrees. His name is Douglas Chandler Stoup. His motivation comes from his love for adventure and concern about the future of our coming generations. Douglas is not only the hero of our plant and the future of our kids but a hero to anyone who loves adventure. His skills and accomplishments are absolutely off the charts.

He has years of active expedition experiences and has been featured internationally in popular media like films and television. He was the first Ski and Snowboard Descent of VInson Massif, first to “Ice Bike” long distance in Antarctica and the first American male to Ski to the South Pole. Guiding adventurers to the Geographic North Pole 660 mile trek across Antarctica to the South Pole, one wonders where does he find the time for all this and come across as a hero of the planet.

But set aside all of his experiences and ambitious accomplishments for a minute. Let’s go back to one of his main concerns. His ways of getting his message across in an initiative to educate about the pole

His various ways of communicating start from an interactive communication directly from the pole, a streamed video to classrooms from the Antarctic Peninsula and the Amazon. He uses present day technology to educate youth around the world about culture, environment, wildlife and this amazing planet in which we live.

“My clients range from upper level businessmen or women. It is expensive to do the logistics involved. The logistics company is set up for a short period of time and deals in tourism and science. I happen to come in the tourism sector. The logistics company burns a huge amount of fuel due to the aircraft. I offset this by being a carbon neutral company and by having the clients raise money for their specific charity brings awareness and needed money for these programs. It is after all about making a difference. The focus is not about getting to the pole or the summit. It is about how we can all help out our race! I do advise and it usually takes a life of its own,” says Stoup.

The money paid for the trips is however used for profitable purposes. He has also set up a Non-profit organization called the Ice Axe Foundation. There is more information on www.iceaxe.org. According to Stoup, if the customers are not interested in raising charity, they are welcome to raise money for Ice Axe Foundation. “It gives the polar expedition more of a purpose,” says Stoup.
Ice Axe Expeditions has been certified carbon neutral by the Carbon Reduction Institute. CRI is certified under the Greenhouse Gas Abatement Scheme (GGAS) and is presently in the final process of certification under the US government’s Greenhouse Friendly program. Ice Axe has also implemented a plan to negate 100% of its emissions. Most of Ice Axe’s products, services and operations are PreGreen, meaning that all of the emissions have been offset prior to customers purchasing from the company. All products display ‘Carbon Neutral Product’ logo.
When asked about the actual benefit the Earth receives Stoup says, “Ice Axe purchases carbon credits through CRI. All money collected by CRI is invested into the environment by replacing inefficient polluting technologies with energy efficient technologies and renewable energy resources. Some examples include the light bulb replacement program and landfill diversion projects.” The company also provides proof of ongoing commitment to reduce emissions from seeking and engaging alternative carbon-conscious suppliers to altering their energy consumption behavior.

He dedicated his life to this endeavor early in his career. “I am an educator and will dedicate my life to educating students’ full time in the near future. Remote places can be transformed through the technology we possess today. It is a unique experience,” Stoup exclaimed.
His future dreams consist of sailing from from Ushuaia, Argentina to the Weddell sea from where he wants to Kite ski to the pole (900 miles) and further from south pole to the McMurdo sound (650miles) and then sail to NZ. Apart from this he wants to use solar panels to melt snow, using it as drinking water. He dreams of a no carbon footprint expedition. “I will use wind, sun and manpower to propel myself some 3200 miles across some of the most inhospitable terrain on Earth and if I can be successful in this environment, you can do it at home,” Stoup says.
Click here to find out more!

Market Intelligence:
THE BAKERSFIELD CALIFORNIAN | Thursday, Jun 24 2010 04:27 PM

Last Updated Thursday, Jun 24 2010 04:27 PM

According to results of a recent study released last month by the Natural Marketing Institute, 8 in 10 consumers worldwide are interested in buying some type of green product.

Two-thirds care about the environment, but say their purchases are primarily determined by price. Fortunately, the introduction of price-conscious options by Wal-Mart, Target and others has moved green products into the mainstream, and fewer consumers feel bound to pay a premium price for environmentally friendly alternatives.

Green consumers in Kern County

In Kern County, 93 percent of adults say they do some type of eco-friendly activity, such as recycling, using less energy or buying green products, on a regular basis. Despite greater availability of budget-friendly green products, seven percent (approximately 40,000 adults) say they regularly pay a premium to purchase eco-friendly products.

Characteristics of consumers who pay more to buy eco-friendly

Women … 80 percent

Age 45+ … 47 percent

Income $50,000+ … 50 percent

Some college+ … 66 percent

White collar job … 43 percent

Married … 60 percent

Home owner … 66 percent

Compared to all adults, these green consumers are more likely to live in ZIP codes 93308 (14 percent), 93306 (13 percent) and 93304 (9 percent).

In addition to paying a premium for green products, these consumers regularly:

Recycle glass, plastic or paper … 97 percent

Use less water at home … 74 percent

Use cloth/reusable grocery bags … 65 percent

Buy locally grown food … 43 percent

Carpool … 26 percent

Businesses that want to reach green consumers should include the Internet and mobile advertising in their media mix.

Internet user – monthly … 88 percent

Online social networking … 57 percent

Online coupons … 33 percent

Online consumer reviews … 26 percent

Online yellow pages … 29 percent

Cell phone user … 83 percent

Text messaging … 61 percent

Web search via cell phone … 15 percent

Source for Kern County data: Scarborough Research 2010 R1, The Bakersfield Californian Market Research Departme