Speaker.
Paul Deegan
Mountaineer & Everest’s dustman
Profile:
Paul was thrown out the back of a car at 80 miles per hour when he was 15 years old. This seemed to knock some sense into him. Two years later he proposed and subsequently co-led a 47-strong expedition to clean up 35 years’ worth of rubbish that had accumulated at Everest Base Camp. Since then, Paul has spent most of his time involved in the expedition world, from leading treks to writing about his adventures for newspapers and magazines.
Paul has organised an expedition to a previously unexplored mountain range in Central Asia, followed the world’s most dangerous schoolrun along a frozen river in a gorge deeper than the Grand Canyon, and visited Mos Espa on Tatooine. He has made three attempts to reach the summit of Everest. Paul’s expeditions have been covered by the BBC, The Guardian, and The Baghdad Times.
What I'm talking about:
Why the hardest part of doing something is not coming up with the idea but something else entirely. I’ll share the story of the origins of the first Everest clean-up expedition to illustrate how anyone with an idea can turn it into reality. Along the way I’ll demonstrate that passion, enthusiasm and determination are sometimes more important than qualifications, talent and ability. And I’ll propose that one of the more popular phrases heard in meetings should be outlawed
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My Brainfood
Websites
- Ignore Everybody
- Hugh MacLeod's most popular blog post on his excellent Gaping Void website. I particularly like point number nine.
- Kiva
- Person-to-person microfinancing: choose people to fund and help them grow their businesses.
- Martin Hartley
- One of the most talented and hard-working expedition photographers in the world. To gain a small appreciation of what goes into capturing his images watch this short video.
- Paul Deegan
- Paul Deegan's website and blog.
Books
- Beachcombing at Miramar
- Author:
Description: An absorbing tale of quitting the fast lane for the simple life.
ISBN: 0446672769 - Let my people go surfing
- Author:
Description: Proof that an environmentally-sensitive business can turn a profit.
ISBN: 0143037838 - Everest: Alone at the Summit
- Author:
Description: A riveting account of the first ascent of a previous unclimbed route on Everest.
ISBN: 0952937506 - The Dip
- Author:
Description: Why quitting is essential if you want to become successful.
ISBN: 0749928301 - Expedition Handbook
- Author:
Description: If you're determined to organise your own expedition, this is the bible you'll want to read.
ISBN: 1861970447
Organisations
- Geography Outdoors
- Information, training and advice for anyone involved in expeditions, field research and outdoor learning. The annual seminar, 'Explore', gives 250 aspiring expedition leaders unprecedented access to 100 outdoor experts.
- Porters Progress
- An organisation committed to the welfare of mountain porters. Get involved by donating unwanted sunglasses and outdoor clothing, and ensuring that the trekking company you travel with follows simple yet effective guidelines.
- British Mountaineering Council (BMC)
- Want to get into climbing and hillwalking? The BMC has hundreds of affiliated clubs in England and Wales, many of which welcome beginners of all ages. The BMC also maintains a directory of rock climbing walls on its website.
- The Deboché Initiative
- Directs 1% of income from guests who stay at a stunning mountain cottage towards rural health projects in remote mountain settlements. The initiative also makes the lodge available each year to a charity, not-for-profit, youth project or volunteer organisation.
"In the end of the day we don't regret the things that we tried at and failed at, we regret the things that we never attempted.. and if the worse things that could happen to us if we fail, is that some people get to laugh at us, then I believe we have nothing to worry about at all." I learned so much going to Madagscar - tinyurl.com/wwfnora Now, to take that experience and not fear finding a way to return and DO more of the things I wanted to finish doing. "There's certain things you can plan for when you are organizing the thing you want to do and there are certain things you just don't know are going to happen." My regreat is I didn't go for it about building a toilet in my village, but listening to these do lectures has inspired me to start up a site to raise funds to make it happen.. Really was inspired by this lecture. Thanks for the share of your life, it has definitely caused "the tigger" in me to jump up and down!