Expedition 0

Earthducation Expedition 0 Trailer video

admin — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 13:31:06 +0000

(Music by Sigur Ros)

Teaser trailer video for the upcoming Earthducation Expedition 0 video – we will be showcasing the full video at our Fall 2010 Earthducation Kickoff event at the University of Minnesota. You will be able to interact with our new online environment, meet the new members of the Earthducation team, and learn how you can participate as we travel to Burkina Faso, Africa, in January for Expedition 1.

Stay tuned…

Charlie (from Pang) Interview

admin — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 13:33:27 +0000

Charlie from Pangnirtung, Nunavut

Charlie, and a few of his friends from Pangnirtung, helped us out midway through the expedition. Once we arrived in Pang, he agreed to be part of the Earthducation project and his interview serves as a single instance of what made the entire trip worthwhile for both of us. Thanks, Charlie, hope to see you again someday!

Pang Interviews

admin — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 20:47:27 +0000

Matthew – Pangnirtung

Ezra – Pangnirtung

We will be posting all Earthducation interviews in their entirety from both Qikiqtarjuaq and Pangnirtung over the next few days, including two phenomenal interviews with Charlie, a guide in Pang, and Kathy, the K-12 co-principal of Pang. Please check back soon!

Arrived in Pang

admin — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 14:55:31 +0000

March 26, 2010 – 66°08′52″N 065°41′58″W, Pangnirtung, Nunavut

After another 7 hours and 7 miles in a ground blizzard, we arrived in Pangnirtung, our final destination for earthducation0 2010. We started the morning by removing 8 ice-screws that secured our tent in the 50mph winds that gusted throughout the night. We then collapsed the tent (I had to lie on the tent while Aaron removed the last ice-screw), packed our pulks for the last time, turned on the GPS, and plotted a course towards Pang. After about an hour of travel, the snow began to lighten and we could see Pang in the distance – it seemed VERY close. However, it took 6 more hours and 6 more miles to arrive; Pang seemed like an arctic mirage.

Once we arrived in Pang, we unloaded all of our gear in a storage room at the Inn’s North lodge and Louis, the lodge manager and amazing chef, cooked us our first non-Mac-n-Cheese-n-Potatoes-n-Butter meal in 8 days. We met several geologists who were studying the changing permafrost in Pang and attended a community event where they presented their research and future objectives – amazing work! For 3 days we were unable to obtain a satellite phone signal, BGAN signal, or any form of Internet connection other that pulling in an email (which took several minutes per email); therefore, we couldn’t post this final expedition update that you are now reading. The lack of Internet was an eye-opening experience as I think about the types of online environments we design in Learning Technologies – it seems that the populations who could potentially benefit largely from these technologies are those with the least access. To reach a wider audience, lightweight environments and streamlined apps are truly the wave of the future in my opinion.

We had an amazing time in Pang, interviewed several community members and the school co-principal, had several wonderful meals (thanks again, Louis), and relaxed a little after the trip. earthducation0 was a surreal experience for us both and we are excited to kick-off Expedition 1 in Africa early next year.

After transporting all of our gear to the Pang airpost, it took 3 days and 4 planes to arrive home in Minneapolis. In the next few days we will be posting the amazing earthducation0 interviews we captured in Pang (if you are interested in education or the future of sustainability, you will not want to miss these videos!!!), as well as a gallery of all complete video interviews we captured throughout the expedition. We will also be editing a short earthducation0 documentary over the next few weeks, so stay tuned (the video will be available on this site and we will host a screening sometime in May)! Please check back tomorrow for more updates…and thank you for following earthducation0 Expedition 0: North America.

- Aaron and Charlie

Blizzard

admin — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 02:20:45 +0000

We awoke this morning to light winds that evolved quickly into 25mph knock-you-down gusts by the time we packed up camp. The day started off fantastic as we were able to open our arms wide like sails and have the wind literally push us down the frozen fjord. This lasted for about an hour until the stronger winds made their appearance, which began knocking our pulks over and pushing us sideways (as well as throwing us down to the ice). For 6 hours we were in complete white-out conditions in the middle of the fjord – we couldn’t see land, yet alone 10 feet in front of our skis. We stayed within 5 feet of each other to avoid losing one another and followed the faint remains of a snowmobile trail which headed into Pangnirtung. The winds topped out at approximately 50-55 mph, nature’s brutal force that makes you understand your place in the world. We had to turn the pulk sideways next to the pack-ice in order to block the wind for lunch. After a Pemican bar, a beef stick, and some water, Aaron’s pulk was pushed into me several times and we both crashed to the ice 6-7 times each. The winds, falling snow, and blowing snow lasted all day. After skiing 15 miles in the toughest conditions I have ever faced in my life, we set up our tent in a small bay, but the winds are still ripping. As I type this, the tent walls are shaking something fierce, however we have 8 ice-screws buried into the frozen fjord so everything is safe. Several Tylenol and blisters later, this was truly a torturous, mind- and body-numbing day. We made it through the blizzard and are praying for clearer skies tomorrow as we hopefully ski into Pang and begin working with the school early next week.

Sunny and Sailing

admin — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 01:44:07 +0000

Komatek Forward

admin — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 01:32:29 +0000

With heavy, poorly designed pulks, tough terrain, and a deadline for Aaron to leave for Greenland GoNorth! 2010, Aaron called Mille, Program Director for GoNorth!, to contact one of our friends from last year in Pangnirtung, Charlie. Last year during GoNorth! 2009, Charlie helped the team out, and is a hilarious guy to be around. Charlie, his buddy Jay, and a few friends picking up climbing gear from the park gave us a leap forward through part of the pass with their komatek sleds. The snowmobile and komatek ride was an adventure in itself as we crossed the amazing landscape. We both rode on top of our gear that was tied down to each komatek sled and were thrown off several times. As much as it was dangerous, it was another surreal experience that definitely enhanced the trip. Also, during a rest stop, we had the pleasure of sharing homemade bannick, a fantastic Inuit bread, and Arctic Char with the group. Overall, it was definitely a day to remember! Also, our thermometer finally broke today and is stuck at -30F, a fine Arctic memory!

Rough Terrain And More Polar Bear Tracks

admin — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 01:41:07 +0000

March 22, Day 3 – We didn’t send an update yesterday as we were 150% exhausted – dragging two 150lb. pulks across the roughest terrain imaginable is an 8-hour muscle-tearing fight. The last two nights were a chilling -30 to -35F and the days were approximately -10F. However, we have been extremely fortunate with weather as there has been very little wind and we have enjoyed clear, sunny blue skies in the mountains. The terrain has not changed and remains difficult. After breakfast this morning (Aaron cooks an amazing oatmeal!), we decided the only way to make miles in the rock gardens was to have one person push the pulk while the other harnessed up and pulled. To move one pulk approximately 200 yards through car-size boulders and drifts it took approximately 30 minutes, then we had to walk back and repeat with the other pulk. We did this rotation 6 times over 3 valleys to escape the rocks. Once free of the rock gardens we fought for 3 hours up a formidable incline. We made another few miles and set up camp and ate dinner (fantastic mashed potatoes and summer sausage), a 2-hour task this evening. Once camp was set up, we noticed a day-old set of polar bear tracks leading down from the mountain about 200 yards from camp. We feel safe as the tracks turned around near the bottom and headed back up into the valley (after the bear must have layed down and rolled around, a 15-ft diameter clearing of snow) – it is amazing to see both the size of the tracks and the inclines that the bears are capable of climbing. We are settling in for another cold night and will try to make more headway tomorrow.

Earthducation Audio Update

admin — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 01:06:32 +0000

First Official Day of Pulking

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 02:43:22 +0000

March 19 – After the RCMP escorted the bags we are sending down to Pang (e.g., extra clothes, books, and misc. stuff for the plane home), we packed up our pulks and gear onto Billy’s komatek sled. Our friend “Pete” the dog joined us down on the ice to send us off. We enjoyed a 3-hour bumpy, but amazing, snowmobile ride to the entrance of the pass. About 15 miles before reaching our drop-off point Billy noticed a fresh set of polar bear tracks, along with the tracks of two cubs, heading into the pass. Although this is rare for this time of year, Billy told us that bears often den up in the mountains of the pass with their young before heading out to the pack ice for seal hunting. Per Billy’s request, we spent the night in the North Pang safety shelter due to the tracks leading our way.

March 20 – We woke up at 6:30 this morning, packed up the pulks (an hour task), put on our skis, and headed out. With the pulks being on the small side, and HEAVY, we encountered miles of hard snowdrifts, rock gardens, and heaved-up ice near the streams. Two words come to mind: BEAUTIFULLY DIFFICULT. Our main problem today was that the pulks tipped not once, not twice, but probably somewhere around 143 times or so. If the other person isn’t right next to you, a tipped pulk means that you take off your backpack, remove your harness, turn around on your skis, tip the pulk back over, ski back to the front, re-harness up, and put your pack back on. Fun stuff! We are trying some new gear/harness/pulk combinations tomorrow and will report back. Thanks for following along! Its been a bumpy start (literally), but it’s only going to get better!