HILLEBERG AMBASSADOR: Sebastian Copeland, polar explorer and climate advocate adventurer and storyteller

Sebastian Copeland is a renowned British, French, and American polar explorer, climate analyst, photographer, and storyteller. He began his career working in photography in New York, covering a variety of industries including advertising and fashion. While this career path was very successful for a time, he came to realize that it wasn't his true passion. "That's never been me, I've always been an outsider," he said. "For me, the meaning of my work must go beyond mere beauty and must be rooted in something bigger than myself."

Around 1999, he began using his skills as a larger tool to speak out on climate issues. As an experienced mountaineer and rock climber, he was deeply attracted by the mystery and challenges of the polar regions. “I have three things in my toolbox: I have a sincere interest in the subject, I am good at documenting with a camera, and I have the ability to endure long periods of pain,” he said, half-jokingly. He has traveled to some of the coldest and most unforgiving places on Earth, including the Antarctic, Arctic, Canadian Arctic and Greenland, and found that these places are undergoing systemic change. Five of his books capture these changes through a lens.

One of his most recent books, Polar Explorations: To the Ends of the Earth, shows scenes from multiple expeditions, including a 2009 expedition to reach the geographic North Pole on foot with partner Keith Heger. In addition, the book describes his 2010 expedition to Greenland with Eric McNair-Landry. They set a world record for the longest distance by kite and ski in 20 hours, and spent 43 days crossing the Greenland ice sheet. From 2011 to 2012, he collaborated with Eric again and completed the first east-west skiing and kite expedition across Antarctica during an 84-day mission, setting three world records. "Those were great big expeditions. In a way, they're not common. You spent almost four months on the ice, which is not something that happens very often now."

All adventures require great personal perseverance and professional skills. "It's been a very rewarding journey on every level," he said. "It's not as financially rewarding as commercial work, but it's so much more than that. My greatest satisfaction comes from countless epiphanies along the way." Simply completing these journeys is difficult enough, but documenting them artistically , it is more challenging for others to feel and interpret it. "Landscape photography is about humility. You need to put in the time, be very patient, and be humble about the natural conditions that are beyond your control. During the last arctic season in Greenland, I took a photo that took over 10 years to complete," he said. His photography has been exhibited in galleries across the United States, Europe, and globally, and he has spoken at the United Nations and governments and institutions around the world. His work has earned him four Photographer of the Year honors and in 2017 he was named one of the world's 25 greatest adventurers of the past 25 years.

Even today, Sebastian continues to explore the ice fields, but things are different than when he first started. To access these remote and rugged areas, he has relied on Hilleberg tents and has continued to use them for over 20 years. “Hilleberg tents are lightweight and rock solid,” he says. "For seven days of hurricane-force winds high in the Greenland Ice Sheet, my Keron 3 GT tent provided the indispensable safety and reliability that you simply cannot compromise on in this kind of environment. The Hilleberg is extreme adventure gold. Standard." To live in these uninhabitable places for a long time, Sebastian must rely entirely on his tent, which is the only barrier that separates him from the fierce storms on the ice field. "In such chaos, you are like a speck of dust on an ice sheet with no chance of rescue. Nature is so pristine and magnificent. Our responsibility is to participate responsibly, respecting not only our footprints but also our lives , to ensure that we can survive in it. "For him, there was no other possibility in choosing Hilleberg. "Without a doubt, this is the best equipment on the ice. That's crystal clear. For those of us who often make deep and repetitive journeys, the consensus is that,"

For more see sebastiancopelandadventures.com