Document Actions Published:
24 Jul 2007 - Two EEA teams have travelled
to Greenland to participate in the gruelling
Arctic Team Challenge (ATC) . Over five
days, they will cover more than 250 km of
the toughest terrain east Greenland offers.
From the start line in the town of Tasiilaq,
on the island of Ammassalik, the teams will
participate in mountain biking, mountain
trekking, glacier trekking and ice fjord
paddling. The two EEA teams are made up
of four staff members each and include EEA
Executive Director, Prof. Jacqueline McGlade.
“The ATC is both a physical challenge for
the individual, a learning experience and
at the same time a backdrop we can use for
our professional communication about environmental
issues” said Peder Jensen, captain of one
of the teams said. “Climate change is already
impacting on Greenland and we will have
an opportunity to see how the local Iinuit
people are adapting to a problem that will
affect all of us,” he continued.
Indeed the ATC itself is a sign of the
changes taking place on Greenland. The event
aims to involve the local population in
sustainable tourism sector in the region.
“The challenges the Inuit of Ammassalik
island face today are in many ways equal
to the challenges the rest of the world
will have to face tomorrow. They are one
of the first populations to experience the
consequences of global warming but they
are adapting as they have for thousands
of years to the challenges nature puts before
them,” said Anders Stenbakken, ATC Race
Director.
