Will Steger

Image of Will Steger

Will Steger (born August 27, 1944 in Richfield, Minnesota[1]) is a prominent spokesperson for the understanding and preservation of the Arctic and has led some of the most significant feats in the field of dogsled expeditions; such as the first confirmed dogsled journey to the North Pole (without re-supply) in 1986,[2] the 1,600-mile south–north traverse of Greenland - the longest unsupported dogsled expedition in history at that time in 1988, the historic 3,471-mile International Trans-Antarctic Expedition - the first dogsled traverse of Antarctica (1989–90), and the International Arctic Project - the first and only dogsled traverse of the Arctic Ocean from Russia to Ellesmere Island in Canada during 1995.[3]

Steger has been invited to testify before Congress on polar and environmental issues based on his first-hand experience in the Polar Regions and environmental expertise.

Steger co-founded the Center for Global Environmental Education (CGEE)[4] at Hamline University in 1991 following the successful International Trans-Antarctic Expedition which reached 15 million students worldwide. In 1993, he founded the World School for Adventure Learning[5] at the University of St. Thomas (Minnesota). In 2006, due to his growing concern about climate change, he established the Will Steger Foundation (now Climate Generation) to educate and empower people to engage in solutions to climate change.[6] In 2014, he launched the Steger Wilderness Center, his final phase of his larger mission to keep the planet sustainable for future generations.[7]

  1. ^ "Will Steger". Facebook. Retrieved 2009-01-01.
  2. ^ "Explorer in Residence 1996 • Will R. Steger • Polar Explorer". National Geographic Society. Archived from the original on 12 February 2022. Retrieved 12 February 2022. In 1986 he made the first confirmed unsupported journey to the North Pole, leading a team of eight people with 50 sled dogs.
  3. ^ "Our Mission and Vision". Will Steger Foundation. Retrieved June 1, 2014.
  4. ^ "Center for Global Environmental Education". Hamline University. Retrieved June 1, 2014.
  5. ^ "A Dreamer and a Doer". St. Thomas Magazine. University of St. Thomas. Winter 2005. Archived from the original on August 20, 2006. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  6. ^ "Our Mission and Vision". Will Steger Foundation. Retrieved June 1, 2014.
  7. ^ "Leadership, Homestead, Wilderness Programs | Steger Center".