Pioneer swimmer and environmentalist Lewis Pugh has successfully completed many endurance water events and is the first person to accomplish a long-distance swim in every ocean in the world.
One of his most recent and highest altitude achievements was a one-kilometer water trek across Lake Imja, a glacial lake on Mount Everest. His hope was to bring attention to the dire condition of the Himalaya glaciers as a whole by swimming across a lake that had been formed entirely from the melting of the Imja Glacier.

Speaking of the wider impact of this evidence of global warming, Mr. Pugh said, “Glaciers are not just ice: they are a lifeline, they provide water to two billion people, and we need to protect them.” At a recent Technology Entertainment Design (TED) conference, Mr. Pugh shared his experience of taking on the highest swim ever performed as he crossed the ice-cold lake, which stands at 5300 meters above sea level.

Saying that he was only able to complete this event successfully because of his support team’s encouragement toward a radical shift in thinking, which included swimming with humility, Mr. Pugh urged the audience toward being willing to make similarly large changes in order to effectively address our current climate crisis.

Many thanks Mr. Lewis Pugh for sharing your talent and dedication to the message of preserving our Earth. May we all be inspired toward the environmental shift in consciousness needed to sustain our shared planetary home.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tedtalks/lewis-pughs-mind-shifting_b_665049.html
http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/2010/08/lewis_pughs_mind-shifting_ever.php
http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/40/50809.html
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/42c699da-95e8-11df-bbb4-00144feab49a.html?ftcamp=rss