explorers program

changenow wishes to celebrate women and men who act every day with audacity and passion to drive change.

This unique initiative aims to:

Support and give visibility to the actions carried out by social or environmental purpose-driven explorers

Bring together the international ecosystem working and investing on patient capital

Address planetary issues via extraordinary stories

EXPLORERS PROGRAM

With the ChangeNOW Explorers Program, we bring our support to visionary adventurers, who are ambassadors for concrete action and are a source of inspiration for everyone.

HEIDI SEVESTRE

Glaciologist, international member of the Explorers Club, working with AMAP, the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program, a working group of the Arctic Council. Heidi is an avid science communicator and leads several expeditions to polar regions each year.

She won the first Shackleton Medal for the protection of the polar regions.
Through her studies and her work she has had the chance to study glaciers all around the world, from the French Alps to Greenland, from the Arctic to Antarctica.

Today, she invests her time in science policy and science outreach. She believes researchers like her have the duty to communicate about our work and tell the world about the wonders of the cryosphere and the threats targeting it.

Ghislain BARDOUT

Having always been inspired by the great outdoors, in particular mountains and the ocean’s depth, with an affinity for science materialized by engineering studies in EPFL (Polytechnique school in Lausanne, Switzerland), he takes the plunge in 2006 into exploration at Jean-Louis ETIENNE’s side. An avid underwater diver, carried by a strong curiosity and concerned by human impact on the planet, he conceives the first UNDER THE POLE expedition in 2007. Over 15 years and 4 large programs as head of UNDER THE POLE, he has acquired an advanced expertise in deep and polar scientific diving and brought structure and development to his expeditions focused on scientific discovery and raising awareness.

Emmanuelle PÉRIÉ-BARDOUT

Fascinated by oceans since early childhood, Emmanuelle trains at French National School of Sailing (ENV) as well as the Glénans to become a skipper and head of a nautical base. In 2004, she embarks for a year on Clipperton Expedition led by French explorer Jean-Louis ETIENNE as a sailor and manager of nautical activities. Then she turns towards Svalbard and Norway where she works as first mate on a polar sailing boat. After a new mission at the geographical North Pole, she starts in 2008, together with Ghislain BARDOUT, the UNDER THE POLE adventure. As captain of the WHY, UNDER THE POLE’s sailboat, and as a rebreather diver on the expeditions, she co-leads the programs on the ground as well as on the home base in Brittany, with a keen eye for education and conservation.

ROMAIN PILLiARD

47 years old, entrepreneur, sailor, and activist Born in Paris, Romain discovered sailing with his family, and sailing races during his studies at ESSEC BBA. He participated to offshore races, as a crew member or skipper on single handed races like La Solitaire du Figaro, and then created the sports marketing agency EOL, specialized in sailing.

The USE IT AGAIN project was born in China, where he was established with his family in 2016. Shocked by pollution and overconsumption, Romain decided to commit himself to the promotion of the circular economy. He created the USE IT AGAIN foundation and recovers the former Ellen Mac Arthur Ultime trimaran who was in a state of abandonment to renovate it according to the principles of the circular economy (Reduce/ Reuse/ Recycle).

Since 2018 he has participated twice in the Route du Rhum in the Ultime category and has completed the 1st west about round the world on a racing trimaran on hisTrimaran USE IT AGAIN. His objective: to make as many people as possible aware of the protection of the planet, to encourage and inspire, with the example of his trimaran, to apply the principles of the circular economy.

CAROLINE GLEICH

Caroline Gleich is a professional ski mountaineer, endurance athlete and activist for the environment and equality.

She has summitted some of the highest peaks in the world including Everest/Chomolungma and Cho Oyu, the sixth highest peak in the world. Caroline is a committed activist for social and environmental justice. Her goal is to inspire people to get outside, live a healthy active lifestyle and protect the places we love to play. To be a role model, a source of inspiration, to encourage other athletes and her community to explore the mountains without damaging them, so that this world that captivates and amazes her can be preserved for the future. Her own way of giving back to nature what it has given her: happiness in its purest form. Advocate for the environment, she is an ambassador of Protect Our Winters but also HEAL Utah and Adventurers and Scientists for Conservation.