The Explorers Club President
Since he climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro at age 11, Richard Wiese has circled the globe,
capturing powerful images and living one adventure after another; from traveling
with Bedouins in Africa to cross-country skiing to the North Pole. In 2002, Richard
became the youngest president in the history of The Explorers Club and currently
serves as its President. Wiese is dedicated to working with local communities around the world to help
their voices be heard in their own words. He believes the most memorable aspect
of any journey is not about reaching "the summit," but the people you meet along
the way.
Richard has journeyed to all seven continents, tagging jaguars in the Yucatan
jungles, leading expeditions to Australia's Northern Territory and participating
in the largest medical expedition ever conducted on Mt. Everest. He also achieved
the first ascent of an unclimbed mountain in Alaska and discovered 29 new life forms
on Africa's Mt. Kilimanjaro. He has won two Daytime Emmy Awards and has earned 13
Emmy® nominations, as well as 24 Telly Awards, 4 Parents' Choice Awards and a CINE
Golden Eagle. Richard has received numerous other honors, including a Genesis Award,
an Associated Press Folio Award, a Golden Halo Award and the 2012 Walter Cronkite
Award for his contributions to journalism and exploration. He is the author of Born
to Explore: How To Be A Backyard Adventurer (Harper Collins 2009). He was honored
at the 2005 Boy Scout National Jamboree where he addressed 90,000 people and had a
camp named after him.