Men of Action: 'It's Cool To Be Cool'

The term 'adventurer' may sometimes sound like an echo from the past. In a fast paced world where the internet can bring striking images to your living room 'frontiers can seem more akin to mythology rather than modern news items.

However, there are those amongst us who continue to seek out the frontiers that are not easily accessible. These Men of Action have the same drive as The Wild Geese, whose search for new frontiers started back in 1691.

Modern day adventurer Eric Larsen is driven by his intrigue of winter conditions and finding new frontiers. He admits '...there definitely is something about snow and winter that captured my imagination' which propels him to explore these conditions in their most extreme cases, and in his 15 years of adventuring Eric has explored the poles in -50 degree temperatures. Hi personal motto is 'it's cool to be cool'.

'I was fascinated by the idea of "North". To me, it seemed like one of the last real frontiers left on our planet. I really like the severity and isolation of these environments'

But during his expeditions, Larsen has seen the subject of his intrigue dramatically change. To raise awareness of the effects of global warming and help reshape attitudes to these extreme environments, he started the 'Save The Poles' project, a 365-day expedition. Beginning in November 2009, Larsen journeyed to the South Pole, North Pole and Mount Everest (known as the Polar Trifecta), collecting scientific data and filming a documentary.

'Each leg posed unique problems - from extreme wind and cold in Antarctica to open water and moving ice in the Arctic to climbing in the death zone on Everest. In the end, there were so many obstacles and dangers that I was surprised I was able to pull it all off'

But he did and by the time he returned home in October 2010 he had gathered enough support to vigorously defend the regions he loves so much. 

He has a busy 2012 lined up, with includes portraying his latest adventure into a documentary film and book and 'criss-crossing the continent for speaking engagements of all kinds' promoting how to tackle global warming. 

'My goal is t continue to use expeditions to tell the stories about amazing places and inspire people to help protect them'