Jinman Antony (Great Britain)

Jinman Antony

Antony Jinman has spent the past couple of years building experience on the Baffin Island and working closely with the Inuit communities there. In the spring of 2010, he successfully completed the Ward Hunt-North Pole trek.

This is how Antony describes the way he has been fascinated by polar adventure: "Ever since I can remember, I have been running around in the outdoors, fascinated by the world around me. I have been lucky enough to visit some truly inspirational places and to meet some amazing people; to have directly witnessed the kind of things that, as a student at school, I could only ever have dreamt about.

As a teenager, I dedicated much of my free time to mountain sports including skiing and snowboarding, hiking and climbing. In college, I studied a HND in Public Services, placing myself in the ideal position from which to enter the armed forces. I successfully completed time in the Territorial Army and the Royal Navy before returning home to pursue a career in the great outdoors.

For a number of years I took up the role of a tour leader, accompanying groups on adventure holidays around the world. After saving enough money, I invested in a placement on the Plas-y-Brenin Fast Track Instructors Scheme, through which I qualified as an International Mountain Leader. I soon found myself leading various remote expeditions, including a number of trips to the Arctic.

Arctic is a very special place to me

At 27, the Arctic remains a special place to me. Stunningly beautiful and untouched by Man until relatively recently, it is a place where maintaining the utmost respect for the environment is the key to survival at times. The indigenous peoples of the Arctic have all learnt to coexist with nature. Guided by their experiences, we can all learn valuable lessons for the future."

Polarventure 2008 had the backing of the International Polar Year and the Royal Geographical Society. Its aim was to see how climate change is affecting the Inuit way of life and to attempt a crossing the Penny Ice Cap. Like any expedition, Antony and his team mate Vijay had to overcome many problems, including the coldest winter since 1970! Although it didn't all go according to plan, the expedition was a great success and has lead into a full time job for Antony with his public speaking and school outreach project.

Future plans see Antony returning to the Baffin Island to produce two short films on the winter and summer arctic seasons. These films will be used to promote the Inuit and their environment within his school outreach project and to help explain other young explorers about expedition life. Antony is currently establishing strong links with University outdoor and expedition societies to help show students how they can embark on their own expeditions.

"I am a strong believer in "Education through Expedition" that you can use an expedition to make a classroom come alive for students. Through photography and film I aim to report credible eye witness accounts of the world around us."

Spring 2010 : With two of his friends and companions, Eric Larsen and Darcy St Laurent, he successfully completed the Ward Hunt-North Pole trek. They were deposited on the Ellesmere Island on 03 March and reached the North Pole on 23 April after 51 days of headway, an infernal daily struggle against a wickedly negative drift and two re-supply operations.