Speaking
Using their polar expeditions as a captivating vehicle, John Huston and Tyler Fish can entertain, educate and inspire a variety of audiences. Their custom multimedia presentations and workshops vividly bring people to some of the most remote places on earth. Concentrating on the optimistic potential inherent in each human being, John and Tyler place the seemingly insurmountable, such as climate change or skiing to the North Pole, in an empowering, hopeful context.

Presentations can be targeted at any audience, K-12, College Age, Companies, Groups and Events.

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Baffin Island, March 2008

Testimonial: "John’s presentation is at the same time both down-to-earth, and inspirational. His enthusiastic description of the geographical, cultural, environmental and physical elements of his expeditions provides the opportunity to examine the limits of both human endurance and the global environment. A thoroughly enjoyable and educational experience! " -- Bill (NU ’76, NU Club of DC, Past President) and Dru Horin, commenting on John’s presentation at the April, 2008, Day With Northwestern in Evanston.

Testimonial: "An amazingly well prepared revisit of polar exploration history and a remarkable look into the modern mindset that keeps explorers and environmental preservationists pushing polar travel agendas as a means of educating the world about climate change." - Rudi Hargesheimer, manager Midwest Mountaineering, describing John’s keynote presentation at Midwest Mountaineering’s 2006 Fall Expo, Minneapolis, MN.

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An appreciative kindergartner.

Testimonial: "John came to the Mission Hill School to share his adventures. Being in his company was an adventure itself. Through storytelling and pictures he vividly described the stories of his explorations. He shared many facts as well as dispelled myths about the Arctic. His easy-to-understand and engaging descriptions of climate change helped to inspire our the students in our K-8 school." Kathy Clunis, Teacher

 

 

Possible Presentations Include:

Victorinox North Pole '09 "Optimism, Humility and Education in the Face of the Seemingly Insurmountable."

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Tyler testing the waters
Photo: John Huston

This presentation focuses on the challenges of the quest for the North Pole and how John and Tyler's approach to the seemingly insurmountable can be applied to challenges in broader contexts. This talk can cover a wide range of themes such as climate change, leadership or personal. The North Pole has captured the dreams of explorers and the attention of the public for centuries. Expeditions to the North Pole have always symbolized humankind's adventurous spirit, willingness to explore the unknown and capability to endure severe physical and mental adversity. Historic and modern polar explorers have approached immense challenges with a variety of methods. John and Tyler have made a close study of these methods and synthesized them into their own leadership model. Learn about the Arctic Ocean, Tyler and John's approach to its challenges and how individuals can incorporate these inspirational lessons into whatever challenges they may be facing.

Possible themes: The Arctic Ocean; Climate Change; Optimism; Education; Humility; The Motivation Behind Polar Exploration, Leaderhip, Taking on the Seeming Insurmountable

Skiing on Amundsen's Skis, The Race for the South Pole, Then and Now

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Photo: Martin Madsen
In the spring of 2005, John Huston was a member of a Norwegian team of polar explorers in an observational documentary film project that re-ran Norwegian Roald Amundsen’s and British Robert Falcon Scott’s 1911 race for the South Pole using only 1911-period replica food, clothing and equipment. In the winter of 2007/2008 John guided a 57-day, 720-mile ski expedition to the South Pole. He will speak about the original Amundsen and Scott expeditions, how some modern polar explorers view the two legendary expeditions and leaders, his experiences as part of the Amundsen team and as leader of a modern ski expedition to the South Pole. Find out how closely the experiences of the modern explorers parallel that of the original explorers and what choices, approaches and circumstances led to Amundsen's victory and Scott's death.

Themes: Leadership Philosophy; Approach to Challenge; Planning and Preparation; Teamwork, Historical Analysis; The Motivation Behind Polar Exploration; Drawing Inspiration from History's Great Leaders

Leadership Lessons of the Great Polar Explorers.

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1911. Courtesy of the Fram Museum.
Amundsen, Shackleton, Nansen, Scott, Peary, and Cook each led several expeditions into the unexplored polar regions of the world. While their expeditions ended with varying degrees of success and failure, their experiences contain vivid, universal lessons in leadership that can benefit anyone who is in a leadership role or deals with challenge. Through their experiences studying and teaching about these leaders and applying their approaches to expeditions of their own, John and Tyler have gained unique perspectives on the leadership philosophies of these great explorers. This presentation will outline a recipe for successful leadership using lessons from past as well as modern polar explorers and focus on how one can apply these ideas to his or her own life and situation.


Themes: Thorough Preparation; Unflinching Optimism; Resourceful Innovation; Team Building; Thoughtful Delegation; The Power of Personality; Humility and Self-Education; Structuring for Motivation; Subtitles of Group Dynamics

Sustainable Relationships: A Key to Happiness and Success

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Photo: Annie Socci
Learn about the most influential variable in any endeavor: your team. This is true regardless of the relationship: workplace, expedition partners, or family. It’s not always possible to choose your team, but you can choose how to interact with them. You can be in the most wonderful place on the planet, but if you are uninspired by the company you keep, the experience can be tainted or miserable. Over ten years of working and observing with people in intense wilderness and group settings gives Tyler the perspective and experience to offer tangible team building guidance. Tyler has seen people expose their true character and is inspired by all they have to offer each other. This presentation can be tailored to the audience and can be focused on wilderness expeditions, work relationships or families.

Themes: Character Development; Teamwork; Communication; Decision-making; Creating Expectations; Conflict Management; Group Development

Northern River Paddling Expeditions: The Original Unsupported Expedition.

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Photo: Annie Socci
A long canoe expedition is the perfect introduction to an expedition mentality. Such canoe expeditions represent, for many an adventurous soul, the most accessible, long, unsupported wilderness trip and a journey with a mystique and cultural quality all its own. Northern Rivers uniquely allow for an exploration of both the history of a region and a great diversity of environments—from mountain to sea, boreal forest to the arctic—and the temptation and rewards of whitewater. This presentation can custom tailored, as a journal of a river expedition or as a “how to” guide.

 

Themes: Rivers; Wilderness Travel; Expedition Mentality; Preparation and Planning; Creating an Expedition Culture; Technical Skills Training

Challenge: The Amundsen Approach

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Photo: The Fram Museum
Norwegian Roald Amundsen is arguably the the most successful polar explorer ever. However, Amundsen's achievements are often discussed only in relation to other explorers or even forgotten. His successes were sometimes shrouded in controversial historical circumstances, his prose understated and his expeditions often lacked the tragic drama that tends to galvanize an explorer's name in the public's consciousness. This presentation tells the inspiring story of not only Amundsen's fantastic accomplishments, but more importantly reveals how and why he was so successful. Years of passionate study and his experience as a team member on the modern Amundsen team for the BBC™/History Channel™ documentary Race to the South Pole uniquely qualify John to present Amundsen's approach to challenge and how it can serve as inspiration to those facing and pursuing challenge today.


Themes: Improving Upon Existing Precedents; Humble Self-Analysis; Creating Margins of Safety Through Detailed Planning and Preparation; Assembling a Team of Virtuosos; Empowering Hands-0ff Leadership; Instilling a Singleness of Purpose; Structuring to Build Upon Successes
 

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