2041
WORKING TOWARD
THE PRESERVATION OF

ANTARCTICA

Recently, many people, including Saudis, have visited Antarctica, which is one of the most beautiful and challenging places on our planet. An amazing and incredibly unique continent, Antarctica is a desert with vaulting mountains, immense glaciers, active volcanoes and awe-inspiring vistas. There is also a treasure trove of minerals, including vast oil fields beneath the icy continent.
Experts say that Antarctica is a cornerstone of the planet’s global ecosystem, a window to the world, a symbol of peace and one of the greatest classrooms and laboratories on earth.
Abdulrahim Turkistani, a young Saudi petroleum engineer, recently visited the continent as part of the Inspire Antarctic Expedition (IAE) program led by Sir Robert Swan, the first man to walk on the North and South Poles.
Turkistani was overexcited to see the magnificent landscape. “It is the most beautiful and enchanting place in the world. I cannot explain its beauty. I would say it’s an embodiment of paradise; an untouched and unblemished beauty on earth,” he told Arab News.
The lifetime visit gave him an opportunity to experience the effect of global warming. “I saw the dangerous effect of global warming on Antarctica as it caused the melting of ice sheets and glaciers four times the size of Bahrain. Experts say countries like the Maldives would disappear from the map because of global warming and the melting of ice. The Maldives’ president had gone to the United Nations and urged the international community to take more effective measures to reduce global warming.”
Shell, where Turkistani is working, sent him and an Egyptian colleague to join the expedition as part of the energy firm’s leadership training and environment awareness program for highflying professionals. They were part of a 60-member team.
“Our company wanted us to be kept abreast with environmental issues. We, as engineers in the petroleum industry, have to be aware of so many things such as global warming and the effect of CO2,” he said.
The expedition was organized by 2041, a nongovernmental organization (NGO) whose name is based on a global treaty that prohibits drilling and mining in Antarctica until 2041. The NGO, which was founded by Swan, works for the continuation of the Antarctic Treaty so that the last great wilderness on earth remains unexploited.
No place on earth provides a more demanding environment to face the ultimate leadership challenge. Turkistani embarked on the two-week expedition on board the Sea Spirit, a 90 meter long fully equipped ship.
Turkistani’s team included people of 30 different nationalities, including Chinese, Indians, Canadians and Israelis. “Some of them were surprised to see a Saudi among them aspiring to become a world citizen,” he said, adding that the team included the first Emirati woman to visit Antarctica.
“Our team included professionals from various industries such as Coca Cola China; UAE telecom giant, Etisalat; Vitol from the USA and Singapore and KPMG in USA. It also took on board leading sustainability experts and Antarctic scientists,” he said, adding that they belonged to different nationalities.
Turkistani, who holds a bachelor’s degree in computer systems engineering and a master’s degree in communication engineering from UK universities, is a self-motivated person with great ambitions. He says he came back from Antarctica with a lot of enthusiasm inspired by Sir Swan, the internationally renowned environmentalist.
“It reminded me of my great responsibility toward my country, the Middle East, and the whole world, and making people aware of the important issue of global warming. Most people still do not know how dangerous it is,” he added.
Turkistani hopes that more Saudi youth would visit Antarctica to see the continent’s marvelous beauty and get inspired to work for the protection of the environment.
“My message to Saudi youth is that they should aspire to visit Antarctica to know what is happening there. They should also try to become world citizens by understanding world problems and working together to solve them,” he added.
Turkistani stressed the need to use petroleum and other hydrocarbon resources in an environment- friendly manner. “When the Japanese make a product, they include a manual along with it so that people know how to use it, because they think their product should be used properly to get a maximum effect. As oil is our main product, we should also prepare a manual for people to learn how to use this resource with responsibility,” he said.
Ever since he returned to the Kingdom after participating in the expedition, Turkistani has conducted a number of presentations at schools and companies in order to make people, especially students and youth, aware of the environmental issues. He aims to encourage them to make their contributions toward reducing global warming by cutting down the use of water and air-conditioning devices.
“We have to know that the cost of water in the Middle East is five times more than in Europe. It is very expensive in terms of money and in terms of producing CO2,” he explained.
Saudi Arabia spends billions of Saudi Riyals every year on desalination of water and on supplying potable water to its residents. “People should use water carefully without wasting it. By saving water, you are saving energy and reducing CO2; you are also saving a lot of money. This is also part of our religion as there are so many Hadiths of the Prophet (peace be upon him) that instruct Muslim faithful not to waste water. Now, it has become fashionable and an important issue,” he said.
According to Turkistani, only a few people visit the continent every year. The air travel distance from Saudi Arabia to Antarctica is 11,468.59 km or 7,126.25 miles.
“There are many things to see there. You can see icebergs in so many amazing colors and sizes, different types of migratory birds and hundreds of thousands of penguins gather here to breed and feed. You can also see whales, seals and albatross. Krill occupies a central place in the Antarctic ecosystem and is the basic food source for many predators,” he said.
Since 2003, Swan and his 2041 NGO have been taking an international team of corporate leaders, environmentalists, entrepreneurs, teachers and young people on a journey through the Antarctic Peninsula, visiting incredible locations and sharing his insights and personal experiences of this unique continent.
“It was a very long trip. We had to fly 16 hours from the UK to reach Brazil then another eight hours to reach Argentina. We had to face a lot of challenges, especially blizzards. We also faced difficulty crossing the Drake passage, which is the toughest challenge for sailors. We took two days to cross the passage. In the mean time, some people got sick.”
The Leadership on the Edge program gives an opportunity for participants to learn from Swan’s personal experiences as a leader from the past three decades of successes and failures to develop their leadership skills.
“The program helps equip people to become inspired leaders who deliver extraordinary results in a rapidly changing and challenging environment,” said Turkistani.
The program also helps build team spirit and leadership skills and provides participants with a suitable environment to debate key issues facing Antarctica and the planet at large.