Climb every mountain

This article was published with The Pioneer

On June 23 2018

Explorer Mike Libecki and his daughter Lilliana are on a mission to make a difference to one remote area at a time, says Shilpi Seth

Mike Libecki has done it all, from conquering the world’s highest mountains, backcountry skiing in Antarctica, touching the remotest area of the world, exploring the unnamed  and  surviving  extreme climate conditions — the list is seemingly endless. He has completed more than 75 expeditions to places in Afghanistan, Antarctica, Guyana, China, Madagascar, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and Polynesia. He has been unstoppable and has no plans to slow down in the future. Certainly, a throwback to the era of great explorers and uncharted lands.What makes these expeditions even more exciting is the fact that his 15-year-old daughter, Lilliana Libecki, has joined him for six of them. Not surprisingly, just like her father, she is an adventure enthusiast and wants to carry his legacy forward.Says Mike, “The expeditions we do always have a ‘give back’ component, asking ourselves, what are we doing for this planet, both around the world as global citizens and for the local communities” He wants his daughter to grab these opportunities and also appeals to her generation to think about what Gandhi said years ago, “What are we doing to change the world Are we being the change we want to see”As part of their attempt to give back this time round, the duo tied up with Dell as part of its “Give Back” Project to work in the remote village of Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh. The initiative aims at providing better education, enhancing the quality of lives and creating hope for the future with the possibilities that technology and internet can offer. Through this initiative, 20 new laptops and printers have been installed and provided with internet access to impart computer education to the kids and the teachers in Tawang. They have also installed new solar power, panels and solar generators for the computer centre and 14 additional buildings in the community. Lilliana says that the love and compassion she shares with people while working in India is her “pinch me” moment. Mike says that nature never fails to amaze him and illustrates it with an example. He says, “While working on the solar panels outside in the field, I suddenly looked up and saw a huge double rainbow. When we are caught in these moments, we think about this gift called life and where did it come from. In that moment, you don’t think about religion, politics or anything. There is just one thought in mind about the reality in front of you — this is amazing. And travelling with my daughter and seeing things through her eyes, those are my special moments.”Talking about India and what he takes back from here, Mike says, “I have been reminded that we are all one person, and that we all share the same things. We want to be healthy, happy with family and friends and share the idea that we are in this together as a team.” He minces no words about   how the politicians have raised high walls engulfing countries and says, “It is haunting!”Travel is important to Mike and he highlights its importance by quoting prophet Mohammed, “Don’t tell me how educated you are but tell me how much you have traveled.” So as a father, he believes travelling the world is quintessential and can be the best education. “We are trying to give back, that’s our goal and if we are succeeding in that by sharing our knowledge with the locals and changing our own perspectives too in the process, then that’s what we want. The humanitarian work is to uplift the most remote places of the world and a little work can make a lot of impact,” he asserts.It is not just the advanced world that has something to offer to the remote areas, the latter too can give a lot back.  Mike mentions, “The organic livelihood that the people there lead needs to be emulated. We need to learn how not to use chemicals, plastic and everything that is harmful to nature because life can be led without these toxic things.” He appeals to people to be mindful and not use a straw or anything plastic the next time they go out to eat. “We all can work as a team to save this planet,” he asserts.While this is important for the future, going back in the past, Lilliana did not find it unusual to have a climber and explorer for a father. She says, “As a child I always thought it was normal to have an explorer dad but as I grew up, I realized it wasn’t normal and I am really grateful because he gives me these opportunities and experiences to go around the world.”Naturally with her being involved with climbing enormous mountains, it becomes unavoidable that the teenager misses out on school and homework. However, she ensures that she is always updated and is thankful to everyone who has supported her travelling lifestyle. Lilliana has been to 23 countries and her father points out that just to be able to travel is a privilege. “It is very special lifestyle, million people in this world haven’t done a part of what she has done at the age of 15.” As a father, Mike, too, ensures that there is a balance between school, house chores, taking care of the family and adventure. He has issued the diktat that she has to get straight A’s to earn the privilege of the wandering lifestyle.While Lilliana inherited her love for expeditions, for Mike it was his growing up years amid mountains, surrounded by forests and nature and a passion for mathematics that set him on the path. Young Mike combined the love of climbing and exploration with mathematics — it was a mystery to solve these equations of expeditions for him. “It came naturally, growing close to nature, learning about conservation, taking care of the planet and making it a healthy place, a sense of responsibility grew in me, something I was really passionate about it,” shares Mike.  “This is what I call ‘Organic Enthusiasm’, something I love. For example, if we go to get ice cream together and I choose chocolate and you choose mango, we don’t know why we love that flavor, we just do. Similarly,  climbing and exploration are what I love but I don’t know why.”Mike has a motivating spell behind every expedition and says, “For me life is everything, including people, food, culture, experiences, the human emotions like laughter, anger, sadness, everything. The memories that we create while travelling the world are one of the most significant meanings. A simple answer would be that this creates so much joy and climbing has taught me so much to be a human, a global citizen, a father and a child of mother earth.” Lilliana adds, “I’m motivated to explore the unseen while having a good time and motivating more people to travel the world and care about the environment.”Mike mentions that with every expedition, he experiences a range of human emotions like homesickness, joy, gratitude, appreciation and there is nothing more powerful than these. “Without memories, there is no reality. If we cannot remember anything, we have nothing. Thinking about creating powerful moments pushes us to think and care about the global community and to do something for it.”Not just climbing, Lilliana aims to carry forward her father’s legacy in other ways as well. In order to make the world a better place for the underprivileged and to make the privileged ones realize the importance of things, Lilliana has started a non-profit organisation called The Joyineering. Mike explains the choice of  name, “We want to create ‘Joy’ and education and new things that create joy.  If you take the words ‘Engineering’, and ‘Mountaineering’, they mean planning, preparing, setting goals and suffering to make it to the summit. These things aren’t guess work but need mathematics and skills. The end product is success. If we look at Joyineering, it has all the elements, and you have to push, train, and prepare yourself.” Lilliana reshaped her goals after her first humanitarian expedition to Afghanistan.Mike will soon  be embarking on another climbing expedition to China, which is a highly demanding expedition with new terrains and extreme conditions. Lilliana won’t be accompanying him. However, the father daughter duo will undertake another humanitarian project in Philippines later this year. Mike will head to Saudi Arabia to climb in the fall next year.  More power to them.

Link- https://www.dailypioneer.com/2018/vivacity/climb-every-mountain.html