Edmund Hillary - The ascent of man
Sir Edmund Hillary, the modest beekeeper who conquered Mt Everest on 29 May 1953 is no more today. 1919 - 2008 - An era has come to an end. Knighted for his achievement on the big brother of all mountains (approximately 8,882 meters), the likeable Aucklander has done his bit and more for the sprit of adventure and the cause of conservation.
In his own words
“The whole world around us lay spread out like a giant relief map, I am a lucky man. I have had a dream and it has come true, and that is not a thing that happens often to men.”
Yes he had a dream and he made it happen. He had bigger dreams too - environmental conservation. Synonymous with Everest to the average layman, not many people know that he was a vocal advocate and strident driver of anti pollution and eco-conservation efforts not just in his homeland but also in Nepal, so much so the Nepalese Government conferred honorary citizenship in 2003.
He did yeoman service to the conservation cause educating people on the need for preserving nature’s choicest treasures. The Everest region suffered on a major scale from the rubbish and waste left behind by the numerous trekkers and climbers. Cutting of trees for fuel angered him so much that he suggested closing down Everest for five years to give it enough breathing space.
He was president of the New Zealand Peace Corps and his high profile helped him leverage media to aid the conservation efforts. The humanist in him drove him to start the Sir Edmund Hillary Himalayan Trust, an endeavor responsible for close to 30 schools, more than a dozen clinics, two hospitals, a couple of airfields, and numerous foot bridges, water pipelines and other facilities, all aimed at providing a better quality of life for the resilient Sherpas without whom an Everest expedition would be a mirage in reality.
For someone who said about climbing mountains “It’s the intense effort, the giving of everything you’ve got.”, he had nothing more to give as he left no stones unturned to ensure his conservation campaigns shook the delusional cobwebs from people’s mind and inspired a whole generation in Nepal and elsewhere to put their hands up for the well being of the planet.
In simple words, Sir Edmund Hillary’s life represents the ascent of man.May his tribe and ilk increase.
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