Eric Philips OAM
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Trail Blazer, Explorer, Adventurer, Musician, AG Lifetime of Adventure
Inspiring Keynote Speaker with themes including Leadership, Self-Reliance, Team Dynamics and Resilience
Eric is an Australian polar explorer, adventurer and guide. He has completed ski expeditions across icecaps on Greenland, Ellesmere Island, Iceland, Svalbard and Patagonia and was the first Australian, together with companion Jon Muir, to ski to both the North Pole and South Pole. He wrote Icetrek. The Bitter Journey to the South Pole and his expeditions have produced four internationally-screened documentary films, most notably, the Emmy Award-winning Greenland production, Chasing the Midnight Sun. He continues to guide commercial North and South Pole expeditions, including the North Pole to Canada leg of Pat Farmer’s Pole to Pole Run in 2011. Eric is co-founder and President of the International Polar Guides Association (IPGA).
Eric’s keynote presentation is a fascinating insight into the world of polar exploration, the limits of endurance and the strength within us all.
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Testimonials
“Eric was awesome, everybody really responded to his presentation and I would love to have him speak again!”- Yarra Valley Grammar School
Presentation Topics
Based on his own hard-won lessons in the most severe environments on Earth, Eric nurtures a firm belief that we can succeed both through the power of emotion and our ability to cultivate foresight. His convictions, coupled with a natural ability to present, have made him a recognized force as a lively raconteur and compelling motivational speaker. Eric’s real-life stories of adventure and survival are steeped in honest and gritty realism and carry casual messages that underpin the structure and success of any team or individual striving for quality results. He has been engaged as a keynote speaker by major organizations in Australia and around the world. Eric is also an experienced team development facilitator.
More about Eric Philips
Eric Phillips is an Australian polar adventurer, designer and author, dedicated to “exploring the vast and varied landscapes that typify our polar regions”. He has explored the largest four icecaps in the world, and was the first Australian, along with companion Jon Muir, to ski both the North and South Poles. Additionally, Eric’s personal adventure experiences and advanced knowledge of human activity in the extreme cold led him to invent ‘Flexi Ski Bindings’ and other niche adventure products.
Eric’s achievements span many different avenues to do with the outdoors, including:
- Founder of the International Polar Guides Association
- Inventor of Flexi Ski Bindings, a ski equipment brand commonly used by the U.S. military
- Former Head of Outdoor Education at Geelong Grammar School’s Timbertop campus
- has worked as a polar guide with the Australian Antarctic Division and Greenpeace and
- He has guided over 20 expeditions to both poles
- In 2013, guided Prince Harry to the South Pole
- His expeditions have featured in four documentary films
- An acclaimed musician
With a career spanning more than 25 years, Eric has worked in many different areas to do with the great outdoors, and has become wildly successful in all.