Dream trip to Ice

Landcare Research Rutherford Discovery fellow Priscilla Wehi will travel on an all-female...
Landcare Research Rutherford Discovery fellow Priscilla Wehi will travel on an all-female expedition to the Antarctic next year. Photo: Gerard O'Brien.
Dunedin woman Dr Priscilla Wehi will fulfil a lifelong dream when she joins an all-female expedition to the Antarctic.

Dr Wehi, a conservation biologist at Landcare Research, will be among 80 women working in Stemm (science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine) fields who will  sail to the Antarctic from Argentina in February as part of the Homeward Bound programme.

Homeward Bound, the largest all-female expedition to the Antarctic, aimed to raise awareness around the low representation of women in leadership positions in Stemm, Dr Wehi said.

"It is quite amazing to be going with this group of women from Stemm around the world. The trip is absolutely a lifelong dream."

Dr Wehi,  a mother of three,  considered leaving the industry "many times".

She did not know if gender inequality had improved since she completed her PhD in 2006, but  the expedition and research into gender bias was indicative of the fact the problem was being talked about, she said.

Homeward Bound leader Fabian Dattner, of Australia, said the expedition would be the culmination of a 12-month leadership programme.

"Collaborative teams of women, over the next 12 months, will focus on developing the leadership capabilities to influence significant issues at a global level including climate change, deforestation, species extinction and quality of life."

The visit to the Antarctic would be "where the rubber hits the road" in terms of understanding the importance of environmental leadership, Dr Wehi said.

"What we will see there is the effects of what we do on what many think is a pristine environment."

The ecologist, whose interests included the disappearance of Maori dogs and terrestrial alpine crickets, was also looking forward to seeing the continent’s wildlife.

She would be joined on the expedition by Environmental Engineer Amanda Kirk, of Ohope, and New Zealand Forest Research Institute economist Sandra Velarde Pajares.

Dr Wehi  plans to share her experiences in the Antarctic with "as many people as I can" upon her return in March.

"If we as women in the Stemm sector really believe that collaboration and discussion is vital to the way to go forward for the future of the environment then that’s what we have to do."

margot.taylor@odt.co.nz

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