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EXPEDITION VOYAGE: Hosted by Dr. Brent Stephenson, Ornithologist
Building a career from a lifelong passion for birding keeps Dr. Stephenson busy. As does his bird guiding business, which he co-owns. He and his business partner also teamed up and rediscovered the seemingly extinct New Zealand storm petrel, a bird, whose existence has not been documented since the 1800s.
When he is not researching the ecology or mysterious birds for National Geographic, he treks across the globe, utilizing his vast birding knowledge to lecture aboard expedition ships. He has birded all over, from the Arctic to the Antarctic, the Americas, the South Pacific and Africa.
Dr. Stephenson is also an active conservationist and skilled photographer. His wildlife photographs have been published in books, a variety of periodicals, as well as the web.
EXPEDITION VOYAGE: Hosted by Dr. Tony Huntley, Biologist
What makes terrestrial and marine animals tick? How do they control their breathing while sleeping? What makes up the diving physiology of pinnipeds and marine birds? These are the very types of questions that have fascinated Dr. Huntley for the past three decades.
Always the academic, Dr. Huntley earned undergraduate degrees in both biology and chemistry from the University of California, Irvine; a master’s in zoology from California State University at Fullerton; and his doctorate in biology from the University of California at Santa Cruz. The 30-year veteran teacher now serves as Co-Chair of Biological Sciences at Saddleback College in Mission Viejo, California, where he was voted distinguished teacher of the year in 1996.
EXPEDITION VOYAGE: Hosted by Christian Walter, Historian
Mr. Walter’s expertise in anthropology, archaeology, art and history, has enabled him to traverse the globe extensively. He has lectured aboard expedition cruises in the Arctic and Antarctica, as well as throughout the Pacific.
Prior to his expeditionary work, his main interests revolved around Chile, where he conducted field research to compare Easter Island’s petroglyphs with the islands ancient writing system, Rongorongo. Still a passion of his, the Easter Island resident has since 1976, worked to improve the use of the Rapa Nui National Park. Additionally, restoring archaeological sites and artifacts while improving the island’s infrastructure and concepts of tourism are also top of mind for Mr. Walter. In this endeavour, he serves as consultant to Easter Island’s mayor and is vice president of the Easter Island Development Corporation.
This Swiss native was raised in Germany where he studied at the Insituto Alemán. He continued his studies in Chile at the Universidad Austral. He has authored several articles, which have been published in Flemish, French, German, Spanish and English. He is a member of the European Society for Oceanists (ESfO).
EXPEDITION VOYAGE: Hosted by Jarda Versloot, Assistant Expedition Leader
A zealous spirit has driven Ms. Versloot to the remote corners of the world. At age 18, this Amsterdam native, who now resides in South Africa, used her small Holland home as a jumping off point for an ever-growing adventure packed career.
She began with a degree in International Tourism Consultancy. However, it was her love of the ocean and hunger for learning about the wide, wide world around her that brought her to working aboard expedition ships. To date, she has explored all seven continents, including Antarctica, the South Pacific, Papua New Guinea, the Northern Marianas, Japan, Australia, the Indian Ocean, the British Isles and Australia. She is also a certified PADI rescue diver; qualified in first aid; and can drive a Zodiac.
EXPEDITION VOYAGE: Hosted by Robin West, Dive Master/Expedition Leader
Being in nature and on the water are two of Mr. West’s dreams. He has spent the last five years realizing this dream. After obtaining his human movement science degree, he realized his passion for the outdoors and the world’s oceans could not be suppressed. Today, the South African native and German national lives in Holland, but spends the majority of his time aboard expedition ships.
He began making a living doing what he loved by opening two PADI dive centres, both of which work in conjunction with outdoor adventure companies along South Africa’s Garden Route. This enterprise was a fabulous venture, but it proved to not be enough to fill the hunger for adventure that coursed through Mr. West’s veins. As he gained experience, he began working on expedition ships as a Zodiac driver, snorkel & dive master, staff assistant and expedition leader. He now works full-time aboard cruise ships, voyaging to the far reaches of the earth. So far, he has trekked across Antarctica, the South Pacific, Indonesia, Australia, the Indian Ocean, the British Isles and Japan.
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