Introducing FoundLost (Youth Edition) — Life Changing Expeditions for Young People
On a rainy day in 2008, two 15 year olds decided to walk across England to support two causes they cared about.
Nine months later, after a steep learning curve that included plotting the route, sourcing sponsors and training for the grueling 600 km we planned to walk in two weeks, myself and Charles Waite-Roberts successfully completed the challenge. The experience of combining philanthropy and an endurance expedition changed both of our lives for the better.
After the first expedition — I couldn’t get enough. I embarked on expeditions around the world — each more challenging the next — for causes I cared deeply about. In the process, I became the youngest person awarded a Fellowship of the Royal Geographical Society in Asia and studied at Harvard. Whilst on this journey, I recognized that there are myriad youth looking to join tough expeditions with scientific, humanitarian or philanthropic purposes. So in 2014, I founded FoundLost Youth: a community of ambitious youth who want to challenge themselves for a greater purpose.
MAJOR EXPEDITIONS
Since its inception, we have organized and facilitated six major expeditions:
- Walking with a Purpose: a 600 km walk across the base of England, to raise funds and awareness for the Joshua Hellmann Foundation for Orphan Disease and the Cystic Fibrosis Trust (UK).
- The Gobi 2011 Expedition (participant): a 1600 km walk across the Gobi desert, supported by camel.
- Kazakh Nomad Expedition: 3 months living with Kazakh Nomads in Western Mongolia learning their way of life, culture and developing the skills to be a competent nomad.
- Cycling to End Multiple Sclerosis (Race Across Canada): a 6336 km cycling expedition aiming to break the world record for the fastest u24 cycling across Canada whilst raising funds and awareness to fight multiple sclerosis
- Tavan Bogd 2013: a reconnaissance expedition to explore the Tavan Bogd area of Western Mongolia and document the Potanin and Alexander glaciers.
- Land of High Passes: 4 weeks climbing the 19,000 foot Parangla pass to conduct a scientific study of the glacier for research into climate change. Expeditioners became the youngest team ever to summit the pass, walking over 100 kilometers through the Himalayas and learning valuable mountaineering and survival skills.
Our goal is to create pioneering expeditions for young people (up to 25), to test their mettle, and have experiences that redefine their understanding and perception of the world. The experiences are life-changing and life-lasting and greatly alter the way our expeditioners view and encounter the world.
FoundLost alumni have been pushed to the brink. They have managed to survive in the harshest conditions on Earth, whilst working to complete scientific and humanitarian objectives. Their exertions, both physical and mental, in the face of extreme adversity have irreversibly changed them, for the better. Our participants have developed a drive for success and the opportunities have renewed their appreciation for everyday life.
Our goal through FoundLost Youth is to create a community of young people who understand that great things come from hard work and that through purpose and perseverence, anything becomes possible.
Our past participants have gone on to study at the top universities in the world, start their own companies and social impact organizations and taken the essence of exploration, endurance purpose throughout their lives.
My hope is that FoundLost Youth is the first step for our participants on the road to a life full of success, ambition, drive and an undying passion for exploration.
Visit our website for more information about our upcoming expedition to Western Mongolia this Sumemr 2018: www.foundlo.st
