“We’re the first generation to feel the devastating effects of climate change,” said Voice of the Glaciers award-winning filmmaker and professional adventurer Sindre Kolbjørnsgard. “Some people don’t believe climate change is real because they don’t see it, but here’s the evidence.”
The documentary received 10 awards all over the world from New York, Canada, Australia, and Europe. After 11 months of planning, the documentary was shot during a three-week expedition of four young adventurers on the Arctic Island of Svalbard in 2019.
They went to the exact locations where glacier photos were shot by expeditions in the 1800s and early 1900s. In some photos, glaciers had completely disappeared.
Kolbjørnsgard is a self-taught filmmaker and professional adventurer. He’s also an ambassador for Canadian outdoor gear manufacturer Arc’teryx and other Norwegian and Scandinavian brands.
“I’m living as a professional adventurer and leading expeditions all over the world. I’ve climbed some of the highest mountains and sailed the Atlantic Ocean. I want to help people understand that climate change is real from what I’ve seen,” said Kolbjørnsgard.
You can see his latest adventures on his Instagram page.
When early explorers came to the island, glaciers were massive. They probably thought this is how Scandinavia must have looked during the Ice Age. However, Svalbard has been one of the worst places on Earth hit by climate change.
Since 1961, temperatures on the island have steadily increased by five degrees.
“When temperatures start to rise just one degree this was enough to melt ice, glaciers, and permafrost during the summer on Svalbard. Sunlight that used to reflect off these surfaces back to outer space is absorbed as heat into the ocean and on the land causing temperatures to accelerate higher,” said Kolbjørnsgard.
Even explorers during the early 1900s saw how glaciers were slowly melting every year without a break on Svalbard. Glaciers have been melting faster on the island than anywhere else on Earth.
When comparing older pictures, you can see how the melting glaciers shrank and modified the landscape as the climate on the island became warmer.
“Voice of the Glaciers is probably the most well-documented expedition on Svalbard showing how climate change is affecting glaciers on the island,” said Kolbjørnsgard.
One of the most important things about this movie is that it’s more focused on telling the story of how the people living on Svalbard are seeing climate change and how it’s affected their livelihoods.
Disappearing glaciers also mean that there are no more melting glaciers, so rivers stop flowing. This would have a disastrous effect on people and wildlife that depend on these rivers for freshwater.
The great thing about the documentary is that people can come to their own conclusions about climate change rather than being presented with a bunch of facts. However, there are still lots of skeptical people about climate change.
“I know this because of the comments I’ve seen when posting pictures of melting glaciers due to climate change. They’ll say my pictures have been manufactured,” said Kolbjørnsgard.
To make those people understand what’s happening, you need to show them more places on Earth where climate change has destroyed the landscape. There also needs to be more real stories like his documentary showing how people living on the island are dealing with climate change.
If climate change continues, some scientific models predict that the glaciers on Svalbard that have been with us for thousands of years could be gone in less than 100 years.
“I hope Voice of the Glaciers makes you realize, that no matter where you live, your actions influence climate change and can destroy places thousands of miles away like Svalbard. It’s up to all of us to take action now and stop climate change before it’s too late,” said Kolbjørnsgard.
Voice of the Glaciers can seen for free on YouTube. For further information or to schedule an interview contact Sindre Kolbjørnsgard at +47 45201580 or Post@sindreko.com.
SOURCE Voice of the Glaciers
