We turn the compass north on this Dogwatch and thankfully are joined by Andrea Pitzer, a person who not only has been on multiple Arctic expeditions, but has also written Icebound: Shipwrecked at the Edge of the World, a book about one of the early European polar explorers of the region, William Barents. Along with being a writer of books and a freelance journalist, Andrea has a wealth of other experiences that inform her perspectives. In our conversation, we discuss what life was like at the end of the 16th century, what questions Barents and others were trying to answer on their expeditions to the Arctic, and some of how those adventures turned out. Ultimately, Andrea helps us see Barents as someone who made his name not so much for his specific discoveries but for his ability to endure and persist in the face of incredible suffering, which became a template for later polar expeditions. She even points out how Shakespeare included a reference to Barents and his men in Twelfth Night, referring to an “icicle on a Dutchman's beard,” and shows how widely this adventure was known despite the account of the voyages not being published in English at the time.
Given that this episode focuses on the Arctic, our feature is the late James McCarthy, who was a Professor of Biological Oceanography at Harvard’s Museum of Comparative Zoology. H passed away in 2019 at the age of 75. The Harvard Gazette quoted Al Gore:
“Nobody communicated the importance of the climate crisis in the context of the oceans as eloquently and passionately as Jim.”
I definitely looked up to Jim in our interactions, and remember his generosity, passion, and particularly his commitment to understanding and taking action on climate issues. It is now up to us to follow Jim’s lead, to redouble our efforts, and commit each day to take on this challenge.