What I Did on My Summer Vacation: Fought Global Warming

Not that Ben Wessel needed inspiration to pursue environmental initiatives, but his recent journey to the Arctic brought home the monumental challenges of combating climate change.

(Sindre Kinnerod/World Wildlife Fund)

"The Arctic makes you feel so small," said Wessel, a 19-year-old student from Middlebury College in Vermont, who joined 17 other students from around the world as part of the World Wildlife Fund-sponsored trip. "But it's cool, because it makes you feel like you have a big part in this world when you realize that we have such a big impact on glaciers at such a huge scale."

The two-week trip, called "The Voyage for the Future," ended June 21, with the students committing to work together long distance toward a "carbon-conscious" globe. The group, which also included scientists, flew to Oslo, Norway, and made its way to Longyearbyen, where they visited with Jack Kohler, an American glaciologist who works at the Norwegian Polar Institute. From Longyearbyen, everyone boarded a ship, once a research vessel, and journeyed along the coast of Svalbard.

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The students saw glaciers and Arctic animals, experienced perpetual daylight and learned from the world's most esteemed environmental scientists.

These ambassadors for the future, who came from nine nations that included the United States, Canada, Russia and Japan were chosen for their passionate interest in climate change and strong leadership skills.

Life vests are necessary during excursions.

The landscapes were deeply affecting, according to participant John Monaghan.

"Coming from Michigan, I don't get the opportunity to see a lot of mountains," he said. "They were just out of this world. We had 24 hours of sunlight, so the sun never set. Sometimes the landscape looked like heaven."

Monaghan, a junior at the University of Michigan, is vice president of his college's student government. He is raising awareness about energy issues through an event called Energy Future, which investigates how energy has developed over time and will be created in the future. He has also interned with environmental organizations.

A breathtaking view under heavy skies.