About

The ExplorersWeb identity

Keep it real!

ExplorersWeb was founded over 15 years ago by Tom and Tina Sjögren, the first couple to complete the Three Poles Challenge by climbing Mount Everest and skiing to both the North and South Poles. Talking with climbers at Everest base camp and explorers around the world, Tom and Tina became frustrated with involvement of commercial expedition organizers in the world of exploration and the bias in the media coverage of exploration, which they saw as focusing on well-funded Anglo-Saxon expeditions and ignored the achievements of others. They launched ExplorersWeb – “ExWeb” for short – to help rectify this. In Tina’s words:

We started ExWeb because back then it was hard for independent explorers/climbers who wanted to do Everest, the poles, etc., to find resources and information. And we also wanted to give a stage to the folks who did things the hard way. Mainstream media tends to promote locals and/or rich guys buying ads in their magazines. ExWeb makes sure credit is given where credit is due.

The internet has evolved almost beyond recognition over the past decade and a half. With it, ExWeb and its sister sites have also undergone several relaunches. The most recent site renewal in April 2018 has given the site a clean and modern look, while ensuring that all previous articles from the site’s long history remain available.

The community

ExplorersWeb is a community of athletes, scientists, dreamers, wanderers and above all, explorers. Registered members of the community are free to publish exploration and adventure related articles in the From the Community section. This provides a venue for lesser-known explorers to publicize their activities to the wider community. Although we may edit such articles for brevity and clarity, we will not substantially alter the content without the author’s permission. We do, however, reserve the right to remove any articles that we deem inappropriate. New site features are rolling out on a weekly basis, and we have plans to introduce social networking and other community functions soon.

How to contribute

Are you doing something new? An expedition with a twist or an edge? If so, we need to hear about it. We cover exploration, adventures and journeys in all extreme environments – oceans, jungles, deserts, mountains and the Arctic. You are free to publish in the From the Community section, but if you think your adventure warrants an interview or ExWeb-written story, please get in touch.

Jerry Kobalenko
Jerry Kobalenko is the editor of ExplorersWeb. Canada’s premier arctic traveler, he has logged over 12,000 miles in the North over more than forty skiing, hiking, and kayaking expeditions. Both a photographer and a writer, his work appears in publications around the world, including National Geographic, Time, Outside and Conde Nast Traveler. His book, The Horizontal Everest, “…is refreshingly free of the hubris that marks much adventure writing,” writes The New York Times Book Review. “The reader never feels assaulted by Kobalenko’s daring, only inspired by it.” His photo book, Arctic Eden, was awarded the Williams Mills Prize for best polar book of the last two years. He has just finished a literary travel book on Labrador.
In 2018, Jerry was awarded the Polar Medal by the Governor General of Canada, in recognition of his love, passion, and knowledge of the North, which he shares through his many writings and talks.

When he is not on an extreme journey, Jerry lives in Canmore, Alberta with his wife Alexandra, with whom he shares many adventures.