Alumni News August 2025
A round up of Alumni News from our August 2025 Explorer newsletter.
Diana Davis (Conservation Ambassador 2017)
Diana has taken up the role of Head of Conservation at the Natural History Museum in London.
“It’s an exciting move for me and the NHM has an amazing collection that includes specimens collected by the Heroic Age expeditions to Antarctica. They also undertake a lot of research work with a mission of making advocates for the planet.”
Emily Fryer (Conservator winter 2013)
In June, Emily competed on Lego Masters: Grand Masters of the Galaxy (Australia) with teammate Sarah Mosley.
The pair teamed up with Finland’s Oskari and Aura in Episode 2, winning the challenge with their “Holidaying Chicken” build — a quirky creation that launched LEGO eggs mid-air and flew the furthest of 17.9 metres.
Lawrence Rothwell (Inspiring Explorer 2023)
In July, Lawrence sailed a 41-foot yacht from the Bay of Islands (NZ) to Fiji. The voyage offered time to reflect on how far exploration has come and how the discoveries of the past still guide us today.
“Having recently completed this voyage on a 41’ yacht, this is exactly what I experienced. There is a lot of time to reflect while on an offshore passage, and one of the questions that gently nibbled at me for just over a week was . . . How? . . . How on God’s earth did someone discover the power of magnetism, and how did we as a species manage to harness this power for navigation?
Taking on challenges of this nature makes you respect those who came before you to make your experience easier. Christopher Columbus’s voyage to the Americas, Ferdinand Magellan’s circumnavigation of the globe, and Roald Amundsen’s expedition to the South Pole have all lain trodden paths along which we can all now venture. These great people of history have made adventure accessible to your average scaffolder who sailed from New Zealand to Fiji in July of 2025.”
Brando Yelavich (Inspiring Explorer 2018)
Brando’s documentary Wildboy won Best Editing and Best Cinematography (New Zealand) at the 2025 Doc Edge Awards.
The film follows his decade long journey of personal challenges, capturing key moments from his expedition with the Trust to Greenland and beyond.Along the way, Brando reflects on mental health, identity, and purpose, becoming an ambassador for ADHD. Brando was part of our Inspiring Explorers Expedition ™ in 2018 across the Greenland Ice Cap, where he filmed key footage used in the documentary.
Marcus Waters (Past staff)
Marcus has been appointed Chief Executive Officer at Cycle Journeys.
“I’m excited to join the team at New Zealand’s largest cycle tour business, creating the very best end-to-end cycle trail experiences!”
Gord Macdonald (Building Conservator and Design Team member)
Gord Macdonald recently completed his PhD in Archaeology and Ancient History with the University of Leicester, UK. Gord’s doctoral research examined the impacts of climate change on polar heritage sites, and his thesis included the development of a new risk assessment methodology for Antarctic heritage, using the historic sites in the Ross Sea Region as case studies. This risk assessment methodology has now been adopted by the Antarctic Working Group on Climate Change, whose members include representatives from UK, Norway, Argentina, Australia, and New Zealand, with the Trust as expert consultants.
Isobel Ewing (Inspiring Explorer 2017)
Isobel completed the Midnight Sun Marathon in Tromsø, Norway, , finishing in 3 hours 42 minutes.
“Two days later my boyfriend asked me to marry him at the top of the Sherpatrappa, a beautiful hiking track above the town. Quite a full circle moment being so familiar with the stories of Nansen and Amundsen – delighted to have this milestone celebrated in a place so deeply connected to exploration! Shared a toast with Amundsen later.”
Congratulations Isobel!
Rose Foster-Dryer (Summer VR intern 2017/18)
Rose celebrated graduating with her PhD in Antarctic Studies. Rose will be continuing at UC as a postdoc working with Michelle LaRue and Wolfgang Rack to investigate wintertime population dynamics of emperor penguins using satellite imagery.
Arek Aspinwall (Education Assistant)
Arek is currently analysing 65,000+ time-lapse images to uncover how Weddell seals respond to human disruption near the Scott Base Redevelopment.
By tracking hormone levels and seal counts, Arek is helping shape the future of Antarctic protection!
Bridget Kruger (Inspiring Explorer 2018)
Bridget recently represented Australasia at the World Body Surfing Championships.
She’s now heading back to Antarctica as a Field Training Officer at Davis Station with the Australian Antarctic Division.
