Adventurer Mitsuro Oba is planning a 3,800-km trek across the Canadian tundra above the Arctic Circle over a four-month period beginning in February.
Canadian, Norwegian and Russian adventurers will join Oba, 51, on the journey. From Japan, Joichi Kobayashi, 33, will participate. He is a student at the Tohoku University of Community Service and Science.
Oba is currently on a six-year project to trek around the world and educate children about environmental issues.
He traveled 2,500 km across the Greenland ice sheet between March and June. During the journey, he discussed environmental issues via satellite phone with students in six Japanese elementary, junior high and high schools.
In his next trek, Oba will travel south from Ward Hunt Island in Canada's far north to Churchill on Hudson Bay via ski, parasail and sled.
Oba will conduct a survey on the effects of global warming on the habitats of arctic fox and other wildlife, and on the lives of the Inuit.
"I want many people to know what's happening in the region and that the Inuit can no longer sustain their traditional way of life," he said. "I want people to realize how important the environment is."
Oba is the first Japanese to walk solo to both the North and South poles. He runs a school called Earth Academy in his hometown of Mogami, Yamagata Prefecture.
He and other members of his team plan to answer questions from schoolchildren. He is looking for schools in Japan and other nations to participate in the project.
He plans to periodically update his Web site with his latest findings. His home page is at www.global-edventure.net .
