No scientific background is required to be
selected for the Antarctic trip: However, a love
of the environment and the ability to complete
some of the physical tasks, such as collecting
samples, climbing glaciers and enduring bitter
cold, is paramount.
“It is hard to work in cold environments
so people that ... perhaps work well under
pressure, work well when they’re tired, that’s
actually quite key,” Jones-Williams said,” and
to actually ask questions, and people that are
really hungry to get as much as they can out of
this experience.
“It’s really people that kind of respect the
scientific process,” she added.
The five will stay in Airbnb’s in Chile for
their training for about two weeks and will
stay at a camp provided by Antarctic
Logistics & Expeditions in Antarctica for
about a week or so.
Airbnb will partner with Ocean Conservancy to
use the research for advocacy.
Nick Mallos, a conservation biologist and ocean
debris specialist for Ocean Conservancy, called
it an “incredible opportunity,” and noted that
the group has long worked with “citizen science
volunteers” to help clean up the environment.
“We’ve seen the power of when you train
and empower individuals to perform science,
they can generate invaluable information
and data that ultimately then can form
solutions,” he said.
Online: airbnb.com/sabbatical