Powered By ENGIE, ‘The Women’s Euro-Arabian North Pole Expedition 2018’ Is Det To Reach New Heights

An international team of women from across the Middle East (Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia) and Europe will set out to ski the last degree to the North Pole in April 2018 in order to promote greater cross-cultural dialogues, to inspire all women to reach beyond the expectation of others and to raise awareness around global warming. The expedition is spearheaded by Felicity Aston MBE, a pioneer of polar exploration and the first woman to ski across the Antarctic alone, covering 1,084 miles in 59 days, and it will see 11 women breaking cultural boundaries from across Europe and the Middle East.

“The world is facing global problems – such as rapid environmental change – that ignore national borders and interests. We need to find solutions together, and women have an important role to play in finding those solutions. My aim in creating this expedition is to address common preconceptions between women in Western and Arabic cultures and to provide some insight that could make a difference in the future” Felicity Aston MBE declared. Florence Fontani, Director of Strategy, Communications & ESR, ENGIE Middle East, South & Central Asia, and Turkey, added: “ENGIE believes in gender parity as a factor of growth and we are committed to women empowerment at all levels. We believe in their extraordinary skills, and we want to encourage them to reach the unreachable. Our sponsorship is yet another commitment that we are firm believers that women can make a difference, be it in science, engineering or embarking on an epic journey. It is also a great opportunity to reaffirm the importance of protecting the environment, a crucial priority for our strategy”.

The team is comprised of 11 exceptional and brave women:

• Felicity Aston MBE (expedition leader)
• Sheikha Asma Al Thani, Qatar
• Ida Olsson, Sweden
• Anisa Al Raissi, Oman
• Mariam Hamidaddin, KSA
• Susan Gallon, France
• Olga Rumyantseva, Russia
• Stephanie Solomonides, Cyprus
• Natasa Briski, Slovenia
• Lamees Nijem, Kuwait
• Misba Khan, UK

ENGIE has developed a policy of gender diversity and has implemented a number of practical initiatives. The Women in Networking groups, The Mentoring for ENGIE programme for women and the Women in Leadership development programme have been created to help foster female talent within the Group and help them achieve their professional goals.

ENGIE is part of The Women’s Empowerment Principles – Equality Means Business initiative, launched in March 2010 by UN Women and UN Global Compact (UNGC), to help the private sector focus on key elements integral to promoting gender equality in the workplace, marketplace and community.

For more information and to follow the journey, please visit: http://www.euroarabianexpedition.com/

Follow us on Twitter to stay tuned: https://twitter.com/ENGIE_MESCAT