Bernard Voyer
World Explorer
Bernard Voyer has stood at all three poles: South Pole, North Pole and the summit of Mount Everest, a feat that very few people in the world have achieved. He gives a human face to his extraordinary triumphs of determination. He appeals to the audience's imagination, but above all he succeeds in summoning forth listener's desire to excel, to demonstrate their own courage and motivation. He is a walking proof of what can be accomplished with teamwork, co-operation and initiative, living testimony to the importance of finding in ourselves the resources we need to reach higher goals.
A renowned explorer and mountaineer, Bernard Voyer has over 30 years of expeditions and adventures to his credit. He reached the North Pole in 1994, the South Pole in 1996 and, in 1999, the roof of the world, Mount Everest.
He has stood at all three poles of the Earth, and has completed a World Tour via the highest summit of each continent.
Voyer is a popular bilingual speaker and has given more than 750 presentations in North America, Europe, China and Japan. He has given talks to university students for Canadian universities (McGill, Montreal, Queen’s etc), Amherst College in the USA and even in Beijing (China) for the department of Engineering of the University of Tsinghua. He has spoken for a number of organizations including the Ordre national du Québec, the Royal Institute of British Architects, NASA and the Assembly of European Regions.
Voyer’s exceptional achievements have earned him many tributes. He is an Officer of the Order of Canada and the Vice President of the Ordre National du Québec. He has received the decoration of the Legion of Honor, two honorary PhDs and the gold medal of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society.
In 2002 he was recognized by the Governor General of Canada as one of the 50 greatest Canadians of the past 50 years. That same year, Canada Post issued a series of stamps celebrating mountains and as a tribute to him. In May 2003, he was decorated by the Prince of Nepal with the medal of honour and received the Jubilee medal from Her Majesty the Queen of England. Hailed as one of Canada’s Best Explorers by the Canadian edition of TIME magazine, Voyer was honoured by his hero Sir Edmund Hillary in 2005 for his outstanding career as an explorer and mountain climber. In 2007, he was named Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur by Presidential decree and in 2008, he was appointed Honorary Lieutenant-Colonel of the 2nd Canadian Rangers Patrol Group. In 2009, Bernard Voyer was chosen as one of the 30 Canadian figures to carry the Olympic torch on a segment of its 106-days journey across Canada.
He is vice-president of the Board of the Ordre National du Québec and, given his commitment to and love of nature, a member of the Board of Nature Conservancy of Canada. Mr. Voyer is also Vice-President of the Fondation canadienne pour le dialogue des cultures. Working with young people remains one of his priorities, and he is a member of the Board of Young Canadians Challenge. He has written a book entitled Aniu, from Snowflake to Iceberg, published in French and English by Éditions Névé.
-
Step by Step to The Summit: The World Tour
Companies are making huge changes in their cultures and their ways of doing things these days. In an uncertain economic climate, faced with increasingly fierce competition, they have to cope with a whole new host of challenges. Organizations and individuals must adapt quickly to change and work harder than ever before. Teamwork is essential. It is just these strengths that have been key factors in all Bernard Voyer’s expeditions.
Bernard Voyer gives a human face to his extraordinary triumphs of determination. He appeals to the audience’s imagination, but above all he succeeds in summoning forth his listeners’ desire to excel, to demonstrate their own courage and motivation. He is walking proof of what can be accomplished with teamwork, co-operation and initiative, living testimony to the importance of finding within ourselves the resources we need to reach our goals.
His presentation is illustrated with images from his expeditions. Step by step, he has conquered the most inhospitable places on Earth: the Antarctic, the Himalayas, the Arctic, Greenland, the Sahara ... What motivates him to strive for such difficult goals? Why reach so high and so far? Where does he find the commitment to his goals, and the ability to use teamwork to achieve them? Where does he find the strength and energy he needs? Bernard Voyer reveals the answers, sharing his passion.
Bernard Voyer reveals the answers, sharing his passion.
-
Everyone in our organization was touched in his or her own way by your experiences. The heartfelt praise from all who heard you is eloquent testimony to the success of the event.
-
Your presentation and expertise gave our congress an added touch of quality.
-
Voyer had already established himself as Canada's most accomplished extreme explorer [...] Voyer's many expeditions have made his name synonymous with outdoor exploration and a sought-after inspirational speaker.
-
I want to again express my thanks to you and Nathalie for taking the time to speak to the astronaut corps. You have done many amazing things and we can all learn from your experiences! I hope that we will be able to get you to come back in the future as our Exploration Branch moves toward preparing astronauts for moon and Mars missions.
-
On behalf of the Embassy, please allow me to thank you again for a truly fascinating presentation, brilliantly delivered and full of passion for what can only be described as the ultimate quest for life. You inspired the audience to reach a higher plateau, to expand their potential and you demonstrated what a determined human spirit is capable of in this world. We admire your resolve to achieve the impossibly high goals you have set for yourself in the face of enormous challenges and we thank you for your generosity in sharing your experiences; your passion; your life with us.
-
January 2005Aniu: From Snowflake to Iceberg
Aniu, From Snowflake to Iceberg is a hymn to nature in its most powerful incarnations. It is an inspired first-hand account and a poetic tribute that transcends the imagination and offers insight into the movements of glaciers, the chronicle of the sea ice, the secrets of inlandsis and the wanderings of icebergs.
Bio
Explorateur et alpiniste confirmé, il compte à son actif 30 années d’expéditions et d’aventures. Il a entre autre rejoint le pôle Nord en 1994, le pôle Sud en 1996 et en 1999, il se tenait debout sur le plus haut sommet de la terre, l’Everest.
En plus de connaître les trois pôles, il a réalisé le Tour du Monde en escaladant le plus haut sommet de chacun des continents.
Conférencier bilingue recherché, Bernard Voyer a prononcé plus de 750 conférences, en Amérique du Nord, en Europe, en Chine et au Japon. Il a donné des conférences à des étudiants de plusieurs universités canadiennes (McGill, UdM, Queen’s, HEC etc), pour le Collège Ahmerst situé aux Etats-Unis et même pour le département d’ingénierie de l’université de Tsinghua à Beijing en Chine.
Reconnu par la Gouverneure générale du Canada en 2002, comme l’un des 50 plus grands canadiens des 50 dernières années. La même année, Postes Canada émettait une série de timbres sur la montagne, lui rendant hommage. En mai 2003, il fut décoré par le Prince du Népal de la médaille d’honneur et reçu la médaille du Jubilé de sa Majesté la Reine d’Angleterre. En 2005, Bernard Voyer se voyait honoré par Sir Edmund Hillary, pour sa carrière d’explorateur et d’alpiniste. En 2007, il a été nommé chevalier de la Légion d’honneur par un décret présidentiel et en 2008, a été nommé Lieutenant-colonel honoraire du 2e Groupe de patrouille des Rangers canadiens.
En avril 2008, il fut conférencier invité au premier « Entretien international » de l’Ordre national du Québec sous le thème « Les secrets de la glace ». Il y a présenté une conférence dialoguée sur l’évolution passée et présente des calottes glaciaires polaires. En mai 2008, il a été conférencier invité par le Royal Institute of British Architects à Londres sur le thème « Architecture and Climate Change ». Il fut aussi conférencier invité pour les astronautes de la NASA. En novembre 2009, il fut conférencier invité dans le cadre de l’assemblée générale 2009 de l’Assemblée des Régions d’Europe dont le thème était « L’innovation régionale : une solution énergétique responsable pour la croissance et l’emploi en Europe » . En hiver 2009, il a été choisi parmi 30 personnalités canadiennes pour porter la flamme olympique durant son relais pancanadien.
Son parcours exceptionnel lui a valu de nombreuses distinctions dont les titres d’Officier de l’Ordre du Canada et de Chevalier de l’Ordre national du Québec, Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur, deux doctorats honorifiques et la médaille d’or de la Société géographique royale du Canada.
Vice-président de l’Ordre national du Québec, son engagement et son respect envers la nature l’amène à siéger sur le conseil d’administration de Conservation de la Nature du Canada. Il est également vice-président de la Fondation canadienne pour le dialogue des cultures. L’engagement auprès des jeunes reste pour lui une priorité, il siège au conseil de Défi Jeunesse Canada. Il a écrit un livre, intitulé Aniu, du flocon de neige à l’iceberg, publié en français et en anglais aux Éditions Névé.
Tweet
