The North Pole, the most pristine place on Earth, has lost the battle to Covid-19. But, luckily, the North Pole knows nothing about it. Today we got an official letter from Barneo AG, a Swiss-owned, Russian-operated drift station on the frozen Arctic Ocean on top of the planet, informing us all that it has been forced to cancel any further attempts to operate the North Pole ice camp this April, 2020, due to Covid-19. God knows: they, the people of #Barneo, tried really hard. Courageous pilots and bulldozer operators, skydivers and mechanics, doctors and cooks, all our friends, whom we have known for so many years were ready. And we: researchers, reporters, runners, skiers, and artists - were so much ready too. Beautiful and absolutely unique artwork created by our #Avannaa and #ArcticWithoutBorders young artists from the most remote Arctic villages, made ready to withstand the most furious Arctic winds, was tightly rolled and prepared to travel to Svalbard. These indigenous kids and teenagers who represent the Arctic were waiting for this moment for a year. But this won’t happen now. The North Pole is now in the fog. And we, humans, are in in the fog too. Because we finally understand how little we know. And this is a good thing after all. What has brought us here? Was it only greed and disregard for hard science? We will find out sometime soon. But one thing is clear: our life, as we have known it, will never be the same. Unlike the North Pole, which will be exactly as it is today. Or even better, if we start polluting a little bit less. But essentially, the North Pole will stay as it is, because this place does not exist, or rather it exists only in our minds. It’s a mathematical concept, and it’s fairy tale. We made it up. Because we, being humans, are good at making stories. So, what will happen now? I think, after all, we, being humans, won’t stop dreaming and telling fairy tales, because this is in our DNA, which is hard to change, at least in the next 5 years from today. But now, in this moment, while we are quarantined in our respective countries, towns, neighborhoods, buildings, apartments and rooms, it’s time to rethink. #covid_19 #northpole https://ift.tt/2xQm36Q
