Lewis Pugh’s Mind-Shifting Everest Swim - Lewis Pugh on TED

Rating: ***
This video depicts a very interesting story from a man who has experienced our planet’s climate change and the power of mind over matter first-hand.
Lewis Pugh once attempted a swim in the frigid waters of the North Pole. He has participated in cold water swims to draw our attention to swiftly changing climate. Glacial melting in the Himalayas created a melt water lake, called Lake Imja. Lake Imja is located 5300 metres above sea level, on Mount Everest. Pugh decided to attempt what no one has done before: a swim in Lake Imja. On his first attempt to swim in the cold lake, he nearly drowned. He swam too aggressively, quickly losing oxygen in the high altitude. He realized that he needed to shift his tactic from a swim of aggression to a swim of humility.
Pugh creates a powerful metaphor for climate change using his swim. He needed to change his tactics to make it across Lake Imja. Swimming aggressively has worked for him in the past, but he realized it does not always work. In relation to climate change, we as a society have consumed aggressively, but that does not always work. We need a tactical shift in mindset when it comes to climate change. Pugh highlights an important world issue, and provides motivation for those watching to solve it. It is important for us to care for our environment, and for hundreds of years we have been abusing it. As humans, we need to set our minds on preventing climate change. I feel that Pugh`s message is important, and I really believe that we all must work to lessen our impact on nature. As Pugh says, “there is nothing more powerful than the made-up mind.”
I highly recommend this video, as Pugh’s experience conveys a very powerful message about determination.
• Pugh, Lewis. "Lewis Pugh's Mind-Shifting Everest Swim." TED: Ideas worth spreading. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Jan. 2011. .