How did this idea come about?

I have been away from the Greek mountains for about 9 months now and I miss everything about them!

During my placement I worked as a bear field researcher on Mt. Voras, N. Greece. I come from a little village called Panagitsa (literate translation: little tiny Mother Marry) located on the foot of Voras, so I was introduced to the mountain at a very early age.

My brother, Ermis and my sister, Samantha, were raised in the outdoors. Be it walking in the forests looking for yellow-spotted salamanders, searching for herbs in the valleys, camping in remote islands to explore the sea, or just making little streams and dogs houses in our large garden.

Our parents were a couple of those brave people that chose nature over job security – even if that meant that they had to make a living from a combination of bee keeping, weird musical instrument making and fruit picking. They left us the legacy of knowing that if you love something and you work your socks off, you are very likely to get it. They were a bit hippy though, so they also said that if you worked really hard and you still didn\’t get it, it was not meant to be! Something I am still struggling to believe at times..

My father inspired me to look for the stories of heroes because he was a great hero himself. I wanted to create this documentary and let people tell their stories and share their worries and joy of working with nature. And although heroes tend to become famous on their own, I wanted to make sure that their words are heard by young people. In our youth centre in Greece we use this practice to expose children to different personalities, professions and lifestyles. My brother and sister are the qualified teachers here, but I can say that I my opinion inspiration is the single most important thing we can offer to children.

 

So, yes, Bert and I are going to make sure we find those brilliant people in Alaska and we let them speak what they may!