Arctic Explorer 

Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, London, Earl draws on an extraordinary breadth of leadership experience from corporate coaching to wilderness expeditions, delivering valuable new ideas that are guaranteed to challenge and inspire; even change the culture and future of your enterprise. Earl’s unique insights come from being both leader and survivor at the outer edge of human endurance. He introduces valuable lessons from little-known stories of superhuman achievements in the wilderness and from his doctoral research into the stories behind history’s most important leaders. 

Today's Most Challenging Thinkers on Leadership

Professor the Hon Barry Jones AO writes: ‘Earl de Blonville is a great, but unsung, Australian hero, courageous, strong, confident, and with outstanding leadership qualifications’.

Arctic explorer and Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, London, Earl draws on an extraordinary breadth of leadership experience from corporate coaching to wilderness expeditions, delivering valuable new ideas that are guaranteed to challenge and inspire; even change the culture and future of your enterprise. 

About Earl

One of today’s outstanding thought leaders, Earl’s unique insights come from being both leader and survivor at the outer edge of human endurance. He has learned what really matters in life and how it impacts on leadership. He introduces valuable lessons from little-known stories of superhuman achievements in the wilderness and from his doctoral research into the stories behind history’s most important leaders (not the ones you may think!). 

Speaking honestly about the incredible challenges he has faced on high profile and often audacious projects, he reveals how exceptional results often come from knowing that daring to dream big and risk a fall is what defines those most likely to succeed. His ideas will provoke people to wonder: what if limits don’t exist? 

Major Expeditions

His major expeditions include the first sea kayak circumnavigation of Tasmania (1,600km), and the first northerly sea kayak crossing of infamous Bass Strait. In the Himalayas, he led the first commercial white-water raft descent of the mighty Sun Kosi River. In 1986, Earl conceived, mounted and led Australia’s first Arctic expedition under the patronage of HRH The Prince of Wales, with advisors including Lord Shackleton, Dame Elisabeth Murdoch and Sir John Holland. His one-hour television documentary was released internationally, and first screened on Discovery Channel. Earl is currently planning three new Arctic expeditions.

Beyond high adventure, Earl’s leadership has contributed to Australia’s reputation. In 1987 Chairman John Bertrand appointed Earl as Director of the multi-million-dollar Tall Ships spectacle - the largest public event staged in Victoria. Earl’s big-picture thinking and inspired leadership of 1000 crew and 500 volunteers rescued the troubled project. Prime Minister Bob Hawke officially opened the event, launching Australia’s 1988 Bicentenary before an international television audience.

Earl also understands universal business leadership issues. Working with two of the world’s most respected US-based business training consultancies, his clients included telecoms, resources, IT, finance, infrastructure and government. Earl’s C-level coaching clients were emerging leaders in health, property, media, insurance and IT. 

Author

His book, Seventh Journey, is one of the most important modern stories of leadership yet published and is described as ‘A masterpiece’ and ‘Demonstrating what charismatic leadership can achieve, against all odds’. Earl tells the leader's story of Australia's first Arctic expedition with refreshing candour, revealing what it takes to create, launch and lead a highly complex and outrageously ambitious expedition to one of the most inhospitable places on earth.

Earl has presented locally and internationally at scores of events, including keynote presentations for the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Trust's Future Perspectives Forum, the Australian National Outdoor Education Annual Conference and the Royal Geographical Society's inaugural National Leadership Symposium. 

Presentation Topics Include

• Generational trends
  
• Climate change
  
• Economic, political, health and social challenges affecting Australia.
  
• Tomorrows leadership as today's culture change
  
• Changing culture

Testimonials

‘Earl is one of the very few true leadership thought-leaders in the Asia Pacific region. His approach and philosophy on leadership in the corporate world is nothing short of avant-garde. I highly recommend him to any corporate or business clients thinking of engaging with him to gain fresh perspectives on leadership with real world insight.’
Executive Search Consultant, Sydney, Melbourne, Hong Kong, Singapore, London, New York.

‘Held the audience in the palm of his hand. Very relevant for businesses encountering challenges in uncertain times. Amazing insights, inspirational.’
Chairman, The Switzer Group

‘Relaxed and inviting style drew in the audience. Thrilled us with witty anecdotes and relevant examples from an extraordinary career. Valuable lessons that can readily be applied to our own professional lives. Compelling and thoroughly engaging.’
CEO, Sustainable Risk Management Australia.

‘Ability to blend storytelling with meaningful insights on leadership. Brought many of the key leadership conference themes to life. Engaging and memorable.’
Head of Organisational Development, National Australia Bank (Wholesale Banking).