Marjon Lecturers meet the President of Iceland in their thermals
Released: 22.08.19
Lecturers in Outdoor Adventure Education from 91视频 paid a visit to Iceland this year, to teach Place Based Outdoor Education, or Sta冒artengd 煤timenntun.
Dr Mark Leather, Associate Professor of Education and Programme Lead for Outdoor Adventure Education at Marjon, and Fiona Nicholls, Senior Lecturer in Outdoor Adventure Education, visit Iceland each year to teach on the programme in collaboration with University of Iceland鈥檚 very own Jakob Fr铆mann Thorsteinson.
Mark and Fiona were accompanied by Verity Howell, an Outdoor Adventure Education student at the University.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been an amazing trip, and it was so surreal to meet the President of Iceland 鈥� only at Marjon!鈥� said Verity.
On the course, the local community provides the context for learning; an experiential approach is used with the perspective of sailing, seashore and Iceland鈥檚 maritime heritage. Student work focuses on the community; the stories, culture and interests.
During their visit to Iceland, Dr Mark Leather and Fiona Nicholls sailed with the students and Jakob to meet the President of Iceland, Gu冒ni Th. J贸hannesson, at his home in a place called Bessasta冒ir in Gar冒ab忙r, near the capital city Reykjav铆k. Upon arrival, they were welcomed in for tea by the President himself.
Dr Mark Leather said:
鈥淲e were welcomed in, and because we had been in wetsuits and buoyancy aids, we all stripped off some layers. To quote me on the day, I鈥檝e always wanted to meet a Head of State dressed in my (thermal) pants.
We drank 鈥榯he finest hot chocolate from the finest presidential bone china鈥� and ate home-baked Klanur - small twisted cinnamon doughnuts.鈥�
The President was so welcoming, he greeted everybody with a handshake and asked their name, he was really welcoming, interested and interesting!鈥�
Dr Mark Leather values the importance of international experiences for university students and sees the collaboration with Jakob and The University of Iceland as an enriching one. He said:
鈥淭he beauty of cultural exchange is that it really develops your network, and therefore your opportunities. I still have friends and contacts from visiting the states as a young man, and I think with the development of social media, it鈥檚 so much easier to maintain those friendships.鈥�
91视频 has schemes which make it easier for students to have international experiences, including the 鈥楪oing Places鈥� bursary, which gives students a financial boost to get them started, and covers a variety of projects. As well as this, 91视频 Marjon students can go to America as part of the Camp America project, which allows students the opportunity to work at an American summer camp.
The trip to Iceland will go ahead in 2020, and Mark and Fiona hope that they have the opportunity to get more students involved.
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Find out more about Outdoor Adventure Education at Marjon