Arita Baaijens

Arita Baaijens is a Dutch biologist and award-winning explorer and writer. Thirty years ago she gave up her job as an environmental consultant and has been pursuing her dream of exploring the world ever since. She has completed over 25 desert expeditions on camel, is the first woman to have crossed the Western Desert of Egypt solo on camel, and the first to circumambulate the Altai Mountains in Central Asia on horseback. She blends science, art and indigenous knowledge in her surveys. She employs innovative techniques to blend sensory, geographical, ecological and cultural information in multi-layered maps that can aid and empower indigenous communities to stand up for their way of life and land rights.

Blog Post and News Publications:

Born: 1956

Hometown: Ede, Netherlands

Education: Free University Amsterdam

Occupation: Explorer, writer, biologist

Expeditions: Over 25 expeditions in Sudan and Egypt since 1988 and since 2007, travels on horseback in Siberia and Central Asia in the Alai Golden Mountains

Favorite Places To Be: Libyan Desert and the Alai Mountains

Best Discoveries: Nurayet, sacred rock art, Red Sea Hills in Eastern Sudan

Favorite Item In The Field: Compass

Personal Heroes: Wilfred Thesiger and Alexine Tinne

Hobbies: Being outdoors is work, hobby, and life - all in one

Website: www.aritabaaijens.nl

Advice: Follow your dreams