(pp.18-22)
The Nordic Gene Bank’s seed collection is small potatoes compared to that of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research. This international organization, funded in part by the World Bank and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, claims to “hol[d] in public trust one of the world’s largest seed collections available to all.” Its aim to alleviate poverty and create food sustainability reflects a pre-apocalyptic optimism that further distinguishes it from the NGB.
Rob Kesseler and Wolfgang Stuppy would say that whatever one’s eschatological orientation, we should take time to smell the roses…and peer between their petals. Their hybrid science/art book Seeds: Time Capsules of Life (Richmond Hill, ON: Firefly Books, 2006) contains detailed microphotographs and literary explanations of dispersal strategies. In this homage to plant reproduction, the authors sow seeds of hope that these resilient little life pods ensure our future.
Keeping Everest Honest
Bernadette McDonald
(pp.22-24)
Bernadette McDonald gives her subject the full biographical treatment in I’ll Call You In Kathmandu: The Elizabeth Hawley Story (Seattle: Mountaineers Books, 2005). McDonald spent time with Hawley in Nepal and also collected insights and anecdotes about her from an array of famous mountaineering names. The portrait that emerges is one of a unique and admirable woman who is more than able to hold her own among the egos and outsized characters that populate the world of Himalayan climbing.
Few characters are as monumental as Reinhold Messner. The Italian-born climber was the first man to climb Everest without the use of oxygen, the first to scale the mountain solo, and the first to climb all fourteen of the world’s 8,000 m peaks. His account of the one-man expedition can be found in The Crystal Horizon: Everest—The First Solo Ascent (Seattle: Mountaineers Books, 1989), while he surveys his achievements on the world’s highest peaks in All Fourteen 8,000ers (Seattle: Mountaineers Books, 1999).
For those intrigued by the prospect of wading through Hawley’s extensive archives, there is an option that doesn’t require a trip to Kathmandu. The Himalayan Database: The Expedition Archives of Elizabeth Hawley (Seattle: Mountaineers Books, 2004, updated for 2005) is a computer database available for PC or Mac. The interface is basic, but the amount of information available and the flexibility of the search options make this a useful tool for planning your own expedition or for researching the history of Himalayan climbing.
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