Photo Credit: Dwayne Fields
History Maker Dwayne Fields Is First Black British Person To Reach The North Pole
If you had told Dwayne Fields in his younger years that he would not only make history as the first Black Briton to reach the North Pole, but also become an inspirational figure to Black travelers to push themselves to explore the unknown— he probably wouldn’t believe you.
Fields made the historic trek in 2010, and sadly, his accomplishment is just now being recognized by mainstream media.
Just five years before challenging himself to walk more than 400 nautical miles to the magnetic North Pole, he had a close call with death while demanding the return of his stolen motorbike from some kids he knew.
“Walking on to someone else’s estate is the stupidest thing you can do. But I was blinded by anger and frustration,” Dwayne Fields told The Guardian.
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The man pulled out a gun after a physical altercation and just as Fields was backing away, the man fired twice. The gun, however, was jammed and Fields escaped with his life.
That close call with death inspired him to change his life forever. He was into nature and wildlife while living in Jamaica and decided to reconnect with his roots.
Since his historic trek, he has been invited to Buckingham Palace by the Queen, was awarded the City of London’s highest honor for his work with young people, and recently has worked on various projects allowing him to explore the world with celebrities such as Will Smith.
But even with his recognition and awards, he still finds time to inspire the next generation of explorers.
He and his expedition teammate Phoebe Smith started WeTwo Foundation in 2019 to take disadvantaged youth from the UK on what the team calls “life-changing expeditions.”
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The duo is currently working to raise £50,000 on Just Funding to take a group of underprivileged young people to Antarctica by expedition ship.
“Looking through history both recent and ancient, the ones who get to go the places like Antarctica on the expedition are the privileged few,” the two said on the crowdfunding site, adding that the goal is to, “plant the seeds in the next generation of explorers that adventure is for all.”
