Leading the First All Black Team to the North Pole with Jeska Clark

Wild Ideas Worth Living

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4.7 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 9 September 2025

⏱️ 24 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Jeska Clark is a human performance specialist who studies how people adapt to extreme environments such as high-altitude peaks, sub-zero temperatures, and the intense pressure of deep ocean dives. Her research combines scientific inquiry with personal experience, as she applies insights from her academic work to her own wilderness expeditions. A skilled outdoorswoman, Jeska has completed several ambitious treks and is now preparing to lead the first all Black team to the North Pole.

Transcript

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0:00.0	While some people chase adventures for the thrill or the story, explore Jessica Clark
0:08.7	Seeser expeditions through a different lens.
0:11.9	I like doing things that have a purpose, not just to visit.
0:16.4	So if we're outdoors, it would be like, okay, I'm going to hike this peak because one, it would be really fun, but also to improve on my technical skills.
0:26.1	So I can teach other people how to handle this environment, essentially.
0:32.9	Jessica is a human performance specialist who studies what happens when people push themselves
0:37.9	in the world's most unforgiving places.
0:41.0	Her research focuses on how our bodies and minds adapt in extreme environments, like high
0:46.3	altitude peaks, sub-zero temperatures, and the intense pressure of deep ocean diving.
0:52.8	Beyond sitting at a desk and studying the data, Jessica's also
0:56.2	skilled outdoors woman herself. She applies findings from her academic work to her own adventures in
1:01.8	the wilderness. After going on several ambitious treks, Jessica is now preparing for her biggest
1:08.1	expedition yet, leading the first all-black team to the North Pole.
1:13.1	Along the way, Jessica's team will also gather data on how humans perform in some of the harshest
1:18.3	conditions on Earth. I'm Shelby Stanger, and this is wild ideas worth living, an REI Co-op Studios
1:24.9	production presented by Capital One and the REI Co-Op MasterCard.
1:32.8	Jessica Clark, welcome to Wild Ideas Worth Living all the way from Bend, Oregon.
1:37.8	Really excited to meet you and have you on the show.
1:40.5	Thank you.
1:41.0	Thank you for having me here.
1:42.0	It's a pleasure.
1:43.1	Yeah, you're like so many things.
	...

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