Planet Forward Storyfest winners circumnavigate Iceland

From left to right: Laura Isaza, Delan Li, Micah Seidel, Elena Mantilla, Danny Stipanovich, Dr. Imani M. Cheers.
From left to right: Laura Isaza, Delan Li, Micah Seidel, Elena Mantilla, Danny Stipanovich, Dr. Imani M. Cheers.

Dr. Imani M. Cheers

Related Topics:
Colleges & Education, Storyfest, Sustainability


Fixed between Greenland and the Faroe Islands lies an island that is alive with spewing hot geysers, towering waterfalls, and volcanoes that stand tall above glaciers. Iceland, an incredibly geologically diverse nation, is a haven for renewable energy and climate change mitigation.

On July 18, 2024, four Planet Forward Storyfest winners embarked on a 10-day circumnavigation of Iceland, where they discovered unique and powerful stories to tell. The students were joined by Dr. Imani M. Cheers, Director of Academic Adventures at Planet Forward and Elena Mantilla, Program Coordinator and Assistant Editor. Aboard the National Geographic Explorer with Lindblad Expeditions, they engaged with naturalists and photographers, who shared their expertise on marine life, geology and the history of Iceland.

Portrait photo of Laura Isaza in front of a glacier.
Laura Isaza of University of California, Berkeley won Storyfest in the Multimedia Story by a Media Student category and is writing her story on the controversy over the presence of lupine in Iceland’s ecosystem. (Elena Mantilla)
Portrait photo of Delan Li at a town in Iceland.
Delan Li from the University of Connecticut, who won in the Written Story by a Media Student category, focused on the declining puffin population while in Iceland. (Elena Mantilla)
Portrait photo of Micah Seidel in a field in Iceland.
Micah Seidel of Rutgers University, who won in the Video by a Non-Media Student category, is producing a video on geothermal energy in Iceland. (Elena Mantilla)
Portrait photo of Danny Stipanovich holding up a camera.
Danny Stipanovich from the University of Arizona won in the Video by a Media Student category and is focusing on the effects of melting glaciers in Iceland. (Elena Mantilla)

After boarding the ship in Reykjavík, the crew set off to explore the Westfjords region for a few days, where they stumbled upon the tallest waterfall any of them had seen, Dynjandi.

The Dynjandi waterfall shrouded in fog.
Guests hike up to the base of Dynjandi. (Elena Mantilla)
A close up of the waterfall.
Water crashes down on a misty morning. (Elena Mantilla)
Delan Li sits in front of the waterfall
Storyfest winner Delan Li poses in front of waterfall. (Elena Mantilla)

Another Westfjords stop at the island of Flatey brought their first puffin sighting and students learned that “ey” at the end of a name means, “island.” The bird sightings didn’t stop there — at Vigur Island the next day, the students had a lively greeting from hundreds of arctic terns, more puffins, and Vigur’s very own eider duck. The eider is a staple on Vigur, as its down is sustainably harvested and cleaned right on the island.

Puffins sit on a cliff on the coast of Iceland.
Puffins look out to sea. (Elena Mantilla)
Several eider ducks along the coast.
Eider ducks rest on shore. (Elena Mantilla)
Five people in blue coats walk in a line in a field hold up long stick while birds fly overhead.
Walkers carry sticks to avoid getting attacked on the head by arctic terns. (Elena Mantilla)

As the ship moved around the island, they stopped at the towns of Siglufjörður and Húsavík, where the students witnessed a herring salting demonstration at the earlier stop and later explored Lake Mývatn to the south.

They journeyed through the waves up to the island of Grímsey, where they entered the Arctic Circle. Finally, the boardwalk at the fjord, Borgarfjörður eystri brought the most immersive puffin sighting of all, where students were close enough to have staring contests with the thousands of puffins around them.

Close up of two puffins touching beaks.
Puffin pair “billing”, an act where they rub beaks together. (Elena Mantilla)
Close up of a puffin spreading out its wings.
Puffin spreads its wings. (Elena Mantilla)

Just when the sights couldn’t get more beautiful, the most wonderful surprise came. One afternoon on the ship, the voice of Expedition Leader Michael Jackson emerged over the speakers notifying everyone aboard that there was a pod of killer whales at the ship’s bow. Guests jumped out of their seats and raced to the front of the ship, bursting out the door to climb the stairs to the top deck. There was one dorsal fin, then two, then many more surrounding the ship.

“Ooohs” and “ahhs” filled the ocean air as guides shared facts about these animals, including how their dorsal fins, saddle patches and eye patches can be used to identify individual whales. Suddenly, a creature much larger than the orcas broke the surface in the middle of the pod. A humpback! Guests gasped in unison as they heard the voice of their expedition leader again.

More humpbacks popped up out of the water as the group journeyed onward having seen over 20 killer whales and at least four humpbacks. It was easy to tell how special and rare of a sighting this was, as the captain of the ship and the naturalists themselves could hardly believe what they were seeing.

Whether it was this once-in-a-lifetime moment, or engaging interviews with scientists, or the quiet reflection as they gazed over fields of lupine, the students lit up at each new sight and experience.

Iceland is rich with beauty and offers so much for us to learn from, and the students took every opportunity to ask crucial questions, take photographs of numerous “oh wow” moments, and begin to craft the compelling stories that they came to tell. The Planet Forward team is so grateful to have had this vibrant experience and we cannot wait for you to see what the students are working on.


Editor’s Note: Lindblad Expeditions, our Planet Forward Storyfest Competition partner, made this series possible by providing winners with an experiential learning opportunity aboard one of their ships. We thank Lindblad Expeditions for their support of our project.

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