Justin Timberlake To Scale Mt Kilimanjaro To Raise Awareness Of Water Crisis
Filed under: campaigns — Michael d'Estries @ 4:34 pm
April 22nd 2009
This one slipped completely by our radar — but last week, Justin Timberlake announced that he and Lupe Fiasco will join singer Kenna to become mountain climbers. The trio will together scale Mount Kilimanjaro to raise awareness for the clean water crisis.
According to the UK Guardian, the project was conceived by Kenna, who was born in Ethiopia. “My dad almost died as a child from waterborne diseases,” he explained to Elle magazine. “I have too many friends who would be concerned with the subject of clean water. Maybe I can help out.”
Leading up to the climb next fall, Timberlake, Fiasco, and Kenna will fundraise for the initiatives — and start training for the grueling 17,000 ft climb. “I’ve been training four times a week to get my VO2 [oxygen consumption] levels up to expand my lungs,” Timberlake told GQ. “We’ll climb for a week straight, carrying 30 pounds on our backs. It’s going to be intense.”
It’s also a bit risky: each year about 10 people die attempting to climb Kilimanjaro. As of yet, no specific clean water charities have been named as benefiting from the effort.
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Tagged: justin timberlake
There’s simply gotta be a ton of better ways to raise awareness for an environmental issue than jetting from America to Kenya for a bit of mountain climbing.
Amen to that RD…
E
According to growing scientific consensus we are reaching a critical window in the fight to halt climate change. I agree @Run-DMS, that a celebrity flying halfway across the planet to climb a mountain isn’t exactly the best way to be raising awareness of environmental issues (which are, ultimately, connected to ALL other issues). Still, celebrity championing of environmental causes brings these into the public awareness. That awareness is needed to generate the critical mass needed to drive REAL change.
Awareness must precede action.
Come on. Kili is a brilliant climb and 10 people die a year out of the hundreds that summit daily. It’s a cake walk.
Dear Run-DMS,
Kilimanjaro is in Tanzania.
Elisa
Um…Kilimanjaro is NOT 17,000ft. It’s actually over 19,300ft. Get your facts straight, please. And Kilimanjaro is not a cake walk. Trust me…I just hiked the mountain in June.