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Sebastian Copeland
Sebastian Copeland
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Sebastian Copeland (born 3 April 1964) is a British-American-French photographer, polar explorer, author, lecturer, and environmental advocate.[1] He has led numerous expeditions in the polar regions to photograph and film endangered environments. In 2017, Men’s Journal included Copeland in its list of the ‘Top 25 Adventurers of the Last 25 Years,’ recognizing his contributions to polar exploration.[2] He is a fellow of The Explorers Club. His documentary Into the Cold was a featured selection at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival and was released on DVD timed to Earth Day 2011.[3]

Early life and education

[edit]

Copeland is the son of the director of the Lille National Philharmonic Orchestra, Jean-Claude Casadesus.[4] He graduated from UCLA in 1987.[5]

Sebastian Copeland in Antarctica in 2023

Career

[edit]

Copeland began his career in New York City directing music videos before moving on to commercial directing as well as professional photography with credits including fashion and advertising, album covers, and celebrities.[1]

Since 2000, Copeland has focused his work on climate change. His prints have appeared in exhibitions including the United Nations (Solo Show, 2007), the Council on Foreign Relations, and the Peabody Essex Museum as well as the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. His work is included in The Natural World Museum in San Francisco's permanent archive. In 2006 and 2007 prints from his first book, Antarctica: The Global Warning, were selected to tour with the International Photography Awards' "Best in Show" world tour.[citation needed]

Copeland writes for Men's Journal and Huffington Post. He has made keynote addresses at the United Nations and think tank The Planetworkshops.[6]

From 2003 to 2018, Copeland served on the board of directors of Global Green USA.[7] He also co-founded Artists for Amazonia in 2009 to raise awareness of deforestation in the Amazon Basin.[8]

Expeditions

[edit]

In 2005, Copeland led a media initiative in the Arctic in defense of the Inuit's loss of culture from climate change for Global Green USA.[citation needed]

In 2006 and 2007, Copeland spent two seasons aboard the scientific research ice breaker The Ice Lady Patagonia in the Antarctic Peninsula.[citation needed]

In 2008, Copeland and partner Luc Hardy led a group of nine children from international backgrounds to the northernmost edge of the Canadian arctic, on Ellesmere Island.[citation needed]

In 2009, Copeland mounted an expedition to the North Pole to commemorate the centennial of Admiral Robert Peary’s expedition in 1909.[9] Footage of the expedition was used in the documentary Into the Cold: A Journey of the Soul, which debuted at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2010.[citation needed]

In 2010, Copeland traversed 2,300 kilometers of Greenland's ice flats from south to north on a Kite skiing expedition. His expedition was meant to raise awareness of global warming. He documented the journey with his camera and posted live updates through Facebook and Twitter.[10] The expedition lasted 44 days and earned Copeland and partner Eric McNair Landry the new kite skiing distance World Record by covering the longest distance in a 24-hour period: 595 kilometers.[11][12]

Copeland led the Antarctica 2011–2012 Legacy Crossing. Over 82 days between 4 November 2011 and 24 January 2012 Sebastian and partner Eric McNair-Landry were the first to cross the Antarctica icecap from east to west via two of its poles. They used kites and skis, setting three new polar records in the process.[13] Pulling 400 pounds (180 kg) of supplies each, they were the first to reach the Antarctica Pole of Inaccessibility (POI) from the Novolazarevskaya station on Antarctica's East coast by non-motorized means and without assistance. They were also the first to link the POI to the South Pole without motorized transportation. On 24 January 2012, they finally reached Hercules Inlet, effectively linking the eastern and western coast of Antarctica after covering an adjusted distance of about 4,100 kilometers.

In August 2016, Copeland and partner Mark George crossed Australia's Simpson Desert on foot and without support, pulling all water and supplies on two-wheels carts. Their 651 km west-to-east crossing was the longest latitudinal traverse without motorized transportation.[14]

In 2017, Copeland and partner Mark George attempted an unsupported mission on foot from Canada to the North Pole. Equipment failure and severe frostbites forced the team to abort mission after two days during a −60 °C cold spell.[citation needed]

Recent activities

[edit]

Copeland is a mountain and climbing enthusiast.

In 2005, Sebastian co-organized a media initiative in the Arctic with Global Green USA in defense of the Inuit's cultural loss to climate change. After two trips to Antarctica, in 2006 and 2007, he decided to try to combine fine art photography, adventure and environmental concerns. In 2007, Copeland released his first book Antarctica: The Global Warning followed in 2009 with Antarctica: A Call To Action.[15]

In 2013, in Copeland completed his second documentary, Across The Ice: The Greenland Victory March.

In 2015, Copeland published his third monogram, Arctica: The Vanishing North published by teNeues, representing 10 years of Arctic travel. Arctica is a comprehensive visual record of the North Pole, including a foreword by Sir Richard Branson and accompanying texts by Andrew J. Weaver, Dr. Ted Scambos, Mayor Eric Garcetti, Sheila Watt-Cloutier and Børge Ousland. Copeland was named Photographer of the Year by the Tokyo Int'l Photo Awards for this book.[16]

In 2018, Copeland was given a public exhibit by the French Senate. The show of eighty panels seen by an estimated four million visitors over four months along the gates of the Luxembourg gardens in Paris.[17]

As of 2025, Copeland resides in Los Angeles, California.[1][18] He organizes and leads ongoing polar and desert expeditions aimed at documenting climate change impacts through photography.[19]

Awards and honors

[edit]

Selected photography awards

[edit]
  • 2007: International Photography Awards (IPA) --Professional Photographer of the Year Book Category for Antarctica: The Global Warning[20]
  • 2008: Prix Pictet—Shortlist finalist[21]
  • 2011: Px3 Prix de la Photographie Paris—Gold Award – Professional Press Nature/Environmental Category[22]
  • 2012: Arctic Awards – FIAP Medal & PSA The Arctic ribbon[23]
  • 2016 Tokyo Int'l Photography Award— Photographer of the Year for the book Arctica: The Vanishing North[24]
  • 2020: International Photography Award (IPA) Professional Book Photographer of the Year — Antarctica: The Waking Giant https://www.photoawards.com/winner/?compName=IPA+2020

Others

[edit]
  • 2008 GQ Germany: Man Of The Year—Engagement[1]
  • 2010 Gala Award, Germany – Environmental Stewardship[25]
  • 2014 green good design copeland Award 2014 from the Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture & Design[26]
  • 2018 Germany's BAMBI award, in the "Our Earth" category[27]
  • 2019 Knighted in the National Order of Merit by French President Emmanuel Macron

Selected exhibitions

[edit]
  • 2007: Salon Imperial, Paris, Antarctica: The Global Warning Nov. 27th-16 December 2007[28]
  • 2008: Jan Kesner Gallery Los Angeles, Antarctica: The Global Warning Nov. 2007 – Jan. 2008[29]
  • 2008: Flo Peters Gallery Hamburg Germany, Antarctica—The Global Warning 24 April – 24 May 2008[30]
  • 2008: Napapijri Gallery Milan, Italy Solo Show Antarctica 23 June 2008 – 15 September 2008[31]
  • 2013: Bernheimer Gallery, Munich Germany A Million Faces of Ice March—April 2013[32]
  • 2013: [Gagosian Gallery], Los Angeles, California B&W Ice exhibit to benefit the NRDC, October 2013[33]
  • 2017: Lumière Center for Photography, Moscow Pure Arctic Retrospective of more than 50 works 21 September 2017 – 7 January 2018[34]
  • 2018: Camera Work Gallery, Berlin "Sebastian Copeland" 19 October 2018 – 1 December 2018[35]

See also

[edit]

Bibliography

[edit]

References

[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Sebastian Copeland

View on Grokipedia
from Grokipedia
Sebastian Copeland (born April 3, 1964) is a British-- photographer, polar explorer, , filmmaker, and focused on polar regions. Holding nationalities from Britain, , and the , he was born into an artist family and relocated to New York in 1980 before graduating summa cum laude from UCLA in 1987. His career shifted from advertising and to leading expeditions across and ice, where he documented landscapes through books, films, and exhibitions while founding the SEDNA Foundation in 2011 to support polar conservation efforts. Copeland has completed notable transcontinental crossings, including a 2,300 km traverse of the in 2010 with Eric McNair-Landry, during which they set a for the farthest distance kite-skiing in 24 hours at 595 km. In 2011–2012, he achieved the first east-to-west crossing of , covering 4,100 km over 84 days using skis and kites, establishing three additional world records for distance in the process. These feats, alongside earlier ventures like a 700 km ski expedition to the in 2009, earned him recognition such as inclusion among the top adventurers by and fellowships in . As a , Copeland has received awards including International Photography Awards Photographer of the Year in 2007 and 2020, and his works feature in publications and galleries worldwide, often highlighting polar terrains. He has authored books such as Antarctica: A Global Warning (2007), Arctica: The Vanishing North (2015), and Polar Explorations: To the Ends of the (2022), and directed films like Into the Cold (2009), which premiered at the , and Across the Ice (2015). His advocacy includes board roles with organizations like Global Green USA and international honors such as France's National in 2019.

Early Life and Education

Family Background and Childhood

Sebastian Copeland was born on April 3, 1964, in . He is the son of Jean-Claude Casadesus, a prominent French classical conductor and director of the Lille National Orchestra. Raised in a family immersed in the arts, Copeland holds British, French, and American nationalities, reflecting his multicultural heritage and early exposure to diverse environments. In 1980, at age 16, Copeland relocated with his family from to , an experience that cultivated his adaptability and appreciation for varied cultures. His upbringing emphasized creativity amid artistic influences, though he later described a distant relationship with his father, leading him to seek solace in adventure literature and physical pursuits like running. Family ties extended to exploratory roots through his grandfather, a former big game hunter in regions including who transitioned to later in life, inspiring early interests in the outdoors. At age 12, Copeland joined his grandparents in Swaziland and embarked on his first in , armed with a plastic point-and-shoot camera that ignited his initial engagement with and wildlife. These experiences fostered a foundational affinity for adventure and natural observation.

Academic and Early Influences

Copeland pursued high school studies in while developing a strong interest in . He later attended the (UCLA), graduating in 1987 with summa cum laude honors after studying film and earth sciences. At UCLA, he wrestled with a choice between and natural sciences, reflecting an early tension between analytical and creative pursuits that would inform his interdisciplinary approach. Following his relocation to in 1980, Copeland's pre-professional creative work included directing , which honed his visual storytelling skills and paved the way for commercial training after graduation. His self-directed entry into emphasized practical application over formal academic training in the field, drawing from to experiment with and portraiture projects. As a lifelong engaged in and , Copeland's adolescent and early adult adventures in rugged terrains fostered a personal fascination with extreme natural environments, distinct from organized and rooted instead in individual challenge and . This curiosity, combined with earth sciences coursework, laid the groundwork for his later focus on polar regions by highlighting causal connections between human activity and environmental fragility through direct experiential .

Professional Career

Photography Career

Copeland initiated his professional photography career in commercial work, producing images for clients before shifting focus to and environmental documentation. His early training emphasized dramatic lighting and wide-angle compositions, influenced by aesthetics, which informed his approach to capturing natural forms. He developed a signature style centered on large- and medium-format polar landscapes, prioritizing in-camera composition to render empirical details of light refraction, textures, and contours for aesthetic depth. This technique involved analog formats for expeditions, later supplemented by digital systems with zoom lenses to adapt to extreme conditions while maintaining high-resolution fidelity. Commercially, Copeland's fine art prints are represented by galleries including in and Petra Gut Contemporary in Zurich, with exhibitions at venues such as in and Leica Gallery in . His works have appeared at auction, realizing prices from approximately $529 to $596 for select pieces, and are available through platforms like Artsy and . This distribution underscores a global market for his nature-focused imagery, distinct from book publications.

Filmmaking and Authorship

Sebastian Copeland directed, wrote, and produced the documentary Into the Cold: A Journey of the Soul in 2010, which captures a 400-mile trek across under temperatures dropping below -50°F, incorporating footage from intensive pre-expedition training in and using minimal equipment to document personal endurance and environmental harshness. The film's production emphasized self-reliant logistics, with 70% of similar expeditions historically failing due to such conditions, blending high-adventure visuals with introspective narration on human limits. In 2016, Copeland helmed Across the Ice: The Greenland Victory March, detailing a 2,300-kilometer unsupported crossing of the via skis and kites, showcasing production challenges like navigating storms, crevasses, and equipment management without external resupply to highlight themes of resilience through raw, on-location . His ongoing project, The ANTARCTICA Legacy Crossing, remains in , focusing on similar documentary techniques to convey polar traversal dynamics. Copeland's authorship includes Antarctica: The Global Warning (2007, Insight Editions), a volume pairing otherworldly photographs of ice and wildlife with textual analysis of environmental shifts, structured for visual impact and narrative flow. This was followed by Antarctica: A (2008, Insight Editions), emphasizing photographic precision to depict ice formations and in a format prioritizing aesthetic and informational layering. Later works evolved to encompass broader polar themes, such as : The Vanishing North (2015, teNeues), integrating intimate imagery with contextual insights through authored captions and layouts. In 2022, Polar Explorations: To The Ends of the Earth (Rizzoli) presented expedition-derived visuals in a personal narrative style, underscoring human interaction with extreme terrains via curated photo essays. His 2024 publication, The : A Darker Shade of White (Rizzoli), chronicles two decades of northern imagery, employing immersive sequencing to convey landscape transformations through photographic storytelling.

Polar Expeditions

Arctic and North Pole Expeditions

In 2009, Sebastian Copeland, accompanied by expedition partner Keith Heger, completed a 400-mile trek on foot to the geographical , commemorating the centennial of Robert Peary's 1909 expedition. The journey spanned two months across the Ocean's shifting pack , with temperatures dropping to -50°F and requiring the pair to haul 200-pound sleds loaded with supplies and . Challenges included navigating open water leads, variable thickness that ranged from stable floes to thin, fracturing sheets, and prolonged periods of that complicated orientation and progress. Equipment adaptations featured specialized skis for traction on uneven , insulated clothing layered for extreme , and GPS systems to track position amid the featureless terrain, emphasizing reliance on physical to cover daily distances averaging around 7 miles. Following the North Pole effort, Copeland participated in a 2010 crossing of the with Eric McNair-Landry, traversing 2,300 kilometers from south to north over 43 days using a combination of and kite-sailing. The expedition set a World Record for the longest non-motorized surface distance in 24 hours, achieving 595 kilometers via kite propulsion across vast ice fields. Logistical hurdles involved managing kite deployments in high winds exceeding 50 knots, contending with sastrugi-formed ice ridges that demanded constant equipment repairs, and enduring sustained cold with minimal resupply points, as the team pulled sleds weighing up to 300 pounds initially. Direct observations noted ice surface variability, including softer snow layers from recent precipitation that slowed travel and risks near the . Subsequent Arctic ventures included a 2015 Greenland Victory March, reiterating the south-to-north axis over approximately 2,300 kilometers, incorporating photographic documentation amid similar environmental rigors of katabatic winds and temperature fluctuations from -20°F to thawing margins. These expeditions highlighted adaptations like reinforced kite sails for durability against ice abrasion and calorie intakes exceeding 8,000 daily to sustain energy output in subzero conditions, underscoring the physical demands of unsupported travel on dynamic glacial terrain.

Antarctic and South Pole Expeditions

In 2006 and 2007, Copeland joined expeditions aboard the research vessel Ice Lady Patagonia in the , where he documented coastal features through during scientific research voyages. These early trips exposed him to the region's calving glaciers and fracturing ice edges, captured in over 1,000 images that informed his initial publications on polar environments. Copeland's most extensive Antarctic overland effort was the 2011–2012 Legacy Crossing, an unassisted traverse completed with partner Eric McNair-Landry using kite-skis and traditional skis. The duo covered approximately 4,100 kilometers in 82 days, from November 4, 2011, to January 24, 2012, starting from the east coast near Novolazarevskaya Station, proceeding via the Pole of Inaccessibility—the point farthest from any coast—and the Geographic South Pole, before reaching Hercules Inlet on the Ronne Ice Shelf. This route marked the first east-to-west transcontinental crossing without motorized support and the first linkage of the Pole of Inaccessibility to the South Pole by non-mechanical means, navigating a high-altitude ice plateau averaging 3,000 meters elevation with sastrugi formations up to 2 meters high and wind speeds exceeding 100 km/h. The team's sleds, initially loaded with 140–160 kg of supplies including food rations calibrated for 6,000–7,000 daily calories, were pulled across terrain demanding sustained output of 20–30 km per day under continuous daylight, contrasting the Arctic's shifting sea ice with Antarctica's stable but crevassed continental ice sheet and extreme isolation from resupply points. During the crossing, Copeland recorded photographic data on surface snow accumulation and ice surface features, contributing imagery to the National Snow and Ice Data Center for baseline measurements of variability, including observations of melt pools and wind-scoured zones at specific latitudes. The expedition's two-man composition emphasized , with metrics such as zero incidents and full supply depletion aligning with or exceeding benchmarks from historical traverses like Amundsen's 1911 ski journey, though under modern lightweight gear reducing overall loads by 40% compared to early 20th-century efforts. Unlike routes, the interior's uniformity amplified navigational challenges, relying on GPS and celestial fixes over featureless expanses spanning 1,000+ km without visual landmarks.

Environmental Advocacy

Core Views and Motivations

Sebastian Copeland emphasizes the polar regions as critical barometers of global environmental shifts, drawing from his direct observations during expeditions where he has witnessed accelerating ice melt and disruptions. He describes the and as "front lines of ," with visible signs such as thinning and retreating glaciers that amplify subtle variations into stark indicators of broader planetary stress. These firsthand encounters, including melting ice caps impacting indigenous communities like the , underscore his view that polar fragility reveals causal links between human activities and . His motivations are rooted in a commitment to , framing as "humanity’s most urgent cause" that demands safeguarding natural systems for future inhabitants. Copeland advocates for substantial reductions in and systemic policy reforms to transition away from industrial models prioritizing short-term profits over planetary health, often conducting his own expeditions under carbon-neutral protocols to align practice with principle. This philosophy posits that unchecked emissions exacerbate feedback loops, such as diminished extent—trends he correlates with data from his fieldwork and scientific records—threatening global stability. Copeland explicitly rejects climate denialism, likening engagement with skeptics to futile efforts against entrenched paradigms, and instead channels his experiences into calls for evidence-based action informed by polar realities. He maintains that personal immersion in these environments compels a realist assessment of causal drivers, motivating advocacy through visual documentation to bridge perceptual gaps and foster policy urgency without reliance on abstract models alone.

Key Contributions and Impact

Copeland has delivered speeches on at international forums, including the and the 2015 COP21 conference in , aiming to blend firsthand polar observations with scientific data to inform global audiences. These presentations, alongside keynotes at universities, museums, and events like the World Affairs Council, have contributed to broader dissemination of polar environmental data, though specific attendance figures for individual talks are not publicly detailed in available records. In 2018, Copeland received the in the "Our Earth" category from Burda Publishing, Germany's largest media prize, recognizing his advocacy work and broadcast to wide audiences in a ceremony honoring figures like . This accolade highlighted his role in awareness campaigns, including collaborations with NGOs such as Global Green USA—where he served 15 years on the board—and the Marine Stewardship Council, through which he promotes ocean sustainability tied to polar ice melt. Additionally, partnerships with organizations like Oceana and Amazon Aid Foundation have amplified messaging on marine and forest conservation linked to climate impacts. Tangible outcomes include the 2018-2019 exhibition at the Luxembourg Gardens gates, which drew an estimated four million visitors and featured his polar to underscore ice loss. Through his founded Sedna Foundation, launched in 2010, Copeland has supported educational initiatives and media outreach to empower action on polar conservation, though quantified donation totals from exhibitions or books remain unreported in public sources. While these efforts demonstrate measurable reach in public engagement, establishing direct causal influences on policy or behavioral shifts requires further empirical tracking beyond awareness metrics.

Criticisms and Scientific Debates

Critics of Copeland's environmental advocacy argue that it emphasizes an alarmist framing of polar ice dynamics, which empirical satellite data partially contradicts. For example, analysis of NASA's GRACE Follow-On mission data indicates that the gained approximately 108 gigatons of mass per year from 2021 to 2023, driven by increased snowfall in and stability in key glaciers, challenging claims of uniform and accelerating melt across the continent. This short-term rebound, while not negating long-term net losses of about 150 gigatons per year from 2002 to 2023, underscores regional variability and questions the reliability of models predicting rapid, irreversible polar collapse as central to advocacy narratives. Scientific debates further highlight the role of natural climate cycles in polar fluctuations, independent of recent anthropogenic influences. Over the past million years, Earth's ice ages and interglacials have been paced by —variations in , , and —that modulate solar insolation and trigger advances and retreats, as evidenced by records showing CO2 levels and temperatures oscillating in tandem with these forcings. Historical polar ice extents, such as thicker during the (circa 1300–1850) and expansions post-1970s satellite records before recent declines, suggest that current changes may amplify rather than solely originate from human emissions, prompting calls for distinguishing causal baselines over attribution to a single factor. Economic analyses of aggressive strategies, akin to those Copeland supports through calls for rapid decarbonization, reveal substantial trade-offs, particularly for developing nations. Modeling indicates that stringent emission cuts could reduce global GDP by 1–4% or more by 2100, with higher energy costs exacerbating in regions like and , where expansion has historically lifted over 1 billion people from since 1990 via affordable and industrialization. Adaptation-focused approaches, leveraging historical successes in coastal defenses and agricultural shifts, are posited as more cost-effective than reliant on unproven technologies, given the uneven distribution of policy burdens on low-income countries still industrializing. These critiques emphasize causal realism in policy design, prioritizing verifiable alleviation over speculative long-term damages.

Awards and Recognition

Photography and Artistic Awards

Copeland was awarded the Professional Photographer of the Year by the International Photography Awards (IPA) in 2007 for his book Antarctica: The Global Warning, with the honor recognizing the technical innovation, composition, and evocative portrayal of polar landscapes in his series. The IPA competition evaluates entries based on artistic merit, originality, and impact across professional categories, including books that demonstrate sustained narrative through imagery. He received the IPA Photographer of the Year distinction again in 2020, affirming his consistent excellence in derived from field work. In 2024, Copeland earned the IPA Professional Book Photographer of the Year for The Arctic: A Darker Shade of White, selected from global submissions for its masterful use of light, texture, and scale to convey environmental themes without relying on overt messaging. In the Tokyo International Foto Awards (TIFA), Copeland was named Photographer of the Year in 2017 for his 2016 book category entry, with judges emphasizing narrative depth and photographic craftsmanship in thematic series. His work The : A Darker Shade of White further secured TIFA's Book of the Year in 2024, highlighting refined aesthetic choices in documenting remote terrains. For individual images, Copeland received the FIAP Special Medal in 2012 from the Awards for Moonrise on the Icecap, awarded by the Fédération Internationale de l'Art Photographique for superior exposure, framing, and atmospheric rendering under challenging conditions. Additionally, in 2011, he won a Gold Award in the Professional Press Nature/Environmental category from Px3 Prix de la Photographie , based on criteria assessing visual storytelling and editorial quality in environmental . These recognitions underscore Copeland's focus on artistic execution over documentary , as evidenced by jury selections prioritizing compositional integrity across international panels.

Exploration and Advocacy Honors

In 2017, named Copeland one of the top 25 adventurers of the last 25 years, citing his extensive polar treks that covered thousands of miles on foot and skis, often under extreme conditions involving risks such as thin ice, crevasses, and . This recognition emphasized the endurance and logistical challenges of his unsupported expeditions, including multiple traversals of the and ice caps. Copeland received the in the "Our Earth" category in 2018 from Burda Verlag, Germany's equivalent to the Oscars for media and cultural impact, honoring his advocacy efforts to raise awareness of polar environmental degradation through expeditions and public outreach. The award highlighted his role in bridging with global climate discourse, reaching audiences via films and lectures that documented firsthand observations of melt and changes. In 2019, French President appointed Copeland a in the National Order of Merit, acknowledging his contributions to and as a French citizen. He was further knighted in the Order of Arts and Letters in 2022, recognizing the integration of his advocacy with artistic documentation of polar regions. Copeland served on the judging panel for the Shackleton Medal for the Protection of the Polar Regions in 2023, organized by Shackleton Global, underscoring peer acknowledgment of his expertise in polar endurance and conservation advocacy among fellow explorers and scientists. This role involved evaluating nominations for achievements in polar safeguarding, reflecting his standing in the field beyond personal accolades.

Exhibitions and Publications

Major Exhibitions

In 2018, the French Senate commissioned Copeland for the public exhibition "From Pole to Pole: A Vanishing World," displayed on the gates of the Luxembourg Gardens in from September 15 to January 13, featuring 80 large photographic panels depicting his two decades of and explorations to highlight environmental changes. The installation, launched with a speech by Copeland in the Senate's Salle , drew an estimated four million visitors over four months, underscoring its scale as one of the largest outdoor photographic exhibits in . Copeland's 2025 exhibition "A Message from the Poles" at Galerie Basia Embiricos in continued his focus on polar imagery, presenting works that convey urgent environmental messaging through . At the Xposure International in Sharjah, UAE, from February 20 to 26, 2025, Copeland showcased "The Vanishing," a series chronicling over 25 years of expeditions and documenting the cryosphere's transformations, as part of a broader event featuring collectible valued at over Dh12 million across exhibitors. He delivered the opening remarks before Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, emphasizing nature's unique stories amid shifts. The Gallery in has hosted multiple Copeland exhibitions, including the 2024 Christmas Selection and 2023 Walk of Fame, featuring over 30 large-format prints of dissolving polar landscapes in some iterations, with a consistent thematic emphasis on organic forms and environmental dissolution.

Key Publications and Media Works

Copeland's inaugural book, Antarctica: The Global Warning (2007), documented his expeditions to the continent with photographs emphasizing climate-induced changes, accompanied by a from former Soviet President and an introduction from . This work was followed by Antarctica: A Call to Action (2008), a more accessible volume featuring imagery of ice formations, wildlife, and human impacts to advocate for policy shifts and individual actions against . Subsequent publications expanded his polar documentation, including Arctica: The Vanishing North (2015), which included 200 photographs and a foreword by , focusing on ecosystems under threat, and Antarctica: The Waking Giant (2020), providing updated visuals of the continent's thawing landscapes. His most recent book, The Arctic: A Darker Shade of White (Rizzoli, September 2024), chronicles two decades of Arctic travels across approximately 6,000 miles on skis, with a foreword by and selections from expeditions to the and ; it received the 2024 International Awards Book Photographer of the Year and 2025 International Foto Awards Book of the Year. Collectively, Copeland's books have been distributed in over 70 countries. In media, Copeland directed Into the Cold: A Journey of the Soul (2010), a documentary on his traverse that premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and was released on DVD to coincide with . He followed with Across the Ice: The Greenland Victory March, detailing a record-setting 2,300-kilometer unsupported crossing of 's with McNair-Landry in 2013, highlighting logistical challenges and melting ice observations. As of October 2025, no new documentary releases have been announced, though the 2024 book supports ongoing festival presentations and advocacy events tied to its themes.

References

  1. https://prix.pictet.com/cycles/water/sebastian-copeland
  2. http://sebastiancopelandadventures.com/about
  3. https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/farthest-distance-kite-skiing-in-24-hours
  4. https://www.mensjournal.com/adventure/the-25-most-adventurous-men-of-the-past-25-years-w474618/sebastian-copeland-w474628/
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  42. http://sebastiancopelandadventures.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/List-Of-Equipment.pdf
  43. https://shackleton.com/blogs/articles/sebastian-copeland-shackleton-medal
  44. https://lelas-world.com/automobile/sebastian-copeland-climate-change-e-cars/
  45. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1kTLIjDzyg
  46. https://www.zeiss.com/corporate/en/c/stories/insights/copeland-in-greenland.html
  47. http://sebastiancopelandadventures.com/
  48. https://www.galeriexii.com/Newsletters/2019-10-whiteout_2019/Copeland%2520-%2520Climate%2520Change%2520-%2520Winter%25202020%2520Strung%2520.pdf
  49. https://www.france24.com/en/20180919-perspective-sebastian-copeland-climate-change-activist-photographer-polar-explorer-arctic
  50. https://indagare.com/podcasts/episodes/6-sebastian-copeland
  51. https://www.usgbc.org/articles/explorer-sebastian-copeland-witnesses-effects-climate-change-close
  52. https://www.worldphoto.org/blogs/23-05-17/arctica-vanishing-north-sebastian-copeland-fence
  53. http://sebastiancopelandadventures.com/archives/3234
  54. https://www.scopelandfineart.com/about.html
  55. https://www.msc.org/ocean-ambassadors/sebastian-copeland
  56. https://oceana.org/press-releases/revo-partners-ocean-advocacy-group-oceana/
  57. https://amazonaid.org/amazon-aid-participates-in-call-to-action-on-the-washington-mall/
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  59. http://sebastiancopelandadventures.com/advocate
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  61. https://www.space.com/astronomy/earth/nasa-satellites-show-antarctica-has-gained-ice-despite-rising-global-temperatures-how-is-that-possible
  62. https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/31158/
  63. https://www.climate.gov/news-features/climate-qa/hasnt-earth-warmed-and-cooled-naturally-throughout-history
  64. https://nsidc.org/learn/ask-scientist/core-climate-history
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  67. https://media.rff.org/documents/RFF-CCIB-25.pdf
  68. https://www.photoawards.com/sebastian-copeland/
  69. https://www.instagram.com/p/DMQQ0c_oBeJ/
  70. http://sebastiancopelandadventures.com/cat/greenland-expedition/page/2
  71. http://sebastiancopelandadventures.com/archives/3160
  72. https://www.scopelandfineart.com/blog/sebastian-awarded-a-bambi-in-the-our-earthcategory
  73. https://www.norrona.com/en-GB/about-norrona/our-ambassadors/sebastian-copeland/
  74. https://shackleton.com/blogs/articles/the-vanishing-north
  75. https://www.scopelandfineart.com/grilles-du-senat.html
  76. https://www.galeriexii.com/en/event?evt=030b57bb-1ac4-4924-a1ab-57d956b027bf
  77. https://www.scopelandfineart.com/exhibitions.html
  78. https://sharjah24.ae/en/Articles/2025/02/20/Sebastian-Copelands-Vanishing-at-Xposure-2025-A-call-to-protect-nature
  79. https://gulfnews.com/uae/from-the-vanishing-north-to-black-sun-xposure-2025-in-uae-presents-collectible-art-worth-over-dh12million-1.500032877
  80. https://www.facebook.com/SCopelandAdventures/posts/last-february-i-was-asked-to-give-the-opening-remarks-for-the-2025-edition-of-xp/1387859763347345/
  81. https://www.artatberlin.com/en/exhibition-sebastian-copeland-camera-work-zeitgenoessische-kunst-in-berlin-contemporary-art-exhibitions-berlin-galleries-art-at-berlin/
  82. https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Antarctica/Sebastian-Copeland/9781601090270
  83. https://www.capturemag.com.au/latest/arctica-the-vanishing-north-by-sebastian-copeland
  84. https://www.rizzoliusa.com/book/9780847868865/
  85. https://www.scopelandfineart.com/books.html
  86. https://core.live/luminaries/sebastian-copeland
  87. https://www.redbull.com/int-en/episodes/across-the-ice-explorers-adventures-of-the-century-s02-e04
  88. https://www.facebook.com/SCopelandAdventures/
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