Sir Graeme Dingle MBE, KNZM is known as the father of outdoor pursuits in New Zealand.  He has undertaken innumerable adventures around the globe, including hundreds of mountaineering, rock climbing and adventuring firsts.  He was named by Wilderness Magazine as one of the greatest New Zealand climbers ever.

Highlights of his mountaineering feats include:

• Numerous first ascents in the Andes, Himalaya, Antarctica and New Zealand.
  • First ascent, in one season, of all six classic European north faces including the notorious Eiger in Switzerland and the Matterhorn.
• First traverse of the Southern Alps in New Zealand (100 days in winter).
• First traverse of the Himalaya from Kanchenjunga to K2, 5,000 kms in 265 days.
• A 400-day, 28,000 km circumnavigation of the Arctic Circle in two stages.

But Sir Graeme has more than adventuring in his blood.  He is a published author, a painter and has been involved in the production of more than 20 adventure films. His latest book, ‘DINGLE – Discovering the Sense in Adventure’, won the biography section of the 2006 Montana Book Awards. He is currently in the throes of writing two more.

His legacy, however, will be in the humanitarian space, having founded the Graeme Dingle Foundation (formerly the Project K Trust) with his wife Jo-anne Wilkinson, MNZM, Lady Dingle.  He is a principal fundraiser for the organisation, which has more than 25,000 young people in its programmes each year, and a Trustee of the Graeme Dingle Foundation Endowment Trust, managing a capital fund of around $5M, including property.

Sir Graeme Dingle is the recipient of numerous awards including: an MBE for services to outdoor pursuits, the Award of New Zealand for services to recreation and sport, the Antarctic Service Medal of the United States, the Deloitte Top 200 Companies Visionary Leader Award, ONZM for services to young people and a life member of the New Zealand Alpine Club. He also received in 2010 a Lifetime Achievement Award from Sport New Zealand, for services to outdoor recreation; and the Outdoors New Zealand Supreme Award, in 2011.

Sir Graeme was born in Gisborne on 30 November 1945, and has one daughter and one grand-daughter.