20 July 2018 press release from Mountain Legacy

Dan Mazur tapped for tenth Sir Edmund Hillary Mountain Legacy Medal

Mountain climber and humanitarian Dr. Daniel Mazur will receive the Sir Edmund Hillary Mountain Legacy Medal for remarkable service in the conservation of culture and nature in mountainous regions.

The award will be presented at the International Mountain Museum in Pokhara, Nepal, on December 11 (International Mountain Day) during the Nepal Mountaineering Association’s fifth annual Mountain Festival.

Mazur, who holds a doctorate in Social Policy Analysis from Brandeis University, is an accomplished climber with multiple ascents of Mount Everest and 8000-meter peaks. His company, Summit Climbs, has led scores of expeditions in the Himalayas. At the same time, his Mount Everest Foundation for Sustainable Development has implemented numerous projects, including the renovation of Deboche convent just north of Tengboche, earthquake rescue and reconstruction, school and clinic development, and Sherpa climbing training programs. Currently, his top priority is the Mount Everest Biogas Project, which he cofounded with Garry Porter to mitigate the problem of human waste accumulating at elevation.

In announcing the selection of Daniel Mazur on July 20, ninety-ninth birthday of Sir Edmund Hillary, Mountain Legacy president Dr. Kumar P. Mainali emphasized the viral nature of Mazur’s impact. The Medal is intended both to recognize Sir Edmund Hillary's own service on behalf of mountain people and their environment and also to encourage the continuing emulation of Hillary’s example. Like Hillary, who founded the Himalayan Trust as well as parallel organizations in Australia, Canada, England, Germany and the United States, Daniel Mazur has assisted other mountain developers and inspired many of his own clients to collaborate and initiate their own efforts.

Scott MacLennan, founder and director of The Mountain Fund, observes that Mazur’s spirit of adventure is consistent with Sir Edmund’s own. If you ask anybody active in Himalayan mountaineering, "Who best exemplifies the Hillary model of sportsmanship, conservation, and care for the host communities that mountaineers depend on?" one of the first names that comes up will be Daniel Mazur. Mazur is widely known for his role in the 2006 rescue and evacuation of Lincoln Hall from 8700m on Mount Everest, which entailed abandoning his own team’s summit attempt.

Eminent montologist Dr. Jack D. Ives has commended the selection of Daniel Mazur. As we enter the centennial of Sir Edmund Hillary’s birth, it is fitting that we reflect on the importance of adventure in our lives. Mountaineering should not be the province of the privileged few. Mountains evoke and educe our greatest values and aspirations: physical and psychological challenge, love of our environment, comradeship, and altruism. Daniel Mazur’s career perfectly synthesizes the challenges and opportunities of mountaineering and mountain service.

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If you would like to add your congratulations, reminiscences, or photos to this page, please send them to Seth Sicroff (sicroff@hillarymedal.com).