WEBVTT

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One year ago,

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nearly to the day,

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I crossed the border
from Iran into Turkey,

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just north of Syria.

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On my right,

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Mount Ararat's immense silhouette rose up.

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The legend says that Noah's ark
ran aground there.

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5,167 meters

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Such a cone,

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for a paraglider like me,

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was like ...

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a vanilla ice cream cone

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on a summer afternoon.

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I had three days.

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I had very little time on the internet,
but I managed to learn two things.

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First, conditions were perfect for flying.

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However, guides were
to be avoided at all costs

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as they might ask for my access permit,

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impossible to get on such short notice.

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I didn't have it.

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On the second day of our climb,

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halfway up the slope, I was sleeping,

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rolled up in my paragliding wing.

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It was just before dawn.

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When suddenly ...

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(Plane noise) (Explosion)

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Fuck! It's war!

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It was just over there.

NOTE Paragraph

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I will freely admit

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that I quickly ducked behind some rocks.

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Seven years earlier,

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on July 11, 2008 at 9:30 in the morning,

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I began a round-the-world trip by bicycle,

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an old childhood dream.

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Anyone here who thinks the world is small,

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believe me: you're wrong.

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It's enormous!

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I had planned to take four years.

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I knew

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there would be major
repercussions for my life.

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I had a good job; an aeronautical engineer
under permanent contract.

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In a way, I killed my career.

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I had a partner that I loved ...

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my family, friends.

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I gave it all up.

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It may seem another
irresponsible, stupid decision,

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like the one I just described
on Mount Ararat.

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But in fact, it was undoubtedly,
and I still think so today,

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the most responsible decision of my life.

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Basically, what I was looking for,

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besides seeing the world,

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was to regain control of my life.

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I'd lost track of myself a bit.

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I'd been on the traditional route,
ruled less by personal choices,

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than by choices imposed on me by society:

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education, career, family,
material comfort.

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I never felt as though
these choices had been mine.

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So, for once,

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I dared make a decision that would have
an enormous effect on my life.

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But, then, it became imperative

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that this decision be
a very responsible one,

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that I seriously weigh the consequences

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for my life.

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But, from such thoughts came others,

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about the environmental impact.

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So much so that I decided

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that my world tour
would be essentially non-motorized.

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Zero-carbon travel.

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I would cross the continents on a bicycle,

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the oceans in a sail boat.

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And, for a bit of added fun,

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I would take along my paraglider
to view the world from above.

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I called this venture,

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"On the road with a wing."

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I had not chosen the easiest route.

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To increase my chances for success,
I had to be well organized.

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Yep, I was still an engineer
despite wanting to leave it all behind.

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My approach was to make
a real business plan.

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For six months,
I contacted the media, sponsors.

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I worked on a budget,
the equipment I would need.

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In short, a real business plan.


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I love Excel.

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I had a lot of fun, believe me!

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(Laughter)

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Then, I looked into visas,

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winter in the Andes, in the Himalayas,

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war zones, to create
the perfect itinerary.

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I knew that if I made a mistake,
I would suffer the consequences.

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As an example of my stupidity,

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one day,

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I was crossing the Pamirs in Central Asia,

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and I met a cyclist
just as shaggy and unkempt as me.

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At the time, this was 
really something special!

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So, we chatted a bit, and then he told me

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that he also wanted
to use a sail boat to cross the ocean

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from Asia to America ...

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Whoa!

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My stomach was in knots!

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I had to tell him 
that that wasn't really possible.

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Sail boats follow the trade winds,

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flowing around the world toward the west.

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The reverse is very rare.

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So, he was going to
find himself at the ocean

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forced to take a plane

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after he had worked like crazy 
to plan a non-motorized voyage!

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I, too, nearly went east.

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But, fortunately,

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a friend came to see me,
shortly before I left,

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and gave me this crucial information,

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and I was able to turn around.

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The cyclist had made
the exact same mistake.

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When I was behind the rock
on Mount Ararat,

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being shot at by F-16s,

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after the explosions ended,

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I thought it had been a military exercise,

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I continued toward the summit,

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where I launched
the next day to fly clear

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of the prior day's gunfire zone.

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I landed safe and sound
and retrieved my bicycle

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and made it to the first town
where I finally found someone

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who spoke English.

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He explained to me

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that the mountain closed
three months ago,

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that it was full of PKK rebels,

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and that the army was shooting on sight
anything that moved.

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(Laughter)

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(Applause)

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I had put my life in serious danger

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because of ignorance.

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If I had only been a bit more informed,

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I would never have made 
such irresponsible choices.

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Because, yes,

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a lack of information leads 
to irresponsible choices

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and, sometimes, even disasters.

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However,

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having made, for the most part,
choices that were informed

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and responsible,

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conscious of the consequences,

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I was able to make my dream a reality
and go even further.

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Four months later, on December 29, 2015,

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I crossed the finish line
after 2,723 days,

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Seven and a half years on the road,
rather than the anticipated four.

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I'd travelled 105,000 km
through some incredible places.

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I'd met all kinds of people.

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I'd been able to see marvellous things.

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I was happy, and I'd achieved my goal.

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That's how it went for me.

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But, what would happen

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if it was like that
for each and everyone of us?

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And what would happen

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if it was like that

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for everyone in our country
or on the planet?

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Can we not imagine a society 
that was more conscious,

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and, therefore, more responsible,

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and more liberated?

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Because a world tour,
a lifetime project, or a social plan

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is like paragliding.

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They're all full of limitations and risks
that we've chosen ourselves.

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We do everything we can
to control the consequences.

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An inaccurate reading of the wind
could mean death or paralysis.

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But, the take-off

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is the ultimate instant,

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the moment of truth,

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when your choices become
truly accountable,

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and hugely freeing.

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So ...

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ready to fly?

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Thank you.

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(Applause)