To WAEXPO 2018, this years event is packed with amazing women sharing incredible stories - don't miss out!
*WAEXPO2018
Event Information
Women’s Adventure Expo CIC hosted a packed weekend of events from Friday 5th to Sunday 7th October, including WAEXPO 2018 on Saturday 6th October at We The Curious – Bristol Science Centre. More information on venues, programmes, and speakers can be found in the sections below.
*EVENT NEWS
What was new in 2018?
WAExpo 2018 was the biggest and boldest WAExpo yet! The event reflected adventure from a range of life stages, backgrounds, ethnicity and abilities, and looked at how to make adventure more inclusive and accessible to all women (the mission statement of Women’s Adventure Expo CIC). This panel session was on the theme of Diversity in the Adventure industry! We were joined by many amazing speakers and interesting exhibitors, all keen to speak with women interested in outdoor participation and supported by fantastic sponsors, helping us to empower women. More information is available on the links below, check out our sponsors, exhibitors, speakers, programme and event info.
*SPEAKERS
Look who's talking on Mainstage
Sadly headline speaker Dervla Murphy was unable to join us due to illness but her friend and fellow travel writer Antonia Bolingbroke-Kent presented a film of her life. WAExpo 2018 will included three event areas, the Main Stage, the popular How to Guides and the Inspiring Stories sessions. Altogether there were 13 sessions and 17 speakers at the event. Here are the WAExpo Main Stage speakers, please click on the links below to view all WAExpo speakers for 2018.
Dervla Murphy
Dervla Murphy’s first book, Full Tilt: Ireland to India with a Bicycle, was published in 1965. Over 20 other titles have followed, and Dervla has won worldwide praise and many awards for her writing. Now in her late 80s, she continues to travel around the world and remains passionate about politics, conservation, bicycling and beer. She is a Legend!
Antonia Bolingbroke-Kent
Travel writer and ladyventurer with a particular love of wandering alone through remote regions. Antonia’s prolonged attack of itchy feet dates back to a tuk tuk adventure, thundering across China’s Gobi desert in Ting Tong, her pink tuk tuk, heading in the general direction of England. Arriving home 12,561 miles later, she set the Guinness World Record for the longest ever journey by auto-rickshaw.
Anna McNuff
Endurance athlete, adventurer and mischief maker., Anna is named by the Guardian as one of the top female adventurers of our time. Anna’s major journeys include cycling through each and every state of the USA, running the length of New Zealand and exploring the peaks and passes of the Andes mountains – a journey in which she ascended the equivalent to 11 times the height of Mount Everest on a bicycle.
Easkey Britton
The first Irish woman to be nominated for the Global WSL Big Wave Awards. It was Easkey’s grandmother, Mary Britton, returned to Ireland from California, bringing two Malibu surfboards back, who started the journey! Now, its Easkey’s quest to learn and create change in an often unfair world that really defines her. A scientist, academic, surfer and social activist, she is co-founder Waves of Freedom, which uses the power of surfing as a creative medium for social change.
Kate Rawles
In 2017/18 Kate Rawles aka @CarbonCycleKate rode the length of South America on ‘Woody’ a bicycle made of bamboo that she built herself at the London-based Bamboo Bicycle Club from bamboo grown at Cornwall’s Eden Project. From Colombia to Cape Horn, (or as close as you can get to it on a bike), Kate and Woody – the UK’s first ‘home-grown bicycle’ – travelled for 8,288 miles following the spine of the Andes through an astonishing variety of landscapes and ecosystems.
Mel Nicholls
Rio Paralympian Mel lives life in the fast lane, in her racing career and in her passion for adventure. A series of life-changing strokes as a fit and healthy young woman left Mel unable to walk and use much of the left side of her body. Mel’s mottoes “Dream Big” and “Live an Adventure” are no truer than her real-life adventure tales, as she continues to go beyond barriers. Not content to leave her outdoor world in her past life. Mel brings a unique take on adventure with disability, the female role and being a sportswoman.
*PROGRAMME
One weekend, four events
WAExpo2018, Adventure and Wellbeing, Shextreme Film Festival, WAExpo Social/Love Her Wild Networking and Sunday Activities, phew! Four brilliant events and activity options in one weekend, women interested in adventure take over Bristol! Scroll through the events below, then click the images to find out more about the individual programmes running at each event.
WAExpo 2018
Saturday 6th October
A full day of talks, presentations, and workshops. Meet inspirational outdoor women. Find out about some great organisations, enter competitions, and enjoy networking with adventure enthusiasts at every stage, beginner or advanced. Event info HERE.
Adventure and Wellbeing
Friday 5th October
Adventure and Wellbeing is a collaborative event with Freedom of Mind, Bristol’s mental well-being festival. It’s a chance to share research and experience of the impact of adventure on wellbeing. Seminar, workshops and short presentations.
Shextreme
Friday 5th October
To all the wild women who answer the call of adventure: Shextreme Film Festival is dedicated to you. The world’s first film festival celebrating women in extreme sports and adventure.
WAExpo and Love Her Wild Networking Event
Saturday 6th October
Love Her Wild will be joining WAExpo to host a networking evening straight after WAExpo 2018. Meet like-minded adventures, encourage one another, make connections and plan your adventures HERE!
Activities
Sunday 7th October
To complete the weekend, on Sunday 7th October partners and friends of WAExpo will hold taster session and activities for you to enjoy, try something new and probably get muddy too! More information HERE.
*TICKETS
Grab them before they're gone!
For ticket options please click on the links below. WAExpo 2018 earlybird tickets sold out early! Standard tickets are also limited!
Event SPONSORS
Event Sponsors
