Persévérance, the world’s largest oceanographic sailing vessel and future supply ship for Polar Pod, is currently moored at Port-Moselle, at the Quai des Scientifiques. Polar Pod is a kind of station drifting around Antarctica, driven by the circumpolar current. It is a project imagined and led by the great French explorer Jean-Louis Etienne, to observe and take measurements of the Southern Ocean, the planet’s main oceanic carbon sink. The vessel Persévérance has opened its doors for visits by the general public and school groups. Meanwhile, on Friday, Jean-Louis Etienne hosted a conference for eighth and ninth-grade students at the Mariotti middle school. He then took part in a Q&A session with the young people and also agreed to answer a few of our questions. Jean-Louis Etienne recounted his expeditions on Friday at the Mariotti middle school before 90 students. The vessel Persévérance at the Quai des Scientifiques. Is it important for you to do educational work with middle school students? Yes, I love it. I love it because I have a unique background, and I like to share it with young people who may have questions about their future. You know, I didn’t have high enough grades to enter the general academic stream, and I had to choose a vocational path. I wanted to be a carpenter—I dreamed of working with wood—but there were no spots left, so I was offered the chance to become a turner-miller. I gained self-confidence throughout the training, and the teachers then had me switch to the general high school track. I finally chose medicine; at the time, that cut-throat competitive exam didn’t exist yet! And I became a surgeon. Then, as I was raised in the countryside, the desire for contact with nature caught up with me. I wanted to go on expeditions, so I offered my medical skills. I went to the Himalayas, Greenland, and the Andes; I was a crew member for Eric Tabarly during his world race. In 1986, I was 38 years old, and I wanted to do my own expedition. That’s how I set off for the North Pole. To young people, I say that it is important to commit once you decide to follow a path. And never give up. I like to give them this message: if you have a desire, listen to it and see it through to the end. Nothing will be easy; it will take time, work, and perseverance, above all to resist the temptation to give up. Always follow the course of your dreams, even if the path is difficult.
