Wasfia Nazreen
National Geographic Expeditions Expert, Explorer, Adventurer, Mountaineer & Storyteller
Wasfia Nazreen
National Geographic Expeditions Expert, Explorer, Adventurer, Mountaineer & Storyteller
Biography
Wasfia Nazreen is a National Geographic Expeditions Expert, Explorer & Adventurer, mountaineer, and storyteller whose life’s work bridges extreme exploration with deep social purpose. She is the first Bengali in the world, and the only Bangladeshi, to have successfully climbed K2 and the Seven Summits— the highest mountains on every continent, including Everest.
Grounded in meditation and self-realization practices, Wasfia’s path has always been propelled by causes close to her heart. A tragic beginning shaped her early understanding of what “home” truly means, leading her to work closely with communities experiencing displacement and homelessness. Across development and nonprofit work, mountaineering, guiding, education, and storytelling, she has repeatedly risked comfort and convention in service of what she believes in, while becoming equally known for her sharp humor and rare ability to alchemize tragedy into comedy, pain into insight, and survival into shared laughter.
Forging her own way far from the expectations placed on women in her country, Wasfia chose a life of courage and ascent, meeting fear head-on, falling asleep to the sound of avalanches, and continuing to climb, both literally and metaphorically. An outspoken activist since her late teens, she has received numerous national and global honors for her leadership and her commitment to empowering women through adventure. Men’s Journal named her one of the 25 Most Adventurous Women of the Past 25 Years (2016), and Outside magazine recognized her as one of the 40 Women in the Last 40 Years who have advanced and challenged the outdoor world through leadership, innovation, and athletic achievement (2017).
Wasfia is the only woman to simultaneously hold the titles of National Geographic Explorer and Adventurer, and she received the People’s Choice Award at the National Geographic Society’s 2016 Explorers Symposium, an honor voted on by thousands of National Geographic staff worldwide. She is also the founder of High Karma Journeys, a global healing and wisdom-based platform that weaves together exploration, ancestral knowledge, meditation, adventure and embodied practices to support personal and collective healing. Through every summit, story, and shared laugh, Wasfia continues to invite others into a deeper remembering of courage, empowerment, belonging, and what it means to truly come home.
Speaker Videos
World Leading Mountaineer: The Formula For Unshakable Resilience
Nature and the Human Spirit | Wasfia Nazreen
A Woman's Epic Journey to Climb 7 Mountains—Shot on a Phone | Short Film Showcase
Speech Topics
Taming the Masculine Within
Join National Geographic Explorer and mountaineer Wasfia Nazreen for an unforgettable evening of storytelling, visuals, and reflection on one of the greatest tests of the human spirit: K2. With epic, never-before-seen footage, Wasfia will guide us across the globe with a special focus on the Himalayas and the Karakoram mountain ranges, home to the world’s most formidable peaks. Known for her raw honesty and signature humor, Wasfia weaves together tales that will make you laugh through your deepest sorrows and transcend beyond them. This talk is more than an account of climbing mountains—it is a journey into the untamed landscapes within ourselves.
Drawing from her historic ascent of K2, the world’s most dangerous and unpredictable peak, Wasfia invites us to reexamine the balance of feminine and masculine energies within, and how taming our inner extremes allows us to unlock resilience, growth, and boundless potential. Whether you are scaling your own inner mountains, seeking inspiration to push beyond perceived limits, or simply curious about the extraordinary capacities of the human spirit, this evening promises to reignite your inner power and elevate your perspective. Through humor, heartbreak, and triumph, Wasfia reminds us that every challenge—like every summit—offers a chance to dismantle limitations and awaken the untapped strength and potential within.
Mountaineering Women
Testimonials
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