Ben Ayers
Writer, Producer
Ben Ayers is a climber, writer, documentary film maker, and humanitarian based in Kathmandu, Nepal. He started his career studying (and carrying loads with) Nepal's mountain porters, eventually starting the advocacy organization Porters' Progress that worked to reduce fatalities for expedition and trekking workers across the world. Currently, Ben directs programs for the dZi Foundation, which works in close partnership with communities in Nepal’s extremely remote eastern hills to improve their quality of life while reducing poverty and migration. Under his leadership, dZi has constructed over 30 schools, dozens of drinking water systems, and thousands of sanitary toilets – including one of the largest urine recycling programs on the globe. His writing and film work focus on documenting isolated and threatened cultures across the Himalayas, and highlight how indigenous knowledge is a crucial part of the dialogue around how to solve many of the problems faced by our species today. In 2016, he led an expedition to document the last harvest of wild cliff honey by a tribe of Kulung Rai that is featured in the July, 2017 edition of National Geographic Magazine and in the short film The Last Honey Hunter. Ayers is often found exploring Nepal’s dangerous mountain roads on vintage motorcycles or seeking out adventures in the few remaining wildest places.
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