What Can We Learn From Two Women Living In Self-isolation?
Now that people around the world are spending more time with roommates and family during the COVID-19 pandemic, what can we learn from two women who lived, voluntarily, in ice-cold conditions? For more than seven months, Sunniva Sorby and Hilde Fålulm Strøm have self-isolated by choice in a one-room wooden cabin in Svalbard, Norway – a cluster of islands midway between continental Norway and the North Pole. In an article published on Public Radio International's (PRI) website, Sorby said: “We try to do things together and plan the day together. It doesn’t always happen because we’re normal people – we both have feelings and moods".
Sorby and Hilde, two women in their 50s, are 'citizen scientists' who created Hearts in the Ice and who have teamed up with researchers at the Norwegian Polar Institute and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography to record weather patterns, test new technologies for solar and wind energy, and observe wildlife behaviour in this remote region.
Just a Few Tricks
With their nearest neighbour about 100 miles away and with no running water or electricity, Sorby and Strøm have found a few tricks to cope with being alone together. Those tricks could come in handy, they told PRI, a global non-profit media company focused on the intersection of journalism and engagement to effect positive change in people’s lives.
Sorby and Hilde start their day reading and writing on their own beds while temperatures rise outside. Sorby says they consider this alone time to be almost sacred as they prepare for a full day of intense togetherness. Read more tips on how to spend your day and night together on www.pri.org.
About Hearts in the Ice
Hearts in the Ice, created by Hilde Fålun Strøm and Sunniva Sorby, is a platform for social engagement connecting students, scientists, manufacturers, environmental organizations, and all who care about the health of our planet, in the conversation around climate change.
About Hilde Fålun Strøm and Sunniva Sorby
Having moved to Svalbard over 23 years ago, Hilde’s experiences have ranged from hunting to dogsledding, months at remote huts, ski expeditions and well over 200 polar bear encounters. By sharing her fascination and love for this Arctic land and by creating awareness and engagement through Hearts in the Ice, Hilde hopes to contribute to reversing the negative trends that affect our environment, up in the Arctic and everywhere.
Sunniva has decades of expedition experience, including being part of the historic first women’s team to ski to the South Pole. Citizen science projects were introduced to her many years ago, highlighting the importance of collaboration with scientists to better understand changes in biodiversity and climate change and what individuals can do.
(Photo Hearts in the Ice)
