Pasang Lhamu Sherpa Akita

Pasang Llamu Sherpa Akita was voted the 2016 People’s Choice National Geographic Adventurer of the Year. She is the first female to become a mountaineering instructor in Nepal and has an impressive number of mountaineering achievements under her belt, including the first female ascent of Nangpai Gosum in 2006. The following year, she summited Mount Everest. In 2012, she summited Ama Dablam as part of all-female Nepali-French expedition, the first all-female team to do so. And, in 2014, she summited K2 with two other Nepali women, the first such team to reach the summit. Following the 2015 earthquake that devastated Nepal, she played a critical role in rescuing those affected by avalanches on Mount Everest and has been a leader in the earthquake recovery, organizing and distributing critical aid throughout the most affected and remote parts of the country.