Shannon Galpin

National Geographic Adventurer of the Year and global activist Shannon Galpin has been working and traveling in Afghanistan for 8 years and is the founder of the nonprofit Mountain2Mountain, which has spearheaded dozens of projects in Afghanistan. Galpin created the Streets of Afghanistan photography installation and has supported graffiti artists and photographers in Kabul. In 2009, she became the first person to mountain bike in Afghanistan, and she now supports and trains the first Afghan Women’s National Cycling team and two other female bike clubs. She is the author of two books, her memoir, Mountain to Mountain: A Journey of Adventure and Activism for the Women of Afghanistan, and a photo book, Streets of Afghanistan. Galpin is a producer on the documentary Afghan Cycles, a 2016 film by Let Media. The International Olympic Committee awarded Galpin an Honorary Achievement Diploma in 2015 for her work promoting gender equity through sports. Galpin and her work have been featured around the world, including in The New York Times, "Dateline NBC," Outside magazine, "BBC World News," "NBC Nightly News," ESPN, CNN and NPR.