A DUMBARTON-BORN adventurer has hiked to Everest Base Camp to launch a new educational project.

William Glover, who now lives in China where he works as academic director for the Consortium of North American Universities, has already gained international recognition for his educational and charity work.

He has launched the 30 at 30 project, in conjunction with the English Speaking Union in Eastbourne, which will see 30 Chinese students given scholarship awards and places at leading American universities to complete their undergraduate studies.

Having previously launched his first children’s book at a reception on China’s Great Wall, William felt that there was no better place to launch his English language programme than in China’s most remote region at iconic Mount Everest.

He took ten days to reach the North Base Camp in Tibet, which lies at an altitude of more than 17,000 feet and was accompanied by a group of international educators, who were then able to spread the project’s message nationally.

He told the Reporter: “I have tended through the years to launch all my books, education and charity projects in iconic venues quite simply as this helps garner greater attention not only from the media but most importantly from student participants.

“I chose to launch the project there because, whilst Tibet is politically part of China, there are many both within China and obviously outside China who view Tibet as an occupied nation.

“Whatever the political ramifications, and everyone will have their own view, I was keen to include all of greater China in my latest project as access should be available to all Chinese students wherever they are located.

“I am a great believer that no person should be left behind and simply because one lives in a less accessible part of the world does not mean that one should ever be excluded from educational opportunity.”

For his next venture, he is currently seeking official permission to backpack in the Chinese/Afghan border region with time spent in Kashgar where he hopes to conduct academic research on the ancient Silk Road.

But it was this same philosophy which drove his trip to Base Camp and launching the 30 at 30 project, which previously drove his stay North Korea, where he spent time researching the reclusive state in 2016.

More recently, his charity work has taken him to Cambodia, where he focused on raising awareness about the important issues of landmine clearance and the sex trafficking of women.

In Cambodia he also met with, and interviewed, the two sole remaining survivors of the notorious S21 death camp as part of his research that will see Cambodia added to his lecturing portfolio.

William, who is also director for academic quality and governance Asia Pacific for the American conglomerate Kaplan Inc, added: “In terms of the landmines and their victims, this is an issue that only enters our consciousness occasionally although the consequences are very real.

“By spending Christmas and New Year volunteering with organisations like the Daughters of Cambodia, my aim was to encourage students globally both to research and understand the issues involved and hopefully to consider giving over some of their time to help others.”