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Silvia Vásquez-Lavado

Explorer, Mountaineer Founder, Courageous Girls

Silvia Vásquez-Lavado is a humanitarian, adventure mountaineer, social entrepreneur, and technologist. In 2016, Silvia became the first Peruvian, openly gay woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest in Nepal and by 2018 she completed climbing 7 Summits (otherwise known as the tallest mountain in each continent). Each adventure tells a new story, filled with tragic loss, incredible resilience, courage and healing. In 2015, Silvia went on to create a non-profit called Courageous Girls, in which she coordinated mountain climbing excursions to Everest for girls who survived sexual abuse. Her achievements led her to be recognized as an Ambassador in Peru and a symbol of women empowerment around the world. Silvia's memoir, In The Shadow of The Mountain, is publishing February 22, 2022 and will be turned into a feature film, featuring Selena Gomez as Silvia. She is currently a North Face ambassador, public speaker, mentor and is gearing up for skiing the South Pole in Antarctica.