After spending nearly twenty years testing the limits of human endurance in the most inhospitable environments on the planet, Kevin Vallely inspires audiences with his core belief that it doesn’t take a hidden talent or a gift to achieve big goals, it’s something we’re all capable of doing.
As a keynote speaker, award-winning architect and internationally recognized adventurer, Kevin offers a unique perspective that no matter what the goal, the fundamentals to achieving success as a trusted leader is to walk the talk, create purposeful collaboration, and build psychological trust. Kevin has learned that these fundamentals allow any team to operate at their peak performance regardless of where they operate.
Kevin has proven that he can thrive in the most adverse conditions imaginable. He has overcome insurmountable setbacks by seeing them as opportunities for creative thinking and innovation rather than as impediments to success. Through his experiences he has garnered a powerful understanding of leadership, resilience and perspective in unpredictable and fast-changing environments and has translated this knowledge into a business acumen that activates and amplifies leadership instincts.
Connecting to WHY he does what he does – the purpose behind his goals – is key to what drives Kevin’s actions and the legacy he hopes to create.
Named one of Canada’ leading adventurers by the Globe and Mail, Kevin is a member of the esteemed Explorer’s Club and was an Explorer’s Club Flag recipient when attempting his first human-powered traverse of the Northwest Passage in 2013.
He has skied the length of Alaska’s 1180-mile Iditarod Trail in the dead of winter, has retraced the infamous Sandakan Death March through the jungles of Borneo for the first time since WWII and in 2009 broke the World Record for the fastest unsupported trek from the edge of the Antarctic continent to the Geographic South Pole.
A lead facilitator and expedition manager for the leadership development company The AIP Group (Adventures Inspiring Performance), Kevin uses exciting immersive learning adventure simulations with the latest in neuroscience and performance research to optimize leadership learning.
In February 2020 Kevin released his new book Wild Success : 7 Key Lessons Business Leaders can Learn from Extreme Adventurers.
Heather Morrison is a public speaking coach, award-winning theatre artist, and broadcaster from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. She has worked as backfill radio host for CBC and as a sideline reporter for a number of sports platforms, including national coverage on TSN. She is the founder and president of Deliver Your Best Coaching where her signature program transforms even the most nervous people into confident and authentic speakers. She has more than 100,000 followers on her Instagram page where she teaches people about public speaking and attracts clients from all over the world.
Kaleb Dahlgren is a Canadian gem. He is an inspiring community leader, mental wellness advocate, and survivor. Kaleb has an inexplicable ability to connect with any audience as he invites them to revisit the challenges of his past and share the valuable lessons he has learned from them.
From a young age, Kaleb has been forced to be resilient. His hockey career was threatened before it started with a diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes at four years old. Yet Kaleb proved his doctors and coaches wrong by going on to play hockey at an elite level. During his career, he played for the Humboldt Broncos – a team that made national news when their bus collided with a transport truck. The accident took away 16 lives and left only 13 survivors, many of them with lifelong
injuries. Kaleb is one of the survivors.
Once he recovered, Kaleb returned to the ice to play for York University’s varsity hockey team. While at York, he earned a Bachelor of Commerce degree as Valedictorian, Magna Cum Laude, and Varsity Athletics Male Graduate of the Year in April 2021. Currently, Kaleb is pursuing his dream of becoming a chiropractor at the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College.
Kaleb is passionate about community service and team-building. He is the National Ambassador for two non-profit organizations, and the founder of his own, Dahlgren’s Diabeauties – a mentorship program developed to help connect children with Type 1 diabetes to role models that can help provide guidance and support. Kaleb’s work and dedication to helping others have been recognized nationally with honours, including the 2023 Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal for Community Impact.
Additionally, he is the National bestselling author of Crossroads, his debut memoir. Crossroads was deemed a book that “will change your life for the better” by hockey legend Wayne Gretzky. Between his busy schedule, Kaleb focuses on his personal growth, wellness and health while constantly seeking new challenges and experiences! A one-of-a-kind individual, Kaleb cultivates a positive impact wherever he goes.
