The polar regions are what we do. From our expert expedition guides to our impeccable crew to our diversely skilled office staff, the OEX team is all about giving you the utmost experience of the Arctic, Antarctica, and the sub-Antarctic. Seasoned passengers of our own epic voyages, we bring to the table not only a love of the exotic polar world but also a combined wealth of expertise unrivaled by any other polar tour operator. Join us on one of our adventurous voyages, and let us share with you all there is to see, do, and explore in Earth’s most remote frontiers.
Our staff
Expedition staff
- Adam Burke
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: British
Adam has always had a love of the outdoors and adventure, from an early age he dreamt of visiting exotic places and immersing himself in other cultures.
This love of the outdoors led him to work teaching adventurous activities and for over fifteen years this pursuit has given him the opportunity to live and work all over the globe. He has taught sailing in Australia, paddle sports on Europe’s rivers and led expeditions in Africa.
After spending five years teaching white water safety & rescue and boat handling techniques to the fire brigade, he moved on to providing marine science support in Antarctica. He has spent over five years living between the Antarctic continent and the island of South Georgia, including overwintering twice.
Whilst providing science support he spent his time in Antarctica managing boating operations and helming RIBs for diving operations. This covered understanding environmental changes and its effects, wildlife monitoring and counting as well as water sampling for a long-term data collection.
Adam enjoys travelling with his partner who shares the same values and love of the outdoors. This has taken them from deserts to rain forests and ultramarathons in the mountains.
- Philipp Schaudy
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: Austrian
Philipp Schaudy holds a Master’s Degree in Physical Geography and has studied in Austria, Iceland, and Svalbard. A restless traveler, adventurer, and alpinist, he’s always loved the outdoors.
- Christian Engelke
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: German
Since his first vacation to Norway in 1996, Christian Engelke has suffered from “Scandinavia fever.” Since then he has been exploring Norway, Sweden, and Greenland by foot, skis, and kayak.
- Ali Liddle
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: British
- Adam Turner
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: British
- Pippa Low
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: British
- Jan Belgers
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: Dutch
- Hans Verdaat
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: Dutch
- Florence Kuyper
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: Dutch
- Chris Long
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: New Zealander
- Sara Jenner
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: British
- Claudio Ghiglione
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: Italian
- Rinie van Meurs
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: Dutch
- George Kennedy
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: Australian
- Marcel Paul
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: Dutch
- Eduardo Rubio
- Function: Expedition leader
- Nationality: Guatemalan
Activity staff
- Henrik Enckell
- Function: Dive Team Leader & Advisor
- Nationality: Swedish
Henrik is an experienced dive leader, rebreather instructor trainer, and one of the first dive masters to bring tourists diving in Antarctica.
Henrik has been diving for over 25 years and teaches all levels of recreational and technical diving up to Advanced Trimix CCR.
He runs the IART (International Association of Rebreather Trainers) Regional Office for Northern Europe and is a member of the IART Board of Advisors.
Henrik is a keen wreck diver and has been involved in deep-wreck expeditions all over the world. Some of the interesting wrecks he has visited are the WW2 disasters General von Steuben and Wilhelm Gustloff in the Baltic as well as the HMS Victoria ("the vertical wreck") at 145 meters (475 feet) off the Lebanese coast.
His interest in both the ocean and space has engaged him in projects with the European Space Agency (Mars500 Project) and SeaSpace Exploration and Research Society (Project Poseidon), among others.
He has a military background, having served in peace keeping and enforcing missions in the Middle East and former Yugoslavia.
He has been leading dive expeditions in Antarctica and the Arctic for almost 20 years in remote and challenging waters, many of which have never been dived before.
Henrik holds an M.Sc. Degree in Electrical Engineering and works in the automotive industry when not traveling the polar regions.
He has lived and worked in Tokyo for two years but currently lives in India with his wife, three teenage daughters, and five-year-old son.
- Michael Green
- Function: Dive Team Leader and Advisor
- Nationality: British
Michael began diving in 1980, training with the Royal Navy in Portsmouth Harbour.
- Jonny Baird
- Function: Mountain Leader and Advisor
- Nationality: British
Since 2017, Jonny has worked regularly as a mountaineering guide and as Lead Mountain Guide on the Antarctic Peninsula.
Captains
- Joachim Schiel
- Function: Captain
- Nationality: German
Born near the German city of Cologne, Joachim Schiel grew up some distance from the coast. His first contact with vessels came from the yearly sailing trips he made with a youth group on the Baltic.
After finishing school, serving in the military, and working a few different jobs, he started an apprenticeship in boat building. It was not long, however, before he realized he would rather work on vessels at sea than in the shipyard.
So in 1998, he started his sailing career on tall ships. Over the following years, he sailed during the summer and attended nautical college in Enkhuizen during the winter. This led to sailing on many different vessels all over the world before he became a captain in 2006.
He first sailed to Svalbard in 2009 and instantly fell in love with the Arctic, preferring to sail in the far north ever since. He has been on Rembrandt van Rijn since 2017, making voyages in Northern Norway, Svalbard, and East Greenland.
When Joachim is not sailing the polar regions, he likes to go hiking and diving in the warmer areas of the world.
- Arthur Yakovlev
- Function: Captain
- Nationality: Russian
Arthur Yakovlev was born in Petrozavodsk, the capital and largest city of the Republic of Karelia, in northwestern Russia.
- Ernesto Barria
- Function: Captain
- Nationality: Chilean
Ernesto Barria was born in Santiago, Chile, into a family with strong bonds to the sea: His father, grandfather, and several uncles all share a love of the ocean.
- Per Andersson
- Function: Captain
- Nationality: Swedish
- Remmert Koster
- Function: Captain
- Nationality: Dutch
Office
- Michael Frauendorfer
- Function: Hotel Operations Manager
- Nationality: Austrian
- Ko de Korte
- Function: Consultant
- Nationality: Dutch
- George Janes
- Function: Senior Copywriter
- Nationality: British
- Teun van ‘t Verlaat
- Function: Technical Manager
- Nationality: Dutch
- Nyrée Siereveld-Verstraete
- Function: Account Assistant
- Nationality: Dutch
- Toto Vermue
- Function: USA and Canada Sales Manager
- Nationality: Dutch
- Majanda Fens
- Function: Reservations Manager
- Nationality: Dutch
- Franklin Braeckman
- Function: Antarctic Program Manager
- Nationality: Belgian
- Helen de Jong
- Function: Sales Account Manager
- Nationality: Dutch
- Stefan Pruimboom
- Function: Staffing and Operations Advisor
- Nationality: Dutch
- Kees Matthes
- Function: Nautical Superintendent
- Nationality: Dutch
- John Yeh
- Function: Sales Representative China & South Asia & Oceania
- Nationality: Chinese
- Sasha Rachkova
- Function: Online Marketeer
- Nationality: Russian
- Marina Joglar
- Function: Reservations, North-America
- Nationality: American
- Piet Vink
- Function: Managing Director
- Nationality: Dutch
- Gabi Merten
- Function: Reservations for the German speaking market
- Nationality: German
- Marissa Medrano
- Function: Accounting
- Nationality: American
- Florian J. Piper
- Function: Director Sales | Arctic program
- Nationality: German
- Maria del Pilar Fernandez
- Function: International Sales Manager
- Nationality: Chilean
- Dorine van Boekhout
- Function: Reservations
- Nationality: Dutch
- Karin Schutte
- Function: Reservations
- Nationality: Dutch
- Rémi Bouysset
- Function: CEO
- Nationality: French
- Jornt de Meurichy
- Function: E-commerce officer
- Nationality: Dutch
- Elza Back
- Function: Account Assistant
- Nationality: Dutch
- Sytze Posthumus
- Function: Financial Controller
- Nationality: Dutch
- Loraine van Huizen
- Function: Online Marketeer
- Nationality: Dutch
- Danique van Burken
- Function: Senior Marketing Manager
- Nationality: Dutch
- Marie Rose Porreca
- Function: Reservations, North-America
- Nationality: American
- Grace Vidal
- Function: Reservations, North-America
- Nationality: American
- Adam Turner
- Function: CXO - Head of Expedition Operations
- Nationality: British
- Femke Wolfert
- Function: Staffing Manager
- Nationality: Dutch
- Sebastiaan Schijf
- Function: CFO
- Nationality: Dutch
- Bas Jumelet
- Function: Assistant Hotel Operations Manager
- Nationality: Dutch
- Alexandra den Dikken
- Function: Senior Graphic Designer
- Nationality: Dutch
- Arjan Gunnink
- Function: Senior Polar Diving Advisor
- Nationality: Dutch
- Michel van Gessel
- Function: Director
- Nationality: Dutch