Sarah Outen, a British adventurer and author, will appear virtually on Feb. 18 at noon as the keynote speaker for the 2020-21 MUSE Theme Year. The event will take place on Zoom and be free of charge, but registration is required to attend. Registration is now open at muse.utah.edu/sarah.

Outen’s appearance is sponsored by the University of Utah MUSE Project (My U Signature Experience), a university presidential initiative that works to enrich undergraduate education across the U.

The hour-long event will include a Q&A segment. Viewers may submit questions prior to the event at muse.utah.edu/sarah. Questions must be submitted by Friday, Feb. 12.

Each year, MUSE chooses a theme and centerpiece text as the basis for its educational work. “Resilience” is the 2020-21 theme, and the accompanying book is Outen’s 2017 memoir “Dare to Do: Taking on the Planet by Bike and Boat,” which chronicles her human-powered 25,000-mile, four-and-a-half-year expedition around the northern hemisphere. Throughout the Spring 2021 Semester, MUSE will host a series of lunchtime lectures and other activities designed to facilitate reflection and encourage undergraduate students in their educational journeys.

MUSE will provide 250 signed copies of Outen’s book free of charge to U students and other members of the university community. To request a book, please visit muse.utah.edu/sarah.

“Sarah Outen’s ‘Dare to Do’ tells a remarkable story,” says MUSE Director Mark Matheson. “Her journey around the world is a supreme test both physically and emotionally, and she reflects in the book on what she learned and how the experience changed her. She meets a wonderfully global array of people, faces hardship, and emerges with greater self-knowledge. This is a quest our students can no doubt identify with and learn from, given that they’ve embarked on their own quite similar journeys here at the U.”

Those who register and attend Outen’s keynote event will also receive free streaming access to the full-length version of “Home,” the award-winning documentary film of Outen’s expedition.

About Sarah Outen

Sarah Outen, 35, is a British adventurer, author and speaker.

Outen’s career as an adventurer started in her early 20s when, following the sudden death of her father, she set out to row solo across the Indian Ocean in his memory while raising money for charity. After 124 days alone at sea, rowing from Australia to Mauritius, Outen became the first woman and youngest person ever to row solo across the Indian Ocean. She was 24 years old at the time.

While out at sea, Outen dreamed of accomplishing even more: traversing different landscapes, meeting new people and crossing the other major oceans. As a result, her next adventure began to take shape. Eventually called “London2London: Via the World,” the journey became a 25,000-mile, four-and-a-half-year trip during which she rowed, cycled and kayaked around the northern hemisphere, beginning and ending the journey in London. Her aims with the trip were to raise money for charity, inspire people to embrace adventure, and ultimately return home safe and well.

The journey is documented in her book, “Dare to Do,” and in the award-winning film “Home.” Outen has since remarked that the journey was all the richer for not turning out exactly as she had planned, and that the shadows and scars it revealed have helped her to grow.

Outen’s expeditions have earned her various honors: multiple Guinness World records, the British Adventurer of the Year award (2016), an ESPN Newton Award and recognition as a member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE).

Over the last decade, Outen has focused on storytelling, encouraged people to get outside and supported a number of youth and health charities. In addition to “Dare to Do,” Outen has written “A Dip in the Ocean,” and she is currently at work on another book. Home for now from long-term solo wandering, Outen spends her time with her wife, Lucy, and is training to be a psychotherapist.