Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor….Explore. Dream. Discover.

– Mark Twain

What is Roadmonkey?

We are adventure philanthropists, organized and led by Paul von Zielbauer, an award-winning reporter and Iraq war correspondent for The New York Times from 1999 to September 2009. Below, Paul explains what adventure philanthropy means, what Roadmonkey does and how we travel.

Dear Friends,

Thanks for your interest in Roadmonkey. On each adventure we take, my goal is to lead you off the tourist path, to truly explore a new region of the world. Along the route, we complete a meaningful Roadmonkey volunteer project that directly benefits local people and communities in need. For instance, in November, a small Roadmonkey expedition will cycle through northwest Vietnam, then stop near an orphanage west of Hanoi for several days, to build the children their first playground.

I call it adventure philanthropy because what we do is provide a geographic and cultural experience that is physically challenging, intellectually stimulating and, by helping others, deeply gratifying. I lead all Roadmonkey expeditions personally. They´re designed to let spontaneity and inspiration guide our daily travel. We always end up at the right place at the end of the day - no worries! But we do travel different, and how we get there is part of the adventure. Why do it? Because world travel is a wonderful education and happiness lies in giving something of ourselves to those in need. Not to get too Gandhi about it, but he once said, You must become the change you wish to see in the world. I created Roadmonkey to help more people to do that more often.

I hope you´ll join me on the road.

Sincerely,

Paul von Zielbauer
Director, Roadmonkey Adventure Philanthropy

Who is Roadmonkey?

Paul von Zielbauer launched Roadmonkey in 2008 to give motivated people the chance to dive deep into a foreign culture and work hard for people in need. From 1999 through 2009, he was a staff correspondent for The New York Times, covering state government, private security firms, the military justice system and the war in Iraq. He has traveled in Africa, Southeast Asia and Latin America by train, boat, motorcycle, tram, bicycle, chicken bus and occasionally by car. He completed a Fulbright Scholarship for Young Journalists in 1997 while living in Berlin.

In 2005, The Times nominated Paul’s investigative series on privatized prison healthcare for a Pulitzer Prize. Paul graduated with honors from Columbia University´s Graduate School of Journalism. He received a B.A. from Iowa State University. He speaks German, Spanish and Vietnamese. He was born & raised in Aurora, Illinois.

Stef Levner is Roadmonkey’s director of expeditionary volunteer projects and a co-leader of Roadmonkey expeditions. Since 2005, she has worked in public relations, specializing in corporate responsibility, recruitment and diversity. She recently returned from a two-year assignment in the Netherlands.  Prior to her career in communications, Stef researched, wrote and edited Let’s Go travel guides for Barcelona, Peru and Indonesia.  She’s lived in Madrid and Amsterdam, visited the Bolivian salt deserts, climbed Kilimanjaro and eaten her share of blowfish in Japan.

Stef graduated in 2004 with honors from Harvard University, with a focus in International Relations. She was captain of the Radcliffe rowing team in 2004, a 2003 NCAA champion and a 2nd team All American. She speaks fluent Spanish and can also give thanks in Portuguese, Dutch, French, Japanese, Swahili and Bahasa Indonesia. She grew up outside Washington, D.C.

Mike Kessler became a Roadmonkey co-leader after joining the 2008 adventure philanthropy expedition to Vietnam and writing about the experience for Outside magazine. He leads the company’s business and partnership development effort. Mike held senior editor positions at magazines including Outside, Skiing, Denver’s 5280 and No Boundaries, an adventure-travel quarterly. He was a finalist for a National Magazine Award for public interest journalism in 2008, and his work is anthologized in “Best American Magazine Writing 2008.”

Mike has written for the New York Times Magazine, Details, Men’s Journal, Budget Travel, BestLife, and Salon.com. He has lived in Spain, New York, Colorado, and New Mexico and has traveled throughout North, Central and South America, and Vietnam & most of Europe. He’s biked his way through the Santa Monica Mountains and surfed many of Southern California’s finest breaks. Mike is originally from Los Angeles and currently lives in Santa Monica.