As a white man walking solo across South Africa for 1,708 miles, Nico de Klerk's unannounced arrival at more than 100 townships (segregated areas of Black population post-apartheid) with no pre-arrangement could be seen as abnormal, even suicidal, behavior. Why did he do it? Nico lived a No Fit lifestyle akin to that of a lone wolf. His unconventional and groundbreaking journey led to the most transformative and unexpected experiences—fostering connections while disruption perceptions of South African society.
Through delivering workshops on the entrepreneurial mindset to nearly 50,000 students and the impoverished—while conducting research about the South African strategy to address poverty, unemployment, and inequality—Nico's journey transcended that of a long walk. Blending socioeconomics, neuroscience, and spirituality, while revealing what it means to be human on this planet, Nico's work was awarded the Best Global Innovative Project for 2018 by Life Learning Academia, with the Edward de Bono Reference Award.