Helga Hengge was the first German woman to successfully climb Mount Everest and the first American woman to do so from the north side (she has dual citizenship). Reaching the summit of the highest mountain in the world was the highpoint of an exciting career between the extremes of creative work and outstanding mountaineering achievement. Helga grew up in Chicago and Munich, Germany, where she started her career as a fashion editor at Miss Vogue. In 1991 she moved to New York to study marketing, philosophy and film at the New York University and graduated in 1995 with Honours. Working as a freelance fashion editor on international campaigns she travelled around the world on assignments. In 1996 she discovered her passion for climbing and within a couple of years scaled many peaks on her way to the top of the world. In 1999 she took up the challenge of the treacherous north side of Mount Everest and reached the summit on May 27th 1999 via North East Ridge (Tibetan side) in the Himalayan Experience Expedition Team. October 2001 she reached the summit of Shishapangma (8021m) in Tibet. In her inspiring presentations and keynotes Only the sky above and Mastering challenges Helga Hengge takes her corporate audiences to the top of the highest mountain in the world. Accompanied by spectacular images of her two-month long ascent she shares her story of pushing physical and emotional boundaries in the face of overwhelming challenge, and the secrets of success. She has been a professional speaker since 2000, presenting her keynotes in Europe and New York.Helga Hengge has written a bestseller about her Mount Everest experiences, Mount Everest: Only the sky above and appeared on all major talk shows in Germany sharing her story of challenge and adventure on the highest mountains in the world.Helga Hengge is currently living in Munich, Germany, pursuing her speaking career and working on her second book. She is exploring climbing in the Alps and continuing on her seven summits challenge she has two children.