In 2023, Bill Van Nierop is taking on the Long Kayak for Lungs 2, a 1440km kayak down the Murrumbidgee River to raise awareness of lung disease, more specifically, Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF). After being diagnosed with IPF in 2015, the need arose for Bill to receive the gift of a double lung transplant several years later. When he was first diagnosed, Bill never let his lung disease get the better of him. Instead, he challenged himself physically and mentally by completing The Long Walk for Lungs in 2017 and the first Long Kayak for Lungs in 2018.

Impressively, Bill completed both physical challenges with reduced lung capacity, in the hope of improving awareness of IPF and removing the stigma associated with lung disease. With a new set of lungs, and an even greater ambition to advocate for those impacted by IPF, Bill will undertake another significant kayaking journey, this time with his wife Lesley by his side, as he raises funds to further research into IPF through The Common Good.