Philippe Cousteau - Co-Founder
Explorer, social entrepreneur and environmental advocate, Philippe Cousteau is the 31-year-old son of Jan and Philippe Cousteau Sr., and the grandson of Captain Jacques-Yves Cousteau. As a member of the legendary family, Philippe is continuing the work of his father through EarthEcho International, the non-profit organization he founded with his sister and mother and of which he serves as CEO. His goal is to engage and empower people to take action for a brighter future. His tools are simple–education, balanced advocacy and a commitment to action.
In addition to his work with EarthEcho International, Philippe is co-founder of Azure Worldwide, a strategic environmental design, development and marketing company. Projects include work in green site design/planning, eco-tourism and new media. Through a strategic alliance with the University of Virginia, where he is an OpenGrounds Fellow, Philippe is aiding in the development and promotion of a revolutionary interactive game that simulates the impact of individuals and communities on the health of critical water resources.
Philippe is a special correspondent for CNN International where he hosts documentaries and reports on environmental and humanitarian stories including an upcoming exploration of the extreme science of climate change deep in the frozen arctic. He also serves as the Chief Ocean Correspondent for Discovery's Animal Planet, where he works on various ocean and environmentally-focused content. Philippe hosted Oceans Blue, a High Definition Discovery networks/BBC series which premiered in the U.S. on Planet Green in August 2010. In addition, he is the Chief Spokesperson for Environmental Education for Discovery Education, the #1 provider of K-12 broadband-delivered educational content to U.S. schools and lectures to over 100,000 K-12 students a year. Philippe is also the coauthor, with Cathryn Berger Kaye, of Going Blue, A Teen Guide to Saving Our Oceans, Lakes, Rivers, & Wetlands (Free Spirit Publishing), which was released in the summer of 2010 and has been awarded Learning Magazine's 2011 Teachers' Choice Award for the Family.
Philippe has been featured in television, online, radio and speaking programs across the country. He has written articles for many publications including Sport Diver Magazine and National Geographic Magazine and has lectured at such institutions as The United Nations, Harvard University, and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. He is a frequent contributor to CNN.com, the Huffington Post and TreeHugger.com.
Philippe and his sister Alexandra were named to Vanity Fair magazine's 2010 Next Establishment list in recognition of their contributions as environmental advocates. He was recently profiled by Bob Woodruff in an ABC News/Planet Green documentary entitled Focus Earth: 6 People Saving Our Planet.
Philippe serves on the Board of Directors of The Ocean Conservancy, Marine Conservation Biology Institute, and the National Environmental Education Foundation, as well as the Advisory Board of Discovery Communications Inc.'s Planet Green and the National Council of the World Wildlife Fund. Philippe has also testified to Congress on issues of ocean management and off-shore drilling. Most recently, he was appointed founder and co-chair of the Gulf Action Network for the Clinton Global Initiative.
Philippe's travels have taken him diving, rock climbing, trekking, and snowboarding around the world. From expeditions in the highlands of Papua New Guinea to war-torn Sarajevo, where he provided humanitarian aid, he has learned that exploring the connections between humans and the environment are as important as exploring nature itself. He holds a Master's degree in history from the University of St. Andrews.