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Alexandra Cousteau Profile

Alexandra Cousteau carries the name made famous by the work of her grandfather and father with honor and pride. She not only films the underwater world with extraordinary skill but also campaigns tirelessly to preserve its health and beauty.

In 2008 Alexandra was honored by National Geographic as one of their eleven “Emerging Explorers,” a group of young visionaries from across the globe noted for their discoveries, adventures and approach to solving the problems of the planet. Early in 2009 she joined the Discovery Channel as co-host (with her brother Philippe Jr.) of Blue August and also as Chief Correspondent on Water Issues for the same channel’s Planet Green. She also served as Water Adviser and spokesperson for the global Live Earth 2010 Run for Water.

Alexandra currently serves on many different and prestigious boards and councils, including as Senior Advisor for Oceana, on the Young Global Leaders Council, the Global Water Challenge, the Science Advisory Council for George Mason University, the steering committee of the Shark Alliance and many others. The organization Healthy Child Healthy World has also appointed her a Parent Ambassador.

Many awards have come Alexandra’s way from across the world, including the Human Security Award from the University of California Irvine, the South Carolina Aquarium’s Legacy Award and the Arava Institute’s Peace Building and Environmental Stewardship Award. She is regularly featured in a range of publications from Glamour to Scientific American; she and her brother Philippe were named onVanity Fair’s renowned “Next” list in 2010 and Cosmopolitan magazine named her alongside Tyra Banks as a “Fun Fearless Phenom.”

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    Explorer, Filmmaker, Advocate

    A National Geographic “Emerging Explorer, filmmaker and globally recognized advocate on water issues, Alexandra Cousteau continues the work of her renowned grandfather Jacques-Yves Cousteau and her father Philippe Cousteau, Sr. She has mastered the remarkable storytelling tradition handed down to her and has the unique ability to inspire audiences on the often the weighty issues of policy, politics and action. Alexandra is dedicated to advocating the importance of conservation and sustainable management of water in order to preserve a healthy planet. Her global initiatives seek to inspire and empower individuals to protect not only the ocean and its inhabitants, but also the human communities that rely on freshwater resources.

    Before hitting the road in 2010 for Expedition Blue Planet: North America, Alexandra served as the Water Advisor and spokesperson for the global Live Earth 2010 Run for Water—a project that teams her public advocacy on environmental issues with actress Jessica Biel, musician Pete Wentz and many more.

    In early 2009, Alexandra joined the Discovery Channel line-up, co-hosting Blue August with her brother Philippe, Jr. and serving as a Chief Correspondent on Water Issues for Discovery’s Planet Green.

    In 2008, she was honored as a National Geographic “Emerging Explorer”—an elite group of eleven visionary young trailblazers from around the world who push the boundaries of discovery, adventure, and global problem solving.

    Alexandra has been honored as an “Earth Trustee” by the UN, named a “Principle Voice” by CNN International, and regularly delivers testimony on critical policy issues before governmental agencies. In 2010, Alexandra and her brother Philippe were named to Vanity Fair’s coveted “Next” list.

    She currently serves as a Senior Advisor for Oceana, on the prestigious Young Global Leaders Council and Global Agenda Council on Oceans of the World Economic Forum; the Board of Directors of the Global Water Challenge, Mother Nature Network, and EarthEcho; the Leadership Council for the Waterkeeper Alliance; the Science Advisory Council for George Mason University; the International Advisory Board of Bloomsbury Qatar Foundation Journals/QScience.com; and the steering committee of The Shark Alliance. She is also a Parent Ambassador with Healthy Child Healthy World.

    Alexandra’s work regularly earns global recognition including the University of California Irvine’s Human Security Award, the South Carolina Aquarium’s Legacy Award, the Arava Institute’s Peace Building and Environmental Stewardship Award, and features at the National Press Club, the Royal Ontario Museum, Harvard University, and the Smithsonian Institute. She is regularly featured in publications ranging from Glamour and Elle to National Geographic and Scientific American and was named a “Fun Fearless Phenom” along with Tyra Banks by Cosmopolitan magazine.

Alexandra Cousteau Speaking Videos

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Alexandra Cousteau's Speech Descriptions

Alexandra Cousteau takes her audience on an exploration of the water cycle of our planet. She explains how water is fundamental to our geography, cultures, economy and the very existence of life itself. While extolling the beauty of water she sounds a clarion call for its protection, explaining with her blend of scientific expertise and environmental passion the crisis which is rapidly unfolding in the world’s water supply.

How to be a Lifelong Explorer: Leadership through the Lens of Exploration and Innovation
Cousteau is an explorer of our water planet. And when it comes to authentic and impactful storytelling, expeditions are just as important today as they were when Captain Cousteau first sealed cameras in Bell jars to explore the depths. But exploration is not just about discovery; it is also about leadership and innovation.

Cousteau brings audiences on a journey from her earliest memories with her grandfather teaching her how to scuba dive to her many adventures today. Along the way, she provides a unique perspective on how important it is to be an endlessly curious observer of the world as well as an active participant in its preservation.

Highlighting the revolutionary inventions made by her grandfather and the cutting-edge ways that her organization, Blue Legacy, reaches a worldwide audience, Cousteau encourages her audience to be an explorer and protector of our water planet. She reminds attendees that humans are the primary shareholders of the dividends of healthy water systems.


This Blue Planet: Preserving and Sustaining a Healthy Earth

On December 7, 1972, the crew of the Apollo 17 spacecraft took a photograph of earth at a distance of about 45,000 km. This iconic picture—The Blue Marble—captured what can only be truly appreciated from space: the fact that we live on a water planet. Yet while 70% of earth is covered by water, only a tiny percentage (0.001%) of that water is fit for human consumption and accessible to aquatic and terrestrial species.

Although the amount of water on the planet has remained nearly the same since earth was first formed, human impacts have substantially reduced the amount of water available to drink, fish from, and swim in. As our blue planet continues its orbit, environmental advocate and speaker Cousteau urges us to view global water issues—not as a disparate collection of unrelated problems—but through a systems-based approach that recognizes the fundamental interconnectivity of these issues and places renewed emphasis on protecting our planet's most vital resource.

Cousteau advocates an approach that recognizes how crucial it is to preserve natural water systems while taking into account the numerous demands, threats, and developments within a watershed. From managing resources and addressing pollution to planning appropriately for the placement of cities, factories, and farms, we must focus on careful economic planning and ecosystem-based management to preserve and sustain a healthy E=earth for generations to come.


Explorer, Filmmaker, Advocate and…Mom: The Challenge of Being a 21st Century Woman

While she has traveled across the globe to the most remote and exotic locations imaginable, Cousteau's greatest discovery was giving birth to her daughter. This transformative experience has reinforced her conviction in the importance of protecting our water planet, and has given her the chance to reach out to mothers and women everywhere to inspire them to lead a pioneering life and to never give up on their dreams. As women increasingly compete for the highest-level positions in politics and the workforce of the 21st century, they face new challenges balancing the demands of their career and family life.

Highly educated, empowered with technology, and driven by the notion that nothing less than complete equality on all fronts will suffice, women are not only impacting the agenda; they are writing it.

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