2008 Emerging Explorers Announced

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National Geographic has announced it’s 2008 Emerging Explorers, a list of people who are “uniquely gifted and inspiring young adventurers, scientists, photographers, and storytellers—explorers who are already making a difference early in their careers.”

This year there are nine recipients of the Emerging Explorers grants, which includes a $10,000 cash award. The 2008 winners are a diverse group to be sure, with conservationists, zoologists, anthropologists, and musician/storytellers all making the list. Their projects are of course equally as diverse with studies of chimpanzees, plotting the migration patterns of whale sharks, and an investigation on hydraulic mining’s impact on the rivers of Mongolia all garnering attention.

The name that’s most likely to catch your attention is Alexandra Cousteau no doubt. She is indeed the granddaughter of Jacques, and the daughter Philippe, who are legends in the field of ocean exploration. Alexandra is carving out her own reputation, and of her project focuses on water of course. She predicts that water will be the “defining crisis” of the 21st Century thanks to pollution, shrinking freshwater supplies, and droughts, and so on. Ms. Cousteau if exploring ways for our society to become more sustainable and conservative in our water usage. As with all of these explorers, a noble cause to be sure.

Kraig Becker

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