In this moving presentation, Philippe Cousteau delivers a rich, visual account of his inheritance of the exploration and conservation of our “water planet,” carried out in the name of his grandfather Jacques Cousteau. He weaves his storytelling with vintage footage shot by his father on the Nile, and before and after filming among the coral reefs in the Florida Keys. As was impressed upon Philippe by his grandfather, the health and diversity of the oceans are precariously entangled with the wellbeing of people on land—including the empowerment of women and girls, access to safe drinking water, and ending our dependence on fossil fuel extraction. Philippe reads a cherished letter from his grandfather to his father, which serves as an inspiration to his family and all of humanity to “seek after the vanishing shapes of a better world.”

This speech was given at the 2011 Bioneers National Conference.

Since 1990, Bioneers has acted as a fertile hub of social and scientific innovators with practical and visionary solutions for the world's most pressing environmental and social challenges.

To experience talks like this, please join us at the Bioneers National Conference each October, and regional Bioneers Resilient Community Network gatherings held nationwide throughout the year.