Alexandra Cousteau

Environmentalist and underwater filmmaker (France)

As the third generation of a family that pioneered the defence of the oceans and marine wildlife, Alexandra Cousteau honours her surname as an influential marine environmental activist.

Cousteau is an expert scuba diver, having learned to dive aged seven alongside her grandfather (the famous Captain Jacques-Yves Cousteau ) who introduced her to the mysteries of the sea. As a filmmaker and photographer, she has led several expeditions aimed at better understanding the current issues the oceans are facing and searching for solutions.

Cousteau pioneered the live broadcast of expeditions on social media at a time when it wasn’t as widespread today and her commitment to the dissemination of ocean conservation programmes – which attracted record-breaking audiences – have earned her the honorary title of National Geographic Emerging Explorer in 2008.

The seas’ critical situation and gloomy forecasts drove her to launch the Oceans 2050 initiative in 2018 – a global action programme whose aim is to restore oceans’ abundance and diversity. In parallel, Cousteau works closely with the organisation Oceana, with whom she has collaborated intensely in campaigns against intensive fishing and advocating for marine policies that help increase biodiversity to provide us with more food in the future.