Founder of the Ocean Futures Society, a marine conservation and education organization, Cousteau will chronicle his more than 40 years of exploration and adventure in his presentation at HSU.
Cousteau has produced more than 80 films that have won Emmy, Peabody and Sept d’Or awards. He recently received the “Environmentalist of the Year” Award from the Surf Industry Manufacturers Association.
The son of famed ocean explorer Jacques Cousteau, Jean-Michel has probed the world’s oceans for much of his life. As Ocean Futures Society spokesman, he serves as an educator to audiences worldwide and is an activist on behalf of preserving fragile underwater ecosystems. He produces environmentally-oriented adventure programs and television specials, multi-media programs for schools, books, magazine articles, newspaper columns and web-based marine content.
In 2008, Cousteau received the Lifetime Achievement Award from Jules Verne Adventures and the same honor from the National Marine Sanctuaries Foundation.
In 2006, his initiative to protect the Northwest Hawaiian Islands took him to the White House where he screened his PBS-KQED documentary, Voyage to Kure. President George W. Bush subsequently declared the 1,200-mile chain of islands a Marine National Monument.
In February 2002, Cousteau became the first person to represent the Environment in the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, where he joined such luminaries as Archbishop Desmond Tutu, astronaut John Glenn, Polish activist Lech Walesa and movie mogul Steven Spielberg.
Tickets to Cousteau’s HSU appearance are complimentary but required for admission. They can be picked up in advance at the University Ticket Office on the second floor of University Center.
For ticket information call (707) 826-3928.