Joel Sartore
Photo Ark founder Joel Sartore is a National Geographic photographer using the power of storytelling to inspire action for wildlife conservation. Through his ambitious Photo Ark project, Sartore has documented more than 17,000 species—many facing extinction—using intimate portraits as a global call to protect biodiversity and rethink humanity’s relationship with the natural world.
Photo Ark Founder
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Modern Day Noah
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Man on a Mission
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Photo Ark Founder • Modern Day Noah • Man on a Mission •
More about Joel
Joel Sartore is a photographer, author, teacher, conservationist, Eagle Scout, National Geographic Fellow, and longtime contributor to National Geographic magazine. His hallmarks are an infectious sense of humor and a midwestern work ethic.
For 25 years, Joel has been building the Photo Ark, a time capsule of life on Earth and a groundbreaking effort to document every species in human care before they disappear. The goal? To get people to care and act, while there’s still time.
His quest to document every living species in captivity has taken him to 60 countries and brought him face to face with more than 17,000 unique species. As Joel often says, “We won’t save what we don’t love, and we won’t fall in love if we don’t connect.”
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Joel and his work have been the subject of numerous TV and radio broadcasts, including National Geographic and Nat Geo WILD, NBC Nightly News, NPR’s Weekend Edition, Fresh Air with Terry Gross, 60 Minutes, and PBS. He is also a regular contributor to the CBS Sunday Morning Show, and was named 2018 Rolex National Geographic Explorer of the Year. He contributes to Audubon, Life, The New York Times, and Sports Illustrated. His numerous book projects include RARE: Portraits of America’s Endangered Species, Photographing Your Family, The Photo Ark, Animal Ark, and The Photo Ark Vanishing. Joel’s stunning photography has been projected before thousands onto iconic buildings around the world, including the Empire State Building, The United Nations HQ, and the Vatican, as a part of Louise Psihoyos’ film, Racing Extinction.
Speaking Topics
Conservation
Nature
Resilience
Science
Watch Joel in action
Presentations
Building the Photo Ark
Joel Sartore is on a mission to take portraits of every species in captivity before they disappear. With ingenuity and wit, Joel has created the Photo Ark project, the largest archive of its kind with more than 17,000 species, and counting. Hear about his comical mishaps, endearing encounters, and personal stories documenting Earth’s creatures—great and small.
“It is folly to think that we can destroy one species and ecosystem after another and not affect humanity...When we save species, we’re actually saving ourselves.”
– Joel Sartore