How did Cousteau inspire you ?
- On 10/06/2011
- In People or Company of Interest
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Photo Arxiu Catala-Roca
By Enric Sala - National Geographic
June 11 is the 101st anniversary of Jacques Cousteau, the Commandant, the man with the red cap who opened our eyes to the ocean like nobody did before.
And no one after him has been able to share the passion about the ocean and all the life in it, and making us fall in love with it like he did. Cousteau was the first global environmental celebrity, as known worldwide as all-time soccer stars and movie stars.
Thanks in great part to Jacques Cousteau, I am now a National Geographic explorer. When I was a child growing up in Spain, Cousteau was everything: my hero, role model, and inspiration.
I couldn’t wait for Sunday evening to arrive so that I could watch a new episode of “The underwater world of Jacques Cousteau.” I dreamed about being one of the Calypso divers, exploring exotic locations and making new discoveries every day.
While my friends had posters of soccer players on their bedroom walls, I had photos of the red-capped divers diving in remote coral reefs, or climbing an iceberg in Antarctica. My friends dreamed about driving powerful cars and motorbikes; I dreamed of having a bunk bed on the Calypso.
That childhood dream fueled my passion for the sea for years to come. I studied biology, got a PhD in marine ecology, and then became a Professor of Oceanography and spend 10 years in academia, before joining the ranks of the National Geographic Society.
I never met the Commandant, but now I am living my childhood dream, exploring and studying remote corners of the ocean, and inspiring leaders to save the last wild places of the ocean before they succumb under the global human footprint.
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