Cristina Mittermeier

Influential conservation photographer, biologist, author and President of Sea Legacy

Cristina Goettsch Mittermeier, also known as “Mitty,” is a highly influential conservation photographer born in Mexico City in 1966. She has dedicated her entire life to protecting the Earth’s oceans, inspiring millions worldwide to join her cause. Mittermeier graduated from ITESM University in Mexico with a degree in Biochemical Engineering in Marine Sciences and later pursued Fine Art Photography at the Corcoran College for the Arts in Washington, D.C.

In 2005, she founded the renowned International League of Conservation Photographers (ILCP), pioneering the concept of “conservation photography.” Additionally, in 2014, she co-founded SeaLegacy, a nonprofit organization that employs strategic communications to protect and rewild the ocean for the benefit of biodiversity, humanity, and climate within our lifetimes.
Mittermeier’s exceptional work has been featured in numerous prominent magazines, including National Geographic, TIME, McLean’s, The Men’s Journal, and O, earning her recognition as one of National Geographic’s Adventurers of the Year in 2018. She was also featured in the 2021 Disney+ series “Welcome to Earth.”

Her passion lies in creating awareness about our responsibility to protect wild places and the interconnectedness of all living beings. Her photographs have been showcased in galleries worldwide, with a solo exhibition upcoming at the prestigious Gallerie d’Italia in Turino, Italy.
Mittermeier has received multiple esteemed awards, including the Smithsonian Conservation Photographer of the Year and the Humanity Content Creator Award from HIPA. In 2021, she was honored with the Seattle Aquarium’s Sylvia Earle Medal, Travel + Leisure’s Global Vision Award, and was recognized as one of the 100 Latinos Most Committed to Climate Action. Notably, she is a member of the World Photographic Academy and the first female photographer to reach 1 million followers on Instagram.

A sought-after speaker, she has been acknowledged by Real Leaders as one of the World’s Best Keynote Speakers and is a Sony Artisan of Imagery. Moreover, she collaborates with Rolex’s Perpetual Planet initiative to preserve the natural world.

In 2022, she was granted an Honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts, honoris causa, from Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, Canada. Mittermeier is also an impact investor, championing financial returns with a positive social and environmental impact.

Mittermeier is a proud mother of three nature-loving adult children, John, Michael, and Juliana, and currently resides on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada.