Ben Horton - Expedition Leader - National Geographic Grantee
Awarded the National Geographic Society’s first Young Explorer Grant for research he completed on Cocos Island involving shark poachers, and was the photographer on a recently completed 2 month expedition to Ellesmere Island in the Canadian Arctic, Ben is an adventurer who is motivated by conservation and a desire to make a difference for his generation. He has recently been published in National Geographic Magazine, National Geographic Adventure, the New York Times and Outside magazine among many others. His previous work on Cocos Island has produced episodes on National Geographic’s Wild Chronicles, material for National Geographic Magazine, and is the subject of a series of lectures that Ben has given around the world.
Kifah Sasa - United Nations Development Program representative to Cocos Island
Environment and development sociologist, he coordinates the GEF/UNDP Project
for the Improved Management and Conservation Practices of Cocos Island
National Park. He has lead the negotiation between Costa Rica conservation
organizations, Ministry of Environment and the fishing sector, pertaining
the creation of a Marine Management Area around Cocos Island National Park.
This expedition will help build a case for the creation of such a Marine
Management Area. He has vast experience in regional project coordination
throughout Central America and is founding member of a non governmental
organization working for sustainable development through a popular education
approach.
Randal Arauz - Scientist
Randall Arauz is a Costa Rican biologist graduated from the University of
Costa Rica in 1987. He is a founding member and President of PRETOMA, a
Costa Rican NGO established to protect marine life in 1997, and is a member
of both the Sea Turtle Specialist Group and the Shark Specialist Group of
the International Union for the Conservation of Nature IUCN. His main field
of interest is incidental bycatch of sea turtles by commercial fisheries
operations, although more recently he has focused his attention on sharks.
Since 2001 he leads a national campaign against shark finning that has
turned into a regional initiative, and currently conducts studies related to
shark fisheries and migrations in the Eastern Tropical Pacific. He has
received awards for his work from the Whitley Fund for Nature (UK), Shark
Project (Germany), and the IUCN (Costa Rica).
Kelly Hearn - Writer - National Geographic News correspondent
Kelly Hearn is an adventurer and journalist who has worked in Latin America since 2004. He is a correspondent to National Geographic News. His work has been published in The Washington Post, The Christian Science Monitor, The Nation, The Virginia Quarterly Review, The Washington Times and other outlets. In 2007, he was nominated by National Geographic News for a reportage award from The American Association for the Advancement of Science. His investigative reporting has been funded by The Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting and The North American Congress on Latin America. He is the host of National Geographic Channel’s television program “Lost Cities of the Amazon,” to air during National Geographic’s Expedition Week in November 2008.
Colin Hargraves - Producer
Colin Hargraves is a professional editor/director with a love for travel and adventure. Colin has worked professionally since 2004 for MTV, VH1, FX, Current, the History Channel, the Discovery Channel, the Travel Channel, and has produced four films for the National Geographic Channel (The Real Roswell, Inside Carnaval, Tunnel to a Lost World) as well as a twelve part series called The Science of the Bible. He is presently involved in post-production for National Geographic Explorer’s Lost Cities of the Amazon, a documentary he also co-directed and produced. Colin has worked creatively to push the limits of the television documentary format, creating original products more similar to films than to television shows. He recently edited and co-directed a short film, which was accepted into the 2008 Cannes Film Festival called Laura. He has also written, directed, shot and cut a number of episodes for the popular web-based serial Lonely Girl 15. He has produced, directed and edited two projects for the X-Prize Foundation (Moon 2.0, Race For Our Future). Colin is a capable director of photography, camera operator and sound engineer allowing him to have a proper overview of all his productions. Colin is a stickler for production value and detail and strives to raise the bar for documentary television.
Mark Combellick - DP- Camera Operator
Mark Combellick has been working in the television industry for over 12 years, pursuing his taste for adventure through the lens of his camera. As either a director of photography leading a team or a camera operator on a team, Mark’s style and professionalism are imprinted on the finished product. Over the past seven years, his focus has been on projects that mirror his own passions. Discovery Channel’s “American Choppers,” “Monster Nation,” and one of America’s favorite’s “Deadliest Catch,” History’s Channel’s “Ax Men,” and an untitled series on the famous Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race are just a few of his series projects.
