Costas Christ
Costas Christ serves as the Chairman for the World Travel and Tourism Council – Tourism for Tomorrow Awards, which recognizes the leading models in sustainable tourism that are helping to protect the natural and cultural heritage of our planet. He is the global travel editor and columnist with National Geographic Adventure magazine and was a founding member and former Chairman of the Board of The International Ecotourism Society. He is on the advisory board of the Adventure Travel World Summit, is President of the Adventure Council, and also serves on the board of directors of Sustainable Travel International. His travels and work have taken him to more than 120 countries across six continents.
In addition to National Geographic Adventure, Costas Christ ‘ articles and essays have appeared in numerous publications, including the New York Times, Boston Globe, and Sunday Times of London. He is the lead author of the landmark study, Tourism and Biodiversity: Mapping Tourism’s Global Footprint and a contributing author in Wilderness: Earth’s Last Wild Places and has appeared many times on television and radio, including Good Morning America, CNN, BBC, National Public Radio and PBS. Costas is one of the pioneers of ecotourism, helping to officially define the term for the first time and serving as a founding member and former Chairman of The International Ecotourism Society. His column in National Geographic Traveler has won the NATJA Gold Prize and Bronze Prize for best travel writing in North America for three consecutive years .