Alexandra Cousteau will receive the 2015 Stroud Award for Freshwater Excellence. Photo courtesy of The New York Times
Her grandfather, Jacques, and father, Philippe, advocated for the world’s oceans, but Alexandra Cousteau understood that most of the oceans’ problems are occurring at the source — way upstream. So, in 2009, she founded Blue Legacy.
Blue Legacy explores the interconnectivity of freshwater and ocean issues around the globe and tells those stories through short films, news and social media to build public awareness. It aims to empower people to reclaim and restore water resources.
A Credible Voice for Freshwater Stewardship
Cousteau will receive the Stroud Award for Freshwater Excellence™ at our annual Water’s Edge gala, on November 19 at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania.
“Alexandra has dedicated her life to the conservation and sustainable management of water and provides a credible voice for freshwater stewardship on a global scale,” said Bern Sweeney, Ph.D., director of the Stroud Center. “She honors her family’s legacy, and I am thrilled that she will be here to receive the 2015 Stroud Award for Freshwater Excellence.”
“We inhabit a water planet, and unless we protect, manage and restore that resource, the future will be a very different place from the one we imagine today,” said Cousteau. “I’m honored that Stroud Water Research Center has selected me for this prestigious award, and I look forward to visiting their research and education facility.”
Honored as a Young Global Leader and Emerging Explorer
Photo courtesy of Oceana
In addition to her work with Blue Legacy, Cousteau serves as senior advisor to Oceana; was named as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum; and serves on the boards of the Global Water Challenge, Mother Nature Network and EarthEcho.
Cousteau served as a keynote speaker on environmental issues for organizations such as the United Nations, National Geographic, Harvard University, the Smithsonian Institution, the National Press Club, Bioneers and the Telluride Film Festival.
In 2008, Cousteau was honored as a National Geographic Emerging Explorer — one among a group of eleven trailblazers from around the world who push the boundaries of discovery, adventure and global problem-solving.
In early 2009, she joined the Discovery Channel lineup, co-hosting “Blue August” with her brother Philippe Jr., and served as a chief correspondent on water issues for the Discovery Channel’s Planet Green.
She served as the water advisor and spokesperson for the global Live Earth 2010 Run for Water. Cousteau has been honored as an Earth Trustee by the U.N., was named a Principal Voice by CNN International, and regularly delivers testimony before government agencies on critical policy issues.
Born in California, Cousteau grew up in France and the United States. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in political science from Georgetown University. Cousteau, her husband, Fritz Neumeyer, and daughter, Clémentine, call both the District of Columbia and Berlin, Germany, home.
The Stroud Award for Freshwater Excellence
Presented each year since 2011, the Stroud Award for Freshwater Excellence, also known as the SAFE Water Award, honors individuals, institutions or organizations whose work contributes broadly to the conservation and protection of freshwater resources and ecosystems, improving the quantity and quality of fresh water on the planet or developing policies and practices which help perpetuate clean fresh water for future generations and wildlife.
Prior recipients include Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in 2014; Jane Lubchenco, Ph.D., and Kathryn Sullivan, Ph.D., in 2013; John Briscoe, Ph.D., in 2012; and Olivia Newton-John and her husband, John Easterling, in 2011.
