National Geographic Experts
A world-class team of experts will accompany this expedition to share their knowledge and insights with you and bring each destination to life. Listed below are the experts joining this expedition.
Keith Bellows
Born in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Keith Bellows was named Editor in Chief of National Geographic Traveler magazine in January 1998 and made a vice president of the National Geographic Society in March 2000. Under his stewardship, the magazine has won numerous awards and recognitions, including more than 60 Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism awards, seven Folio Awards, and two nominations for the National Magazine Awards. He lectures extensively around the world, and his more than 200 television appearances include Today and Good Morning America. He has written for Esquire, Sports Illustrated, Parenting, AARP, and many other magazines. He co-authored The Canuck Book and is now writing 100 Places That Will Change Your Child’s Life, part of a program he is developing to encourage parents, corporations, and schools to view travel as a critical learning tool.
Wade Davis
Anthropologist and ethnobotanist Wade Davis is a National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence and an honorary member of the Explorers Club. Wade spent more than three years in the Amazon and Andes, living among indigenous groups while collecting botanical species. He has written 12 books, including The Lost Amazon and The Serpent and the Rainbow, an international best seller that appeared in ten languages and was later released as a motion picture. He spearheaded National Geographic's Cultures on the Edge program, highlighting vanishing cultures around the world, and his numerous film credits include the award-winning National Geographic Channel series Light at the Edge of the World. His research has recently taken him to East Africa, Polynesia, and New Guinea.
Chris Rainier
Chris Rainier is considered one of the leading documentary photographers working today. A National Geographic Society Fellow, Chris is a director of the Society’s Cultural Ethnosphere and All Roads Photography Programs and is the photographer for the Society’s Enduring Voices Project, documenting endangered languages and cultures all around the globe, including those of Papua New Guinea. He serves as a contributing editor for National Geographic Traveler and a contributing photographer for National Geographic Adventure, as well as a photography correspondent for NPR. He has won numerous awards for his photography, including the prestigious Lowell Thomas Award, given by the Explorers Club for adventure stories. His photography assignments have led Chris around the globe, recently to Papua New Guinea, East Africa, Peru, Easter Island, and India.
