TV Host | Royal Canadian Geographical Society Explorer-In-Residence
Book this speaker: George Kourounis
About This Speaker: George Kourounis
George Kourounis travels to the most remote and inhospitable corners of the Earth to document the extremes of nature. An award-winning explorer, one of the best-known storm chasers, and the host of Angry Planet, Kourounis frequently finds himself up close to the world’s most fearsome forces: vicious tornadoes, the eyes of hurricanes, and inside erupting volcanoes. In talks, he chronicles his often dangerous, always spectacular adventures—revealing the motivational power of harnessing fear, as well as first-hand insights to how climate change is impacting the environment.
“I don’t have a death wish. I like to think I have a life wish: to squeeze as much life out of these experiences and these days that I have as I can.”
George Kourounis is an Explorer-in-Residence with The Royal Canadian Geographical Society; his efforts to document nature’s most extreme conditions have taken him all over the globe, into places most people would flee from. Whether he’s following a tornado outbreak in Kansas, a monster hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico, climbing down inside a lava-spewing volcano, or melting his boots during forest fires in Australia, Kourounis is always in the middle of the action, documenting nature’s fury.
Kourounis’ explorations have often resulted in him accomplishing world’s firsts. While leading a scientific expedition for National Geographic, he became the first person to set foot on the bottom of the Darvaza flaming gas crater, a fiery pit that has been burning for 50 years in the Turkmenistan desert. For this stunning feat—more people have stood on the surface of the moon—Kourounis was named a Guinness World Record-Holder. “I take things to the extreme, but I do want to encourage people to do something they’ve always wanted to do but were afraid to, because that’s where the best juice in life is,” explains Kourounis. His adventures have fascinated and inspired audiences worldwide, broadcasted on the Discovery Channel, National Geographic, BBC-TV, CNN, the Science Channel, and of course, on his own adventure TV program, Angry Planet, which has been broadcast in over 100 countries.
Kourounis started chasing storms over 25 years ago and has expanded his explorations to include all types of extreme natural phenomena in over 80 countries. He is also a fellow of The Royal Geographical Society (U.K.), fellow of The Explorers Club Canadian Chapter, and a member of the Society Of Environmental Journalists. Kourounis has given five TEDx talks, addressed the UN’s Environmental Emergencies Forum, and won the Stefansson Medal for his “Outstanding contributions to science and to public education.” He has also been named one of Canada’s greatest explorers by Canadian Geographic magazine.
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