By Erin Lentz

WHEN I SPEAK TO CRISTINA MITTERMEIER FROM HER CANADIAN HOME, she is refreshingly candid, fresh from a workout and juggling meetings as the founder of the International League of Conservation Photographers and SeaLegacy. Direct, whip smart, and funny, it’s readily apparent this photographer, named National Geographic’s 2018 Adventurers of the Year, is an agent for change. Her series, “Girl Power,” displays her keen eye for connection. “I don’t want to show how people are different, but how we are the same,” she says. “When you give someone their portrait and they like what they see, it’s almost as if you are giving them back their superpower.” Here, we reveal the superpower of Mittermeier’s perspective.

HOW DID YOU FIRST GET INTO PHOTOGRAPHY AND CONSERVATION?

“It was an accident. As a scientist, I worked on a book and realized photography may be an easier way to open the conversation around conservation. I’m very interested in intersectional environmentalism, where being in a minority keeps you from participating in discussions about the environment. But being a minority and a girl is a double intersection.”

WHAT HAS BEEN ONE OF THE MOST UNFORGETTABLE SHOOTS YOU’VE BEEN ON?

“My most important shoot was when I went on assignment to the Amazon for Conservation International in 2006. They sent me to this remote village in the middle of nowhere to shoot families affected by a hyperactive dam. It was so intimidating; I didn’t speak the language or understand the culture, and I was missing all the shots. You need real courage to invade people’s spaces, to bring out the camera at uncomfortable moments. Those lessons are alive in me today. The most difficult photographs are the ones you don’t take.”

HOW DID THE “GIRL POWER” PROJECT EVOLVE?

“The idea of “Girl Power” came from thinking about climate change—a massive problem requiring participation in all sectors. In other countries women aren’t allowed to drive their own car, have a bank account, own a business, or go to school. I think about myself as a little girl and how I was the more motivated, interested, and curious one. I look at those girls and think, ‘What if they are the ones that have the key? What if they are the better leaders?’ We are not going to solve these issues until we empower girls to be part of the solution.”

AS THE FOUNDER OF THE INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE OF CONSERVATION PHOTOGRAPHERS, WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER A WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER’S RESPONSIBILITY?

“When I started my journey into nature, I discovered animals held in captivity. As a photographer, you could actually rent a wolf for the day, and I felt that was so wrong. So I started taking a stand against that and created the International League of Conservation Photographers. At first people thought it was a radical idea. But when photographers started hearing about it, pretty soon I had 100 photographers willing to donate their talent to advance conservation.”

WHAT’S NEXT FOR YOU WITH SEALEGACY, WHICH FOSTERS OCEAN HEALTH?

“SeaLegacy has been using footage and photographs to launch a storytelling platform that allows people to take action. It’s a streaming service of ocean content that gives the opportunity to act. We have a big campaign to support marine protection in Antarctica. SeaLegacy also invites people to follow our adventures and discover the most important ecosystems on our planet and to share stories of why it matters.”