R E PORT TO DONORS

LETTER FROM G ARY E. KNELL

Dear Friends,

Every day, the National Geographic Society strives to create positive change in our world, and our commitment to science, education, and exploration has never been

stronger. While never losing sight of our unique heritage and storytelling tradition, the Society continues to evolve in this new era of exploration to make the most powerful social and planetary impact possible.

With help from donors like you, we invest in innovative programs to explore and protect our world. We share this work with an expanding global audience through public programs and education initiatives that have a direct, positive impact on learners of all ages.

Joel Sartore’s stunning and ambitious Photo Ark project has documented more than 6,000 animal species, celebrating the abundant beauty of life on our planet and inspiring people to care about and protect our most critically endangered species. Enric Sala’s Pristine Seas project has helped conserve more than 3 million square kilometers of ocean to date, including a new, 40,000-square-kilometer marine sanctuary around two of the northern Galápagos islands. And, with Lee Berger’s groundbreaking discovery of Homo naledi at the Rising Star cave system in South Africa, we have more questions than ever before to ponder about our history, our growth, and our very humanity. None of this would be possible without your help.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support of the National Geographic Society.

GARY E. KNELL President and CEO, National Geographic Society

Because of you, we have protected more than 3 MILLION square kilometers of ocean territory, inspired millions through more than

6,000 PHOTOGRAPHS to protect threatened species from extinction, and uncovered more than 1,500 FOSSILS that are changing our understanding

of our family tree and what it means to be human. Together, we are supporting work that is changing our world for the better.

YOUR IMPACT

On the cover: An endangered baby Bornean orangutan, Aurora, hugs her adoptive mother, Cheyenne, at the Houston Zoo, in an image from the National Geographic Photo Ark. Above: A school of rudderfish in the Selvagens Islands, where National Geographic Society’s Pristine Seas team conducted one of the first surveys of the islands’ underwater ecosystems.

A RARE GLIMPSE INTO OUR PAST

In 2015, the world met Homo naledi, a new species of early human relative that represents one of the most important hominin fossil discoveries in a generation. This remarkable find, made by National Geographic Society EXPLORER-IN-RESIDENCE LEE BERGER

and his team, is fundamentally changing our understanding of the evolution of our species.

With your support, Lee and his team are now in the process of analyzing more than 1,500 fossils to learn more about this extraordinary human species with its bizarre mix of features, some like Australopithecus and some strikingly like modern humans. The analysis raises even more questions about our family tree, the intersecting pathways of evolution, and even what it means to be human.

Equally exciting is the way Lee’s team is studying and sharing the discovery. Typically a fossil find would require many years—or even decades—of examination before the results could be published and shared. Lee brought together an international team of 45 scientists,

many of them early in their careers, and produced the first scientific papers in just six short weeks. Lee’s “open-source” methodology brought the findings to light quickly and may ultimately change the way scientific analyses are carried out in the future.

Your gifts have fueled Lee’s fieldwork for two decades. The discovery of Homo naledi is part of an enduring tradition of Society support for investigation in paleoanthropology, as well as the stepping-off point for dozens of future scientific advancements. As our understanding grows, so too does the pace of our progress and the impact of our work. Watch this space as Lee and a new generation of paleoanthropologists bring us more on this fascinating discovery.

A composite skeleton of H. naledi (top left) with other specimens found in the cave; Lee Berger examines a jawbone; A new species of human relative ( bottom)—H. naledi (right) was much closer in appearance to Homo species such as H. erectus (center) than to australopithecines, such as Lucy ( left).

YOU’RE ADVANCING SCIENCE AND DISCOVERY

National Geographic Society Report to Donors

The Homo naledi find, made possible by your support,

is one of the most important hominin fossil discoveries

in a generation.

Florida Panther APPROXIMATELY 165 SURVIVE

YOU’RE HELPING PROTECT SPECIES IN PERIL

ANIMALS ON THE BRINKInspiring the protection of threatened species

Species are disappearing from the planet at an alarming rate. Habitat loss, climate change, the wildlife trade, and other threats are taking a devastating toll on animals and the environment. The National Geographic Photo Ark project, with support from donors, is inspiring people to help save these animals from extinction.

Photo Ark founder and National Geographic photographer JOEL SARTORE is on a mission to photograph the world’s captive species to raise awareness of the number of species in peril. “We are losing species at a rate 1,000 times greater than before humans existed,” says Joel.

He was inspired by the work of naturalist James Audubon who made detailed illustrations of birds, many of which have since disappeared, and by the work of painter George Catlin who created portraits of American Indians, providing a permanent record of a culture threatened by westward expansion.

Portraiture seemed like the ideal way to document wildlife and inspire people to care about and protect animals large and small. A black or white background gives each animal equal treatment. “A tiger is no more important than a tiger beetle,” says Joel. “And a mouse matters just as much as a polar bear.”

A powerful photograph can change the world. With your support, Photo Ark has already raised awareness among millions across the globe about the danger of extinction to threatened species. “I hope to get people to pay attention to the extinction crisis and get them to care,” says Joel, “while there’s still time to save these species.”

The Pristine Seas project is protecting the ocean

by expanding the number and size of marine sanctuaries

around the world

The Pristine Seas project is protecting the ocean

by expanding the number and size of marine sanctuaries

around the world.

REWRITING THE OCEAN’S FUTURE

As a child, National Geographic Society EXPLORER-IN-RESIDENCE ENRIC SALA was fascinated by the films of Jacques-Yves Cousteau. Inspired by images of marine ecosystems teeming with wildlife and biodiversity, Enric became a marine ecologist devoted to studying the wonders of the ocean. He was shocked to find marine environments that were depleted and dying—and desperately in need of conservation. “I was writing the obituary of the ocean,” says Enric. “So I proposed this crazy idea to National Geographic for the Pristine Seas project, to try to inspire world leaders to protect the last wild places in the ocean.”

With your support, Pristine Seas has conducted 18 expeditions to some of these remote, unspoiled marine environments. Led by Enric, this extraordinary team of scientists and filmmakers has already inspired the protection of 9 of those places through the creation and expansion of marine protected areas totaling more than 3 million square kilometers.

Most recently, following a 2015 Pristine Seas expedition to the Galápagos, the government of Ecuador announced the creation of a more than 40,000-square-kilometer marine sanctuary around two of the northern Galápagos islands, Darwin and Wolf.

Your contributions helped Pristine Seas, in collaboration with the University of California, Santa Barbara, produce an economic study showing the extraordinary value of marine life for tourism in the Galápagos. This work showed that the lifetime value of a live shark is $5.4 million compared to $200 if it is fished. “By creating this sanctuary, Ecuador has saved one of the planet’s most precious natural treasures while preserving an important economic engine for the country,” says Enric.

Clockwise from top left: The team’s underwater cinematographer documents the depths during a Pristine Seas expedition to the Galápagos; A curious, young Galápagos sea lion; A Galápagos sea horse; Whitetip reef sharks swim below a school of bigeye trevally at Roca Partida during an expedition to the Revillagigedo Archipelago.

YOU’RE SAVING THE LAST WILD PLACES

IN THE OCEAN

National Geographic Society Report to Donors

Clockwise from top left: Explorer-in-Residence Mike Fay; Jane Goodall and chimpanzee; Young volunteers at BioBlitz; Jacques-Yves Cousteau; scientists from the Homo naledi expedition; Emerging Explorer Thandi Mweetwa (right); Explorer-in-Residence Enric Sala; Emerging Explorer Shivani Bhalla (center); Hiram Bingham; Explorers-in-Residence Beverly and Dereck Joubert; Young Explorer Alizé Carrère.

Every great scientist stands on the shoulders of their teachers and mentors, the visionaries who came before them, and the

wonderful people who support them. People like you.

Together, we’re advancing the pace of science and discovery, inspiring curiosity about our changing planet, and protecting threatened

wildlife and ecosystems. Through the power of science, exploration, education, and storytelling , we’re making the world a better place.

THANK YOU

GIVE ONLINE

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GIVE BY MAIL

Send a check in any amount to: National Geographic Society Development Office 1145 17th Street NW Washington, DC 20036-4688 U.S.A.

For more information on ways to give, please call (202) 862-8638

or (800) 373-1717.

nationalgeographic.org

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