$38 General | $36 Senior
Youth Free *ticket reservation required

 

Photographer and National Geographic Explorer Kiliii Yüyan asks a vital question: what keeps the planet’s most extraordinary ecosystems thriving? From coral reefs and rainforests to the Arctic tundra, he shows how Indigenous stewardship has sustained these environments for generations. 

Through encounters with polar bears alongside Iñupiat hunters, dives into mangrove shark nurseries, and time spent with elders whose knowledge spans centuries, Kiliii reveals a powerful truth: this wisdom is not a relic of the past. Drawing from Guardians of Life, he makes the case that Indigenous ecological knowledge is a living, evolving guide—offering practical solutions and a blueprint for protecting the planet’s future. 

Vashon Nature Center Executive Directors, Bianca Perla and Maria Metler, will assist with the Q&A between audience and speaker for the evening program.

Kiliii Yüyan is a National Geographic Explorer and award-winning photographer of Chinese and Nanai/Hèzhé descent. Working across the Arctic and beyond, he has spent years inside communities at the knife-edge of ecological and cultural change—facing down polar bears with Inupiat hunters, diving through mangrove shark nurseries, learning from elders whose knowledge spans centuries. His work asks a single question: what can Indigenous peoples teach the rest of us about surviving on this planet? His photographs appear in National Geographic, TIME, and Vogue. His latest book is Guardians of Life.

 

 

  

This event is made possible in part by our 26/27 Season Sponsors:

Flintworks

David & Gigi Jack

The Naumann Family