Brooke Runnette

Change agent, Connector, Environmentalist, Filmmaker, Idea generator, Journalist, Producer, Social entrepreneur, Writer/Editor

I like to build things, especially new narratives that inspire people and reset paradigms, and new teams and organizations that create those narratives and inspire new thinking and new action in others. I've been: -Chief Program Officer for Emerson Elemental, the environmental and energy practice of the Emerson Collective, -Executive Vice President and Chief Program and Impact Officer of the National Geographic Society, -President of National Geographic Studios, -Executive Producer Discovery Communications /Executive Producer of Shark Week -Emmy and Peabody award winning producer at ABC News/Nightline, PBS/Frontline, CBS News/60 Minutes ++ At NatGeo, I oversaw all grant-making, impact initiatives, education, public engagement, and storytelling for the Society, and was the primary advocate, champion and cheerleader for National Geographic Explorers (hooray!) all to inspire illuminate and ignite people to better see, understand, and care for our living planet and all life that shares it, At NatGeo Studios I oversaw all television, film, and digital video production for the National Geographic Society, driving continuous innovation in how to spark wonder and awe and understanding and action by any means necessary, from hit series and new takes on natural history to undercover investigations and groundbreaking documentaries, in every format and every length, on every screen from IMAX to iPhone; At Discovery I flipped the script on Shark Week from a dark dismal rehash of shark attacks into a celebration of sharks and the ocean, deploying comedians like Craig Ferguson to reset audience beliefs about sharks, driving new innovations in underwater photography, supporting ocean science & scientists, and launching a global campaign against the practice of shark finning. Before all that I spent every day of 15+ years in broadcast journalism learning how to listen better and how to tell stories that are true. I live Washington DC with my awesome husband and daughter

way too many things probably

Sundays need to be rebranded Sun&EarthDay, so that Earth Day is not just once a year but once a WEEK. Obviously. But really imagine a committed slow-it-down resource sabbath every week to recover ourselves and our connections to our people our places our planet, to go outside, seek out beauty, and to cultivate happyjoy interbeing and AWE… Right? sounds amazing and fun and also NECESSARY.

saving spiders from humans