Christine Figgener

Christine Figgener is a marine conservation biologist and ocean advocate who is passionate about conserving marine turtles, fighting plastic pollution, and empowering women in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). These passions are united by her vision to create positive change in the world by eliminating unnecessary plastic. Figgener’s role as the Footprint Foundation director of science and education is to increase awareness and knowledge about how each one of us can help eliminate plastic waste from the environment and food chain by making easy, everyday changes. Collective consumer choices have incredible power to create change, and that change starts with our individual choices.

Figgener works with key partners, including non-governmental organizations, educational institutions and sustainable brands to spread awareness about the power of consumer choice at events and conferences. She is also bringing this awareness inside classrooms to instill the knowledge of personal choice on the next generation of consumers, scientists and changemakers.

For over 15 years, Figgener has worked across the globe, applying her research to the conservation of marine turtles, whales, dolphins, and porpoises. She was thrust into the international spotlight in 2015 when she vividly captured the threat that plastic poses to animals on video when her research team in Costa Rica removed a plastic straw from a marine turtle’s nose. This video quickly went viral and was one of the leading catalysts for the global anti-straw movement. As a result, global businesses, including Starbucks, Disney, and Alaska Airlines, soon removed plastic straws from their product offerings. While impactful, straws are just the beginning of how eliminating plastics can positively impact the oceanic and terrestrial environments.

In 2018, Figgener was named a Next Generation Leader by TIME Magazine for her outreach work. Her research and advocacy efforts have also been featured in BBC and National Geographic documentaries. She is actively involved in sea turtle conservation efforts through her non-profit organization, Costa Rican Alliance for Sea Turtle Conservation & Science, whose mission is to strengthen grassroots sea turtle conservation efforts by developing projects and training and empowering local conservationists and scientists. Figgener holds a Ph.D. from Texas A&M University’s Marine Biology ID Graduate Program.