Extended Bio and CV
EXTENDED BIO & CV
BIOGRAPHY
SEAN GALLAGHER (British, born 1979, Irvine, Scotland, United Kingdom) is a British photographer and filmmaker currently based in China. His work focuses on environmental issues, specifically stories surrounding the climate crisis. Gallagher was made a Fellow of the UK Royal Geographical Society (FRGS) in 2014 for his work documenting environmental issues in Asia.
EARLY YEARS
Sean Gallagher graduated from the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne in the United Kingdom, majoring in Zoology (BSc. Hons) in 2002. After graduation he was awarded an internship at the photojournalism agency Magnum Photos in London between 2004 and 2005 where he assisted photographers such as Philip Jones Griffiths and Peter Marlow. Upon completion of the internship he began photographing in China in late 2005, to begin his work photographing environmental issues in Asia.
WORKS
Since 2006, had lived and worked across Asia, primarily based out of Beijing, China during this time. His work has featured with some of the world’s leading news publications including with National Geographic, CNN, the BBC, the Guardian and Smithsonian Magazine.
DESERTIFICATION IN CHINA
In 2009, Gallagher was awarded his first grant from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting to extend his work on desertification in China. In the spring of 2009, he travelled across the breadth of China, overland from Beijing to Xinjiang province, documenting issues including abandoned cities, environmental refugees and drought. The subsequent work was published with the New York Times and National Geographic China.
CHINA COVERAGE
Between 2009-2018, Gallagher has covered stories from China including, China’s Disappearing Wetlands (2010), North Korea’s Addicting Export: Crystal Meth (2011), China’s Fragile Forests (2011), Meltdown: Climate Change and Environmental Degradation on the Tibetan Plateau (2012), Air Pollution in Beijing (2015) Exotic Pets in China Fuelling Biodiversity Loss (2017).
TUVALU – BENEATH THE RISING TIDE
In early 2019, Gallagher travelled to the remote South-West Pacific island nation of Tuvalu, to report on the effects of climate change in the Pacific. This work was published in extensive features in the The Guardian and with CNN. Gallagher was awarded the Environmental Photographer of the Year Changing Environments Prize in 2019 for an image from this series.
CAMBODIA BURNING
In January 2020, Gallagher travelled to Cambodia to work on a story documenting the effects of deforestation and forest fires in Cambodia. This work was published with both Yale Environment 360 and National Geographic. The subsequent work was recognised by the British Journal of Photography, the Earth Photo Awards and Drone Photo Awards 2020.
PULITZER CENTER ON CRISIS REPORTING
Gallagher has collaborated extensively with the Washington DC based news organisation, the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting. He is an 8-time recipient of their travel grants working on projects including; Desertification in China (2009), China’s Disappearing Wetlands (2010), North Korea’s Addicting Export: Crystal Meth (2011), China’s Fragile Forests (2011), Meltdown: Climate Change and Environmental Degradation on the Tibetan Plateau (2012), Toxic Development: The Cost of Pollution in India (2013), Exotic Pets in China Fuelling Biodiversity Loss (2017) and Cambodia Burning (2020).
In 2013 the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting published Gallagher’s eBook, Meltdown, chronicling his travels across China photographing the country’s environmental issues.
FILMS
Gallagher has directed and produced a series of short films, focused on environmental issues. These include:
– The Toxic Price of Leather (2014) – Produced with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting – Winner of the Atkins CIWEM Environmental Film of the Year 2014.
– The Broken Land- Drought in India (2016)
– Exotic: The Rise of Alternative Pets in China (2017) Produced with National Geographic and the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.
– Uncaged (2019) Produced with the Guardian. Awarded Pictures of the Year Award of Excellence in Documentary Daily Life, 2020.
– Cambodia Burning (2020) Produced with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.
EXTENDED CV
AWARDS/GRANTS/FELLOWSHIPS
– Environmental Photographer of the Year – People’s Choice Award Shortlist – 2021
– British Journal of Photography – Decade of Change – Short Film Winner – Cambodia Burning – 2021
– Royal Geographical Society Climate Change Research Group Communication Competition – 2021
– Prix Pictet Nominee – Fire – Cambodia Burning – 2021
– Social Impact Media Awards – Winner, Special Jury Mention – Cambodia Burning Film – 2021
– Social Impact Media Awards – Finalist – Cambodia Burning Film – 2021
– British Photography Awards – Shortlist – 2021
– Drone Awards – Winner, Highly Commended – Cambodia Burning Film – 2020
– Earth Photo Awards – Winner – Short Film Award – Cambodia Burning Film – 2020
– Pictures of the Year – Winner, Award of Excellence – Uncaged Film – 2020
– Leica Oskar Barnack Award – Nominee – 2020
– Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting Grant. Cambodia Burning. 2020
– BarTur Photo Award – Shortlist – 2020
– British Photography Awards – Shortlist – 2020
– Environmental Photographer of the Year – Changing Environments Prize – 2019
– Drone Awards – Finalist – 2019
– Resilience Science Journalism Fellowship, Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY. 2019
– Environmental Photographer of the Year (Atkins CIWEM ) Shortlist – 2017
– Ocean Science Journalism Fellow at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI). 2017
– Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting Grant. Exotic Pets in China – 2017
– Environmental Photographer of the Year (Atkins CIWEM ) Shortlist – 2016
– Made a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society (FRGS) for work documenting environmental issues in Asia. 2014.
– Environmental Film of the Year Winner – ‘The Toxic Price of Leather’. Atkins CIWEM Environmental Photographer of the Year. 2014
– Photocrati Fund Honorable Mention. 2013
– Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting Grant. Pollution in India. 2013
– Photocrati Fund Honorable Mention. 2012
– Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting Grant. Climate Change on the Tibetan Plateau. 2012
– Prix Pictet Nominee. 2012
– First Place for Multimedia in the UK Press Photographer’s Year Awards. 2011
– Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting Grant – China’s Fragile Forests. 2011
– Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting Grant – North Korea’s Addicting Export: Crystal Meth – 2011
– Pictures of the Year International Emerging Vision Finalist – 2011
– Shortlisted at the Lumix Festival for Young Photojournalists in Multimedia Category. 2010
– World Press Photo Joop Swart Masterclass Nominee – 2010
– Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting Grant – China’s Threatened Wetlands. 2010
– Honorable mention at the Earth Journalism Awards at COP15. 2009
– United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification Photo Contest – Finalist – 2009
– Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting Grant – Desertification in China. 2009
– World Press Photo Joop Swart Masterclass Nominee – 2007
– Selected to undertake a 1-year paid internship at the photojournalism agency Magnum Photos. 2004-2005
– Ian Parry Scholarship for Young Photojournalists – Shortlist. 2003
SELECTED PUBLISHED WORK & INTERVIEWS (2014-2021)
– Documenting The Consequences of Climate Change – Amateur Photographer Magazine — Nov, 2021
– Connecting the dots: an interview with photographer Sean Gallagher – China Dialogue – Oct, 2021
– Sean Gallagher visualises the vastness of the climate crisis – British Journal of Photography – July, 2021
– ‘Cambodia Burning’ Documentary Shows Unfettered Logging Impact on Forest Ecosystem – Voice of America – Interview & Feature – April 2021
– Most Influential Environmental Photographers to Follow in 2021 – Expert Photography – March, 2021
– In Conversation with Sean Gallagher – The Eye of Photography – Oct, 2020
– Turning the Tide on the Relentless Destruction of Cambodia’s Forests – Yale Environment 360 – August, 2020
– Cambodia’s biggest lake is running dry – National Geographic – August, 2020
– In Conversation with Alison Steiven-Taylor – Photojournalism Now – Aug, 2020
– An Interview with Environmental Photographer Sean Gallagher – Young Scientist’s Journal – Cambodia Burning – May, 2020
– Interview with Sean Gallagher – Documenting Climate Change Podcast – May, 2020
– Profile with Photography of China – April, 2020
– Getting creative to fund and engage audiences on under-reported stories – World Press Photo Witness – April, 2020
– Photography and Climate Change Awareness – Allaboutphoto.com – March, 2020
– Bohai Bay: the Chinese region disappearing inch by inch – The Guardian – Feb, 2020
– Environmental photographer of the year 2019 winners – The Guardian – Sept, 2019
– In pictures: Environmental Photographer of the Year 2019 – The Times – Sept, 2019
– Stunning images are named winners of Environmental Photographer of the Year – The Daily Mail – Sept, 2019
– Rising Tides – Tuvalu: Beneath the Rising Tide – Zeke Magazine – Sept 2019
– Seas rise, hope sinks: Tuvalu’s vanishing islands – in pictures – The Guardian – May 2019
– Rising sea levels are threatening this Pacific paradise – CNN Online – May 2019
– ‘One day we’ll disappear’: Tuvalu’s sinking islands – The Guardian – May 2019
– Sea, sand but no sunscreen: tiny Tuvalu desperate for skin protection – The Guardian – May 2019
– Can the world quench China’s bottomless thirst for milk? – The Guardian – March, 2019
– Stopping the Meltdown – Dif Media – March, 2019
– How to Win Grants from Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting – PDN Online – Feb, 2019
– “Uncaged“ Film: Saving China’s Songbird’s From the Poachers’ Nets – The Guardian – January, 2019
– Winning Pulitzer Center Travel Grants – PDN Magazine – April 2018
– Best Instagram accounts to follow this Earth Day – iMore – April, 2018
– Instagram Feed Shows Everyday Extinction – The Guardian – February, 2018
– Pulitzer Center Annual Report – February, 2018
– ‘Toxic Planet: The Global Health Crisis’ – Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting eBook – January 2018
– Everyday Extinction: An Instagram Campaign Raising Awareness of Species Extinction – National Geographic – Dec 2017
– Pictures Reveal Hardship in the World’s Fastest Sinking City – National Geographic – December, 2017
– 2017: A Year in Photos – Pulitzer Center – December, 2017
– Everyday Extinction: Q&A with Sean Gallagher – Voices for Biodiversity – Nov 2017
– This Instagram account is putting the spotlight on animal extinction – Washington Post – Oct 2017
– Everyday Extinction — Connecting Audiences to a Biodiversity Crisis – Everyday Projects – Oct 2017
– Exotic pet owners of Beijing – The Guardian – Sep 2017
– Young Collectors, Traders Help Fuel a Boom in Ultra-Exotic Pets – National Geographic – Sep 2017
– The Environmental Conscience of Instagram – E, The Environmental Magazine – July, 2017
– 19 Eye-Opening Instagram Accounts That are Changing the World – MCXV – July 2017
– World’s Worst Pollution Problems – Pure Earth Blacksmith Institute – January, 2017
– The Remarkable Comeback of Przewalski’s Horse – Smithsonian Magazine – December, 2016
– India’s Drought Leaves Land Parched and Cattle Emaciated – in Pictures – The Guardian – June, 2016
– The Environment Photographers You Should be Following on Instagram – The Guardian – April, 2016
– The World’s Most Stunning Environment Photos – The Guardian – Online – April, 2016
– Eco-Conscious Instagram Accounts to Follow on Earth Day – TIME Magazine – March, 2016
– The Miracle of Kolkata’s Wetlands – The Guardian – March, 2016
– Human-elephant Conflict in Sri Lanka – The Guardian – March, 2016
– Ecological Civilization: China, The Environment & Religion – Pulitzer Center eBook. 2015
– Why China Is Turning Back to Confucius – Wall Street Journal – Sept, 2015
– Beijing: Masked City – Mashable – Online. 2015
– A Nanjing Tale – The Economist – Online. 2015
– Desertification in China – Lens Culture – Online. June, 2015
– Made In Vietnam – OnEarth Magazine – Natural Resources Defence Council – Online & Print. March, 2015
– Reforestation in China – TIME Magazine – Nov, 2014
– Meltdown – This is Climate Change Photojournalism at its Best – 350.org – July, 2014
– City of Toxic Leather – Roads & Kingdoms – Online. June, 2014
– India’s Poor Risk Health to Mine Electronic “E-Waste” – National Geographic Online – June, 2014
– The Symbiosis of Photography & Video – News Shooter – Online. June, 2014
– In India, a Toxic Harvest of Recycled Electronics – Bloomberg – April, 2014
– World Press Photo Academy Interview – Online. May, 2014
SPEAKING APPEARANCES (2009-2021)
– Art Activism in the Digital Space – Photography for Future – Milano Digital Week – Online Presentation – March, 2021
– DC Environmental Film Festival – Washington DC, USA – Cambodia Burning Film Online Q&A with Pulitzer Center – March, 2021
– “A new era for Climate Change Reporting” – News Impact Summit – Google News Initiative and European Journalism Center – Birmingham, UK – October 7th, 2019
– “Taking the Heat: Using Journalism for Educational Engagement on Climate“ McDonnell International Scholars Academy, 7th International Symposium – Tsinghua University. Beijing, China. Oct, 2018.
– “Telling the Story of Global Change: Better Journalistic Reporting on Climate Change and Sustainable Development” – UNESCO, in partnership with University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus and the University of Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur Malaysia. November, 2017
– Hunter College, New York City, US – Pulitzer Center. September, 2017
– Guttman Community College, New York City, US – Pulitzer Center. September, 2017
– NYC Lab School, New York City, US – Pulitzer Center. September, 2017
– Hunter College High School, New York City, US – Pulitzer Center. September, 2017
– University of Iowa – Pulitzer Center. September, 2017
– City Colleges Chicago (Harry S. Truman, Harold Washington and Wilbur Wright campuses), US – Pulitzer Center. September, 2017
– Coal-Ice Exhibit – Shanghai, China – With Asia Society’s Center on U.S.-China Relations – March, 2016
– Global Environment Institute – Photographic Storytelling Workshop – Beijing, China – March, 2016
– Yale Center Beijing, China – Ecological Civilization Conference. June, 2015
– Today Art Museum, Beijing – Environmental Storytelling. July, 2014
– Loyola University, US – Pulitzer Center. April, 2014
– Senn High School, US – Pulitzer Center. April, 2014
– George Mason University, US – Pulitzer Center. March, 2014
– University of Michigan, US – Pulitzer Center. March, 2014
– United States Government State Department – Pulitzer Center, 2014
– Perspectives Charter School IIT Math & Science Academy, Chicago. US – Pulitzer Center. March, 2014
– Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School, Chicago. US – Pulitzer Center. March, 2014
– News Literacy Project – Lindblom Math and Science Academy in Chicago. March, 2013
– Beijing Creatives – Environmental Photography Presentation – Aug, 2012.
– Beyond Witness at Jack Morton Auditorium, George Washington University, Washington, DC. 7 November 2011
– Davidson College, Washington DC. US – Pulitzer Center. Nov, 2011
– Langley School, Washington DC. US – Pulitzer Center. Nov, 2011
– George Mason High School, Washington DC. US – Pulitzer Center. Nov, 2011
– Columbia Heights Education Campus, Washington DC. US – Pulitzer Center. Nov, 2011
– Maret School, Washington DC. US – Pulitzer Center. Nov, 2011
– Washington International School, Washington DC. US – Pulitzer Center. Nov, 2011
– Wilson Center, Washington DC. US – Pulitzer Center. Nov, 2011
– Mamie D. Lee School, Washington DC. US – Pulitzer Center. Nov, 2011
– Ullens Center for Contemporary Art – Beijing, China. Nov, 2010
– British Council presentation at the Meishi Film Academy in Chongqing, China. 2011
– British Council presentation at Shenyang University, China. 2011
– TEDx Canton, Guangzhou. China. Sept, 2010
– Zhengzhou Universities, China. June, 2010
– Shanghai Chamber of Commerce, China – January, 2010
– Kent State University, Ohio. US – Pulitzer Center. Oct, 2009
– Georgetown University, Washington DC. US – Pulitzer Center. Oct, 2009
– American University, Washington DC. US – Pulitzer Center. Oct, 2009
– Climate Institute, Washington DC. US – Pulitzer Center. Oct, 2009