Breakout Speaker: NANPA Summit 2025
www.joelsuch.com
Joel Such grew up in the ponderosa clad foothills of Colorado’s Front Range, where his intense passion for the avian world was sparked at a young age. Ever since, Joel has pursued birds with unwavering devotion and has dedicated his life to studying, protecting, and documenting the natural world, working on a wide variety of field projects and environmental education initiatives throughout the United States and Latin America.
With both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in conservation biology, Joel’s commitment to conservation extends to community-based, multicultural projects aimed at garnering support for wildlife and their habitats. This includes leading nature tours that support on-the-ground conservation projects. Armed with a telephoto lens since age nine, Joel uses photography as an essential tool in his dual roles as a biologist and artist, helping to raise environmental awareness and advance conservation efforts.
For the past seven years, Joel has predominantly lived in Colombia’s Western Andes where he is currently engaged in protecting and reforesting critical cloud forest habitat, as well as documenting the region’s cryptic wildlife with his camera.
Joel is the recipient of NANPA’s 2025 Outstanding Young Photographer of the Year award.
Cloud Forest Conservation Through a Lens
Thursday, May 15 / 5:00pm – 6:15pm / Breakout Room – TBA
In this presentation, Joel will recount the serendipitous events and personal experiences that ignited his life mission to protect and restore critical cloud forest habitat in the Western Andes of Colombia.
With vivid imagery captured through his camera, Joel brings to life the vibrant flora and fauna of the cloud forest, illustrating both the delicate balance of this ecosystem and its resilience when given a chance to recover. Having been immersed in this ecosystem for much of the past seven years, Joel’s strong connection to the forest and its inhabitants has both allowed him to collect valuable scientific data as a biologist and capture stunning images of elusive cloud forest species as a photographer.
Beyond touching on his scientific findings, Joel will share stories of his tactics to track down and document the forest’s biodiversity, from the endangered Colombian black-headed spider monkey to endemic aquatic lizards and a plethora of birds, orchids, and butterflies. Joel’s firsthand accounts and captivating visuals will bring to light the beauty and importance of this unique ecosystem, offering a powerful testament to the impact of dedicated conservation efforts.