Cousteau in Reno

Philippe Pierre Cousteau, who’ll be speaking Friday in Reno, is only 21 years old, but he has accomplished more than most people do in a lifetime. The grandson of the renowned oceanographer Jacques Cousteau, Philippe Cousteau has been scuba diving since age 12 and is an advanced PADI diver. At age 16, Cousteau studied sand diver fish in Papua New Guinea and photographed the customs of the indigenous Huli people. He’s traveled to Sarajevo with a humanitarian organization, attended environmental conferences in Columbia and hosted his own TV series, Dive and Explore with Philippe Cousteau.

As president of the Philippe Cousteau foundation, named in honor of his father, the 21-year-old Cousteau is on a tour of the United States to educate the public, especially young people, about environmental and conservation issues. He’ll speak about the waters of the world as well as of the Truckee River and Lake Tahoe at 7 p.m. April 12 in Room 108 of the Sierra Building at Truckee Meadows Community College. The event is part of TMCC’s Distinguished Lecture series, sponsored by Nevada Bell, Wells Fargo Bank, the TMCC Foundation and the TMCC Humanities Department.

“Philippe pays special environmental attention to the waters of the world that we haven’t taken very good care of and correlates this to our own sustainability,” said Ann McLaughlin, a member of TMCC’s Distinguished Lecture committee. “This is a wonderful opportunity to hear generations of experience in ecology.”

On Saturday, April 13, at 10 a.m., there will be a social gathering with Cousteau at Esoteric Coffeehouse & Gallery, 135 N. Sierra St. Local musicians Lee Dazey, Kim Elise and Jim Eaglesmith will perform. Fourth-grade students and other volunteers will hold a Truckee River cleanup, and local artists Brenda Retterer, Cheryl Tenk, Rebecca Shadowitz and Petra Rees will make a sculpture out of the items collected from the waters.

Tickets for the Friday lecture are $15 for general admission, $10 for students. Seating is limited. Call 673-7291.