Pier Nirandara

Pier Nirandara is an award-winning author, travel writer, and underwater photographer whose work connects storytelling, culture, and ocean conservation. A member of The Explorers Club, the International League of Conservation Photographers, and a PADI AmbassaDiver™, she joins this voyage as a speaker, sharing stories from her fieldwork across the South Pacific and beyond.

Pier began her career as Thailand’s youngest English-language bestselling author before moving into film development in Hollywood, working as an executive at ICM Partners, Sony Pictures, and A-Major Media, before returning to the field as a full-time writer and photographer. Today, her work appears in publications including BBC Travel, Forbes, Condé Nast Traveler, Travel + Leisure, AFAR, Lonely Planet, and Off Assignment, often examining the relationship between people, place, and the sea.

Her expeditions have taken her swimming with sharks and whales across the South Pacific, photographing climate and wildlife in the Arctic and Antarctica, tracking pink river dolphins in the Amazon, and diving alongside oceanographer Dr. Sylvia Earle and aquanaut Fabien Cousteau. In Papua New Guinea, she documented the ancient shark-calling traditions of New Ireland through a project supported by the Save Our Seas Foundation, highlighting Indigenous knowledge systems and humanity’s enduring relationship with the ocean.

Through writing and photography, Pier explores what she calls the “emotional science of wonder”—how experiences of awe deepen connection and inspire stewardship. She is also the founder of Immersiv Expeditions, leading small-group journeys centered on respectful encounters with marine wildlife, and has received recognition from the Lowell Thomas Awards, Ocean Photographer of the Year, and UN World Oceans Day. Having traveled to over 100 countries across seven continents, she divides her time between Cape Town, Bangkok, and Los Angeles—though she feels most at home beneath the sea.

Language spoken: English

Photo credit: Naude Heunis