John (Christian) Murillo
While at the University of Central Florida, Christian focused on optimizing efficiency within supply chain systems across various industries. Following graduation, he embarked on a four-month-long journey, traveling around the world to ten countries on five continents, including an adventure along Iceland’s Ring Road. These experiences led him to a supply chain consulting firm in Atlanta, Georgia, where Christian grew his love of the outdoors while photographing the natural beauty of the Blue Ridge Mountains, ultimately leading to a radical career shift so that he could spend more time photographing wild spaces. The central motivation for switching from engineering consulting to a career in photography was his desire to spend more time telling stories about the natural world, leading to more conservation and awareness about how climate change impacts the environment. Christian now lives in Bend, Oregon, and released a book titled ‘Soul of the Skagit’, about the Skagit River watershed in Washington, and how it will be impacted by climate change. He has led photography-focused student programs in Yellowstone and Yosemite National Parks, as well as leading the Climate Science group in the Harvard Chan C-CHANGE Youth Summit.