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Court Whelan

Born and raised in Florida, Court spent much of his youth outdoors fostering a strong love and appreciation for nature and wildlife. This fascination led him to attend the University of Florida, where he received his bachelor’s, master’s and PhD degrees in both Ecotourism and Entomology. As the creator of his own major, he was able to design his coursework, research and teaching to focus on, as he puts it, “conserving the world through nature and educational travel experiences.” Throughout his graduate school career, Court also ran a small ecotourism company through which he planned and led more than 60 expeditions to ecotourism destinations on all seven continents.

Today, Court is Nat Hab's Chief Sustainability Officer, and he continues to guide the world’s best nature expeditions while also heading up Nat Hab’s conservation focus, elevating the company to become one of the most sustainable and eco-conscious travel enterprises in the world. Court leads Nat Hab's “Green Team,” the company's enterprise to conserve the natural world through best practices in sustainability, both in our office and field operations. The Green Team facilitates opportunities for the entire company to innovate, inspire and make meaningful contributions to environmental leadership on a daily basis.

Like many others on the Nat Hab team, one of Court's greatest thrills is to help people travel to extraordinary wilderness areas that make lifelong impressions. When Court isn’t planning and leading adventures, you can find him hiking on one of Colorado’s beautiful trails, fly fishing in a nearby canyon, or working on his photography website.
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There’s only one proper way to roam through the Canadian Arctic – via Natural Habitat Polar Rover!– Being an entomologist, it’s hard to resist the allure of the small but intriguing giraffe-necked weevils of MadagascarBear viewing from the Tundra Lodge – there’s no better way to get out there and more immersed into the arctic tundraGroup photo at the famous inukshuk on the edge of the Hudson Bay, ChurchillLions, leopards and Elephants in Botswana don’t hold a candle to the ever-fascinating African dung beetleSunsets just don’t get any more fantastic than those in the Namibian desert– Just taking an afternoon stroll through “Dead Vlei” in NamibiaGentoo penguins are quite curious and happen to love seeing themselves in a big camera lensHunkering down during an evening blizzard aboard the Tundra Lodge in ChurchillIt always is nice to set up good relations with the intriguing Huli people of Papua New GuineaLearning a bit of the mud men ritual in Papua New Guinea, taught by those who know it best!It’s always nice to slow down a bit and soak in the views of the South Kaibab Trail of the Grand CanyonIt’s like a whole different universe down in the slot canyons of Antelope Canyons, ArizonaOne of my favorite trees on earth – the Baobab.  Amazingly, while only one species is found on mainland Africa, there are 6 different species on the island of Madagascar.An adventurous but WELL rewarding hike through the narrows of Zion National Park, UtahThere is magic in the Kalahari.  Photographing lions just yards away is one of many many highlightsIn Botswana, you don’t go to the elephants, the elephants go to you!Certainly one of my favorite drinks after a long international flight – fresh coconut water!Much like the Galapagos, the animals of Madagascar have virtually no fear of humans.  Wild lemurs don’t really have much regard for personal space!

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