Cris Toala Olivares

Cris Toala Olivares is an award-winning Netherlands-based Ecuadorian photographer, journalist and storyteller with expertise in ground and aerial photography of natural and urban environments. His approach keeps him enough of an outsider to be fascinated by his subjects, but also enough of an insider to understand them deeply. Through his work and media outreach, Toala Olivares aims to inspire people to look at places in a different way, and also to appreciate the familiar, by giving them the opportunity to see their surroundings from a different perspective.

After working for several years at news agencies such as Reuters and the Associated Press, Toala Olivares embarked on an independent career with three major projects: a book about life along the canals of Amsterdam in the Netherlands, where he is based; a study of some of the world's most active volcanoes and the people who live together in them; and an exploration of the fauna and landscape of the Wadden Sea tidal flats in northern Europe.

His vision and perspective have earned him numerous awards, including a Magnum Photography Award, and he has been invited to speak at various events, including TED Talks.