Changemaker Speaker Series Anand Varma: Exploring Nature's Hidden Worlds

As part of the Changemaker Speaker Series, Anand Varma, biologist‑turned nature photographer, reveals the worlds that unfold beyond human perception. Raised exploring the woods near Atlanta, he first picked up his father’s camera as a teenager, then studied integrative biology at UC Berkeley before turning science into visual storytelling. In his Berkeley “Wonder Lab,” he uses custom rigs, high‑speed video, time‑lapse, and macro techniques to slow down the fast, speed up the slow, and magnify the miniature. Through astonishing imagery, follow the full life cycle of a honeybee, watch hummingbird wings beat at lightning speed, and glimpse behaviors as surprising as jellyfish mating and vampire bats hunting. A National Geographic Early Career Grantee (2010), Varma has photographed multiple stories for National Geographic Magazine, including the 2014 cover story “Mindsuckers,” and has been recognized as a National Geographic Emerging Explorer and World Press Photo Award winner for best nature story, offering a fresh perspective on the complexity of life.