Searching for Outliers
Going to the Edges of Earth
Since 2023, I've been running a global expedition across 50+ countries meeting the people building a more resilient future.
About
A research mission to uncover if there's any good news left
Edges of Earth is a global research expedition asking a single question: is there any positive news about our planet? Led by me, Andi Cross, and Adam Moore, we travel to the edges of the world to live alongside the people, teams and communities with the solutions to our biggest environmental challenges. While we focus on land and sea, we have always used diving as a way to forge relationships with people from the farthest edges. Our shared language with those from places far away from what we call home.
Rather than focusing solely on what's broken, we document 'positive deviants', or the outliers proving that a more resilient future is possible, and publish case studies about them to help them become more discoverable online.
Finding the Outliers
What is Positive Deviance?
Positive deviance is a social change approach that identifies individuals or communities achieving dramatically better outcomes than their peers — despite sharing the same circumstances and resources. Rather than asking why problems exist, it asks: who's already solving them, and how?
At Edges of Earth, we apply this lens to conservation and climate. Across 50+ countries, we look for the outliers — the communities that have reversed reef decline, the Indigenous-led programs outperforming government conservation efforts, the grassroots organizations turning environmental crises into local success stories. Not with more funding or better technology, but by thinking and acting differently.
These solutions are replicable blueprints. And they're everywhere — largely undocumented, underreported, and disconnected from the institutions and enterprises that need them most. Our mission is to find them, translate what they've built, and amplify their approaches so they can scale.
Explorers Club Flag Carrier
One of 4,000 Expeditions to Carry the Flag
The Explorers Club flag has accompanied every major breakthrough in human exploration — from the summit of Everest to the surface of the Moon. Edges of Earth is proud to carry Flag #3847 on our ongoing global expedition, documenting frontline conservation work across 50+ countries. It is one of the highest honors in field exploration, and a responsibility we carry with full weight.
The Explorers Club →Around the world and back again
Where We've Been Since 2023
50 countries later, we've found the blueprints for a more resilient future, as the solutions to our biggest environmental challenges are everywhere. Here are some examples.
Aligned with UN Sustainable Development Goals
Environmental Focus Areas
There are seven areas where I concentrate my expedition work. Each are aligned with the UN SDGs and grounded in what I've witnessed working in the field.
NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Fisheries reform, anti-deforestation initiatives, and combating wildlife trafficking. I document communities that have turned the tide on resource extraction through local governance and alternative livelihoods.
SDG 14, 15POLLUTION & WASTE MANAGEMENT
Water contamination, air quality, solid waste, noise pollution. From plastic-free islands in the Pacific to zero-waste fishing communities in Southeast Asia, I spotlight the solutions that actually scale.
SDG 6, 11NATURAL ENVIRONMENT & HABITAT PROTECTION
Marine protected areas, biodiversity corridors, ecosystem restoration. I've seen what happens when communities take ownership of their protected areas, and it works better than any top-down decree.
SDG 14, 15TOURISM & COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Capacity building, sustainable infrastructure, community-owned tourism. The best conservation projects I've documented are the ones where tourism dollars stay in local hands.
SDG 8, 11SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEMS
Aquaculture innovation, food technology, permaculture. From traditional Maori ocean gardening in New Zealand to cutting-edge seaweed farming, these are the food systems that can feed us without destroying us.
SDG 2, 12CLIMATE RESILIENCE
Disaster preparedness, emissions reduction, renewable energy transitions. I work with communities on the front lines of climate change who are building resilience rather than waiting for rescue.
SDG 7, 13NATURE-BASED SOLUTIONS & INNOVATIVE TECH
Ecosystem restoration at scale, AI and sensor networks for monitoring, hybrid approaches that combine indigenous knowledge with modern technology. The future of conservation lives at this intersection.
SDG 9, 13
Expedition Photography
