About Me
Photographer, Speaker, and National Geographic Explorer Kiliii Yüyan captures the profound interconnectedness of humanity and the natural world, from the depths of frozen seas to the heart of remote Indigenous communities. Of Chinese and Nanai/Hèzhé descent, Kiliii utilizes a cross-cultural lens and years of deep immersion to document life at the edges of the world—whether he is diving inside icebergs, building traditional kayaks, or facing down stalking polar bears. A recipient of the 2023 NatGeo Eliza Scidmore Award for Outstanding Storytelling, his sensory, holistic imagery is featured in National Geographic Magazine, TIME, and Vogue, and is held in museum collections across the United States. While he is a dynamic keynote speaker who has graced stages like TEDx and NatGeo Live, this Seattle-based explorer is most at home beneath the surface of the ocean or atop the shifting Arctic ice, dedicated to preserving a living link to his northern Indigenous heritage.
