Barbara Pyle

Barbara Pyle[4] first met Ted Turner in 1980 when she was photographing the America's Cup for Time magazine and the media mogul was helming the Courageous for the last time. Turner, impressed with Pyle's media savvy and commitment to environmental issues, hired her as Vice President of Environmental Policy at TBS. Pyle served over two decades in this role and was responsible for creation of the Turner Environment Division and setting the company's environmental broadcast agenda.

Pyle branded TBS as the Environmental Network. Simultaneously, she was CNN's environmental editor where she introduced and oversaw environmental news reporting and programming on both CNN and TBS. As one of the first environmental corporate executives, she championed Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policies and initiatives company-wide and set the standards for energy efficiency, recycling and carpooling with her department's award-winning Clean Air Commute program.

While at CNN/TBS, Pyle introduced and oversaw environmental coverage, including Earth Matters, a daily environmental news show which premiered on CNN in 1981 and launched "CNN's World Report", which featured international journalists presenting breaking news from their countries vis-à-vis their local perspective. With Jane Fonda serving as host, Pyle executive produced the award-winning show People Count[5] which put a face on global issues addressed by a series of United Nations summits.

In 1980, after she read The Global 2000 Report to the President commissioned by Jimmy Carter's presidential administration, Pyle committed herself to bring global concerns to the forefront of public attention. Pyle has worked with and built collaborative relationships between major environmental groups such as the United Nations Environment Programme, National Wildlife Federation, National Audubon Society, and Natural Resources Defense Council.

Pyle's activism was grounded in media production. Her 35-part documentary series People Count, hosted by Jane Fonda, profiled everyday people from around the world working to address issues of sustainable development, population, and the rights of women and native peoples. Pyle traveled around the world to film this series, acting both as executive producer and reporter. People Count aired domestically on CNN and TBS, and internationally on CNN International. To extend the audience further, People Count segments were distributed free through an international distribution program that reached broadcasters in over 180 countries with a potential viewing audience of two billion.

Broadcast to more than 80 countries and viewed by more than one billion people, Pyle's film The Day of Five Billion, co-produced with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), featured original music videos by renowned artists from around the world combined with mini-documentaries and messages from international leaders and futurist authors. The Day of Five Billion featured a video representing the birth of the five billionth person on earth. Participating in the film were world leaders such as President of Costa Rica Óscar Arias, Prime Minister of Norway Gro Harlem Brundtland, President of Indonesia Suharto, Chinese Premier Zhao Ziyang, as well as music legends Peter Gabriel, Crowded House, Jimmy Cliff, Stevie Wonder, The Neville Brothers, Allen Toussaint, Clarence Clemons, Dr. John, Nona Hendryx, Youssou N'Dour and renowned authors Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, and Kurt Vonnegut amongst many others. This celebration expanded into the annually celebrated World Population Day. The film received numerous accolades, including a Population Institute Global Media Award, a CINDY Award from the International Association of Audio Visual Communicators (IAAVC), a Silver Hugo Award as well as nominations for CableACE and Emmy awards.

Pyle's Without Borders expanded her distribution network to 127 countries and included a satellite grant from Intelsat.

Her film One Child - One Voice was the centerpiece of the United Nations' Save the Earth media campaign. This film initiated a letter-writing campaign in support of the United Nations Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. The film was distributed to over 100 countries and more than one million 'leaf postcards' were received from around the world for the Tree of Life in Rio.

For her professional work, humanitarian efforts and activism, Barbara has received dozens of personal commendations. Then Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Annan, when presenting the United Nations Sasakawa Award to Pyle, remarked: "For more than two decades, Barbara Pyle has encouraged the media to assume a major responsibility for informing and educating the public, including decision makers. Pyle has brought environmental issues closer to the hearts and minds of people the world over. As a writer, director and producer of numerous television programs, she has inspired countless individuals to care about the environment and to take responsibility for its protection."

Using a percentage of Captain Planet's merchandising proceeds, Pyle founded the Captain Planet Foundation (CPF) to put the messages of the show into practice. Its mission was to teach young people to respect the planet through hands-on experiences. Today, the CPF awards grants to various projects that promote environmental awareness, teamwork, and community building.

Pyle served as the CPF's chairman of the board from 1991 to 2001. She currently has a seat on the board of directors and chairs its media committee.

The Planeteer Movement is a worldwide gathering of young people who work to put the show's messages into practice.

Fans would self identify as Planeteers to Pyle, relating their personal tales of the series' effect on their lives. Inspired and humbled by the global impact of the show, in 2009 Pyle began investigating how she could connect the large number of fans with each other through the Internet. In two years of seeking out social media experts and serving on various panels, Barbara constructed a team that began work on what would become the Planeteer Movement.

In honor of Captain Planet's 20th anniversary, in 2010 the Planeteer team built a website and created a social media presence for fans of the series. The team aimed to blend fan service with environmental innovation and give fans around the world the chance to tell their Planeteer story, connect with others, and promote their environmental service projects and experiences that intend to lead to a sustainable future.

Barbara continues to attend high-level conferences, host meetups and introduce real-life Planeteers to each other to sustain the movement's growth. With half a million fans and dozens of Planeteer Networks worldwide, Pyle sees the movement as a force for positive change in the 21st century.