Sacred Heart alumnus Tomas Koeck, an environmental photographer and filmmaker, was recognized on the Explorers Club 50 (EC50). He is one of 50 extraordinary people who are doing work to promote science and exploration, but remain under the radar and out of the limelight.
According to the Explorers Club website, the organization has been supporting scientific expeditions of all disciplines for over a century.
“Every single major event involving exploration, Mariana Trench, moon landing, North Pole, South Pole, Everest have all been done by Explorers Club members,” said Koeck.
He was inducted into the society a few years ago.
“I got a note that I was nominated, then I got a note that I was a finalist, and then I got a note that I won and I was so, so stoked,” said Koeck.
“He’s done some incredible work and he’s an important force in the national history world, and I think this award is a great recognition of all the amazing work he’s been doing over the last couple years,” said fellow SHU alumnus Collin Moura ‘25, who has worked with Koeck previously.
Koeck is dedicated to performing ethical storytelling in the environments he goes too, careful not to disturb the natural order of the things he captures on his camera.
“Those lines get crossed all the time and I see that and I’m like; I don’t want to be that. I don’t want to be the production company that’s crossing those lines,” said Koeck. “If we wanted to make films and make a difference, it’s pretty contradictory to negatively impact the wildlife that we’re filming in order to help the wildlife.”
Koeck hopes to inspire others, help the environment and make as big of an impact as possible through his work.
“One of the biggest reasons I chose filmmaking is to spread awareness and optimism, to get people excited and involved in creating community and sparking empathy within us all,” said Koeck.
While he had been into nature his whole life, Koeck only found his passion for showcasing that through story telling at SHU.
“It was soon obvious that he was headed for more ambitious projects,” said Prof. Joseph Alicastro, in the School of Communication, Media and the Arts (SCMA).
Koeck assembled a comprehensive outline for his plans, known as a treatment, and brought it to his professors.
“He proposed doing a nature documentary on the great white owl, which would take him to Minnesota in the dead of winter. That project expanded into a documentary about the Boreal Forest,” said Alicastro. “It was an immensely successful undertaking, especially for an undergraduate.”
Koeck would then go on to make several other films at the university, such as “Flyway of Life” and “Keepers of the Blue.” He encourages current Sacred Heart students to take the same risks he did as a student.
“If you have an idea that you want to pursue, if you have a topic that you think is important, that people need to know about, sit down and start typing in your treatment,” said Koeck.
“If a student comes along they’re like ‘Yeah I’m ready I want to do this,’ there’s nothing stopping that student from doing it,” said Prof. Keith Zdrojowy of the SCMA.
Koeck is currently premiering a new series, “Ocean State: Rhode Island’s Wild Coast,” which can be streamed on PBS.
