Joan Hartwig is an executive creative director with Walt Disney Imagineering, the arm of the company responsible for ideation, design, and construction of theme parks and resorts. Her career has spanned 34 years at Disney, beginning as a scenic artist in film and television production and then transitioning to theme park and resort design and production. She currently leads the transformation of a new area at Disney's Animal Kingdom, a central Florida theme park,  into a Tropical America’s setting, celebrating a region extending from the Yucatan through southern Mexico, Central America, and into South America.