It was only supposed to be a month-long vacation but, for Wild Tomorrow Fund Founder and Executive Director, John Steward, a volunteer placement with Wildlife ACT in South Africa resulted in a complete re-evaluation and life overhaul. After witnessing the plight of African wildlife due to dwindling habitat and illegal poaching, Steward walked away from
Dr Joe Chipperfield is a postdoctoral Research Ecologist working in the Biogeography department at the University of Trier in Germany. The main focus of his research is the development and application of new techniques to ascertain the ranges of species and to try and predict what may happen to these ranges in the future. WHY DO YOU
Julie Melrose is Assistant Director for the Conservation Council Australian Capital Territory. She is a passionate advocate for progressive social and environmental change with over seven years experience managing a variety of projects and campaigns like Earth Hour for WWF. WHY DO YOU HAVE A CONSERVATION JOB? I have been working for environmental NGOs for
It is no coincidence that conservation and conversation are anagrams. In our age of insta-information and digital decisions, it’s easy to mistake boardrooms and computer screens for the birthplaces of conservation projects. But spend 30 minutes speaking with Dr Alasdair Harris, Chief Executive of multi-award winning NGO Blue Ventures, and he’ll quickly remind you that
Nick Askew is the Fundraising and Communications Manager for BirdLife Pacific – a flourishing network of seven national conservation organisations based in Fiji, Palau, New Zealand, Australia, Cook Islands, New Caledonia and French Polynesia. They are supported by the BirdLife Pacific Secretariat which manages regional projects and assists in conservation planning, capacity development and fundraising. WHY
Geographic Information Systems is a discipline which goes right to the heart of conservation and helps us to answer fundamental questions right across the spectrum of topics in conservation. ‘Why does this species occur here but not there?’, ‘Where should we prioritise our conservation actions?’, ‘How connected are these two wildlife populations?’, ‘What is the
I first met Katherine Smith just over a year ago at a VuPro conference in Hartbeespoort, South Africa. Since interning at VulPro she has achieved fantastic heights in her career, recently being involved in a Parahawking organisation in Nepal, dedicated to creating awareness about the plight of endangered vulture species across the world. Parahawking you
Steve Ormerod is Professor of Ecology in Cardiff University’s School of Biosciences and current Chairman of the RSPB Council – the biggest wildlife charity in Europe. His conservation career so far includes the following highlights: the winner of the Marsh Award for Marine and Freshwater Conservation, Chief Editor of the Journal of Applied Ecology; President
Alexandra Garcia is the Executive Director of the International League of Conservation Photographers (iLCP), a non-profit organization that includes 100+ of the best professional nature and wildlife photographers in the world (Fellows) who are fully dedicated to using their imagery to promote earth friendly outcomes. Here she talks about her career and the amazing work of
Returning home in late 2014 after managing an Elephant Reintroduction Volunteer Programme for two years in a Karen hill tribe village in Northern Thailand, Gemma Annan and fellow intern Jade Clayson decided more needed to be done to educate tourists regarding captive elephant welfare in Thailand. Putting a team together comprising of childhood friend Claire
“After I’d left university I was sure of one thing,” says Christopher Beirne, “That I never wanted to do a PhD.” But career trajectories are an awful lot like jungles – wild and unpredictable – and nearly 10 years after first falling in love with the neotropics, Dr Chris Beirne landed back in Peru as
Emily worked as Assistant Programme Officer at The UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre. UNEP-WCMC is the United Nations Environment Programme’s specialist biodiversity assessment arm. They provide authoritative information about biodiversity and ecosystem services in a manner that is useful to decision-makers who are driving change in environment and development policy. Emily studied Geography at Trinity Hall, Cambridge
This week we spoke to Peter Cooper – a 22 year old postgraduate studying MSc Biodiversity & Conservation at the University of Exeter Penryn Campus – about the new online wildlife series Naturewatch. Peter is script editor on Naturewatch and committee member for the UK youth nature network, ‘A Focus on Nature’. He’s also life-long
I spoke to Alex Bateson, a franchise holder at Lion Learners North West England. It can be a difficult task getting your foot in the door at a successful conservation organisation, why not try being a little entrepreneurial and set up your own conservation enterprise like Lion Learners? Alex can you tell us a bit
Jason Houston is an assignment photographer with over 20 years’ experience working around the world producing stories that matter for conservation. Jason travels fast, light, and unobtrusively to capture authentic moments that will powerfully and effectively tell a story. Here Jason provides an insight into the highs and lows of his chosen career. How would
Paul Hotham has over 25 years of conservation experience including work in the UK National Parks and voluntary sector and international conservation NGOs. His MSc thesis was undertaken in the Amboseli and Kilimanjaro National Parks on transboundary cooperation between protected areas. Paul has extensive experience in species conservation, protected area management and conservation capacity building.
With an increasing number of jobs in the ecology sector opening up all the time, we’re excited to speak with Andrew Black – Director of Ecology Jobs, the only UK job-site dedicated to helping ecologists. What is ‘Ecology Jobs’? Our demographic is UK ecologists, and we understand the specific needs, skills and requirements of both
Mark is Head of Ornithology at APEM – Europe’s leading independent environmental consultancy specialising in freshwater and marine ecology and aerial surveys. We offer work of the highest quality and scientific integrity, together with excellent service. WHY DO YOU HAVE A CONSERVATION JOB? I think that the human imprint on the earth is massive. Wildlife biodiversity,
An introduction to conservation Eddie Game was working for Australia’s fisheries department in the sub-Antarctic when he realized that he wanted to become a conservation scientist. Unlike many others who are drawn to the field after having experienced some form of environmental destruction, he was drawn to conservation after observing the success of protected areas.
Mark is the former RSPB Conservation Director and has been called Britain’s premier wildlife blogger. He worked for the RSPB for 25 years – and spent 13 years as their Conservation Director. Mark’s knowledge about nature conservation in the UK is without par, and he cares deeply about the sustainability of wildlife in the modern world. The
Simon Bangs is a Conservation Recruitment Consultant for Allen & York – a leading International Sustainability Recruitment Consultancy, with an increasing number of renewable energy jobs, ecology and environmental jobs throughout the globe. WHAT DO YOU DO AS A RECRUITMENT CONSULTANT? We work on behalf of a variety of clients around the world to source new
Jules Howard started out his early career at Froglife, a charity committed to conserving the UK’s native amphibians and reptiles. Two published books and plenty of stories later, he’s come full circle and has re-joined the organisation, as a patron. His work for the Guardian and BBC Wildlife is both novel an engaging, whilst his
If you’re anything like me, you fell in love with nature and the basics of biology before you decided to work in conservation. The elegance of evolution and the fascinating diversity of animal species and animal behaviors had you hooked – and then you learned what humans have done to the natural world and decided
In light of the recently celebrated ‘World Turtle Day’, I caught up with Khrystyne Jamerson, an educator at Sea Turtle Inc. on South Padre Island. Khrystyne’s enthusiasm for wildlife conservation inspired me daily while we were working together for Ghana Research and Education Alliance for Turtles this past winter. Her new position allows her to
In a world run by politicised decision-making, how can conservation compete? Decision science runs the world – from manufacturing to the military, from transport to economics. And according to multi-award-winning ecologist Professor Hugh Possingham, conservation decision-making is also the best way to solve environmental problems. Natural decisions “Conservation is an applied science; it’s all about
David Bevan didn’t fully realise is passion for plants until he was 40 years old. Now aged 75, he has devoted the last 35 years of his life to studying botany, caring for local green spaces and inspiring a love for nature in others. A retired natural history teacher and former Conservation Officer for the
Tasmania is the southern-most part of Australia, an island state that is known for its exquisite natural landscapes and unique fauna. However, it’s future lies in the hands of conservationists and groups like the Tasmanian Land Conservancy, which protects and improves important areas of land, conducts biological research and assists in a huge variety of
Helen Scales is a marine biologist, writer, broadcaster, explorer and all round polymath. Two of her greatest passions are the oceans and storytelling. Her love of the sea and academic background, and a flair for narrative, have led to several books, the most recent of which, Spirals in Time, was published last year. She also
This week we’ve spoken with Dr Jocelyne Hughes, Director of the Postgraduate Certificate in Ecological Survey Techniques at the University of Oxford. She shares her insights into online learning for careers in ecology and conservation, and how they can help people to learn remotely whilst they work. What online courses do you offer at Oxford
Scottish zoologist Holly O’Donnell doesn’t take ‘no’ for an answer. When a university professor told O’Donnell that her bachelor’s degree was worth “toilet paper” and that she was going nowhere, she could have abandoned her career dreams. Instead, she fundraised and interned her way from Scotland to Antarctica, Paraguay and the Peruvian Amazon, where she
