Conservation Careers Blogger Marta Cálix had the pleasure of interviewing Francis Cabana, who is a PhD student researching the nutritional requirements of slow lorises as part of the Little Fireface Project near Jakarta. Francis is also the Research Coordinator for the project and he´ll be staying there for the next 14 months. In this interview he
From an early age Lizzie Bruce has always loved being outdoors enjoying the Great British countryside. Today she is West Norfolk Assistant Warden for the Norfolk Wildlife Trust and she shares her conservation career secrets… Why do you work in conservation? If you asked me when I was school what my career would be, conservation wouldn’t
Cusuco National Park in Honduras is one of the strangest places I have ever visited. A cloud forest habitat, there are large pines amidst broadleaf trees and huge tree ferns, that together with the often-present white mist made me feel like I was a Jurassic jungle. The forest is teeming with wildlife, and no group
Dr Josh Tewksbury is Director of the WWF Luc Hoffmann Institute. The Luc Hoffmann Institute was created by WWF, one of the world’s largest and most experienced global conservation organizations, to respond to the most important questions facing conservation and sustainable development. How would you describe the Luc Hoffmann Institute to someone who’s never heard
Helping Kew put Conservation on the Map with Steve Bachman Steve is the Species Conservation Assessment Officer in the Herbarium at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. The post is based in the Geographical Information systems (GIS) Unit, which is part of the Biodiversity Informatics and Economic Botany department. Also known as Kew Gardens, the non-departmental
What’s involved in being a conservation director for Fauna and Flora International? 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
Mining and energy operations have some of the most transformative impacts on the planet, with the power to strip landscapes, alter ecosystems and forever change societies. In this interview, Fauna & Flora International’s Business & Biodiversity Director, Pippa Howard, explains how working with business can create large-scale conservation benefits and how to join this emerging
Conservation Careers Blogger Marta Calix reports live from the Ara Project in Costa Rica where she is working as a volunteer. The Ara Project is dedicated to saving Costa Rica’s two native macaws: the endangered Great Green Macaw and the Scarlet Macaw. In this first of a series of videos sent live from the field,
Alienor Chauvenet is a quantitative ecologist and recent winner of the RSPB Conservation Science Award. She works as an ecological modeller for the National Wildlife Management Centre in York, and as a research assistant at the Institute of Zoology in London. With two jobs in two cities 250 miles from each other, she lives a
I first met wildlife artist Martin Aveling at the beginning of 2015 when I was working in South Africa. Anyone with this much talent coupled with a commitment to mitigating the plight of endangered species, is someone you need to know about in the conservation world. Martin grew up in the savannah of Central and East
While he is probably best known for his research with marine turtles, Brendan Godley is also the Course Director for the Biodiversity and Conservation MSc at the University of Exeter Penryn campus. Brendan co-coordinates two modules on that course (Africa field-course and marine biodiversity and conservation), as well as one module on the undergraduate level. Conservation
Julia Marton-Lefèvre: Making things happen Julia Marton-Lefèvre is the Director-General of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the world’s largest conservation membership organization, which brings together states, government agencies, non-governmental organizations, scientists and experts in a unique worldwide partnership. She is the longest serving Director General, and has led the organization for over 7
How to work for the Cambridge Conservation Initiative? Elizabeth Allen is the Collaborations and Communications Manager for The Cambridge Conservation Initiative. CCI is a unique collaboration between the University of Cambridge and leading Internationally-focussed biodiversity conservation organisations clustered in and around Cambridge, UK. It represents a critical mass of expertise — on a scale unparalleled anywhere
The Scottish Wildcat Felis Silvestris Grampia, once present across the whole of the United Kingdom, is now confined to a fraction of its former range. It features strongly in the culture of Scotland and its wild instincts have proven to be virtually untameable. However, it is critically endangered owing to several threats; recent estimates suggest
Conservation Careers Blogger Marta Calix reports live from the Ara Project in Costa Rica where she is working as a volunteer. The Ara Project is dedicated to saving Costa Rica’s two native macaws: the endangered Great Green Macaw and the Scarlet Macaw. In this second in a series of videos sent live from the field, Marta wakes up early
Andrew Snyder is a conservationist and photographer currently working on his PhD in Biology in the U.S. He has been doing field work in tropical rainforests for several years, focusing on amphibians and reptiles, and is involved with Operation Wallacea, a conservation research organization that gives young people the opportunity to do volunteering in tropical
Katie Rooke holds a BSc in Zoology and Marine Biology from Aberdeen University and an MRes from Bristol University in Brown Hyaena translocation. She currently works in South Africa, running the Askari Wilderness Volunteer Programme. She is an ideal advocate for anyone trying to pursue a career in conservation within Southern Africa. Here she gives an
Conservation Careers Blogger Naima Montacer was excited to speak to her friend and former boss Rick LoBello about his past. Rick LoBello is Education Curator at the El Paso Zoo. He has also worked in several National Parks including Big Bend, Yellowstone, Guadalupe Mountains, Carlsbad Caverns and now is the current Education Curator at the
A career helping whales and dolphins with Catarina Fonseca Catarina Fonseca is the Researcher and Volunteer Coordinator for AIMM – Associação para Investigação do Meio Marinho / Marine Environment Research Association – in Portugal. Here she tells Conservation Careers her watery story… Why do you work in conservation? Since I was a child I’ve dreamed
Dr Chris Sandbrook has followed an inspiring career path and is now utilizing his professional and academic experience to train the next generations of conservation leaders. Chris currently works as a lecturer at UNEP- World Conservation Monitoring Centre and he is also an affiliated lecturer in the Department of Geography at the University of Cambridge
What if you could help protect a rainforest ecosystem by telling the story of an ecolodge’s composting system? Or help safeguard a biosphere reserve by promoting a sustainable tourism initiative? The answer is, you can. In this interview, Tartan Group President Deirdre Campbell shares how communicating sustainable tourism can support environment, business and community – and
It’s a Frog’s Life with Paul Furnborough Paul Furnborough is a Conservation Officer with Froglife where he works as a reserve warden on the Hampton Nature Reserve – home to 30,000 great crested newts – and coordinates volunteers and manages projects. He is now studying for a Masters by Research, and his dream conservation job
Ben Garrod is an evolutionary biologist with a huge interest in primatology and bones! He has presented his first 6 part television series ‘Secret of Bones’ on BBC4, and has around 6 months left before he finishes his PhD in primate evolutionary biology at University College London. He is also a part-time lecturer at Anglia
If you think dream jobs don’t exist, read no further. There are limitless reasons to set aside our true passions: the job market is too poor, competition is too fierce (surely no one can acquire that many degrees and that much experience by age 25?) and social pressure cautions us against idealistic pursuits. Safe decisions
James Walker is currently employed as a summer bird surveyor for Manx BirdLife, so for his first assignment as a Conservation Careers Blogger he decided to interview their new CEO Dora Querido. Dora originally hails from Portugal and has worked on conservation projects in several countries. Why did you choose conservation as a career? It is actually quite
The Bare Bones of Conservation with Ben Garrod Ben Garrod is an evolutionary biologist with a huge interest in primatology and bones! He has presented his first 6 part television series ‘Secret of Bones’ on BBC4, and has around 6 months left before he finishes his PhD in primate evolutionary biology at University College London.
The world is currently facing rapid changes that are triggering conservation crises at a global scale. There is an increasing need for conservation leaders who can tackle the major issues and drive change for a more sustainable future. The MPhil in Conservation Leadership, offered by Cambridge University, aims to train students to address the conservation
One week in Cusuco National Park was more than enough to fundamentally change my perception of Honduras. Before coming to this cloud forest in the Merendon mountain range, all that came to my mind when thinking about this part of the world was lowland rainforest, jaguars, and hot, humid temperatures. Instead, on the way to the
Conservation Research in Indonesia with Francis Cabana Conservation Careers Blogger Marta Cálix had the pleasure of interviewing Francis Cabana, who is a PhD student researching the nutritional requirements of slow lorises as part of the Little Fireface Project near Jakarta. Francis is also the Research Coordinator for the project and he´ll be staying there for the
John is the Lahontan Cutthroat Trout Conservation Coordinator for Trout Unlimited. Trout Unlimited is a USA based NGO with about 180 professional staff and 150,000 grassroots members whose mission is to conserve, protect and restore North America’s trout and salmon fisheries and their watersheds. Why do you work in conservation? As a young student in
