This week we're talking to Victoria Price from Vision Wild, a new organisation which designs, implements and evaluates wildlife conservation projects. In the podcast we discuss how to create a successful project and share tips for how to fundraise for conservation projects. We also explore the importance of project management skills for career development. If you want to build successful projects and raise some money, you're in the right place. Enjoy. 

Today we’re turning the tables slightly and talking about, well us; Conservation Careers. We thought it would be a good end to the year and to the decade to look back at the journey of Conservation Careers over the past six years and also to look forwards to where we might be going next. Leading the discussion is our Head of Engagement Kristi Foster and we’re exploring things like how to get a conservation job and how to start your own eco-enterprise. We also discuss the importance of finding your target job in order to secure a role which makes you happy, content and impactful and also talk about things like resolutions, reflecting on what you’ve done so far and where you want to go next.  So grab a minced pie and some mulled wine and enjoy this Christmas cracker of an episode. Sorry! Over to you Kristi. 

Oana wildlife reserve in the deep south of Namibia is 45,000 hectares of breath-taking mountainous semi-desert. Home to a previously unknown population of leopards, the reserve encompasses 50km of the lush Orange River, which is a wildlife refuge amid the extensive hues of orange and red rocky and sandy plains. For the past three and a half years, Andrea Pawel and her partner Ed have been working to establish Oana Namibia, which is an enterprise seeking to restore this ex-hunting farmland through a series of wildlife conservation initiatives. They offer a mix of conservation expeditions, community development, adventure endeavours and ultimate relaxation programmes for anyone seeking a wildlife refuge. During this podcast we talk with Andrea about Oana Namibia and how she came to be starting such an exciting and innovative project in a forgotten area of Africa, we discuss how people can get involved and her career journey from PR in London to African conservation, and hear her advice for others who may dream of following in her dusty footsteps. So if you love African wildlife and want to escape the rat race for a while, you’ll love this episode. Enjoy. 

When you think about the Amazon basin and the vast area of dense jungle and vegetation, do you think about seeing dolphins? Me neither. Today we’re talking to Suzanne Smith, the Executive Director and Founder of the Amazon River Dolphin Conservation Foundation. This is a charity set up in 2014 to conserve the species through research, education and collaboration efforts. Suzanne has worked with marine mammals for over 30 years and in this podcast we explore her career journey to establishing the charity. We also discuss her passion for this remarkable and unique species, and her work with local communities in the Brazilian Amazon basin to study and conserve the dolphin.  Now when many fires in the Amazon are still currently burning, long forgotten by international press and media, it’s a timely reminder about how diverse and important this area of the planet is for our wildlife.

Hi guys – Nick here from Conservation Careers This is just a special little broadcast to let you know that we’re supporting the Travel Blogger of the Year competition - run by Terra Incognita Travel - and entries are now open! If you enjoy writing or blogging all you need to do is submit a story about your favourite place on Earth in 800 words or fewer! Where is your favourite place on Earth? Maybe it’s in a rainforest or tropical reef, or maybe it’s your garden or bed?! Wherever your favourite place on Earth is, Travel Blogger of the Year is your chance to have some fun, be creative and be in a great chance of winning up to $13,000 of prizes! This includes 3 pairs of SWAROVSKI OPTIK binoculars, 12 trips of a lifetime - including Panama, Romania, Peru, Costa Rica, USA, New Zealand and more - plus career boosts from Conservation Careers. To enter, simply visit https://www.terra-incognita.travel/ and submit a story before 31st December.

Have you ever dreamt about a career exploring the coral reefs of the south Pacific, diving in Fiji, Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands and all the lost corners of Papua New Guinea? Perhaps you’d love to spend time with the local communities whose lives depend on the health of their forests and fisheries, working in partnership with them in the longer term to find win-wins for people and wildlife. Well that’s the day job for today’s guest, Dr Stacy Jupiter, Melanesia Director of the Wildlife Conservation Society. Stacy’s work to bridge the gaps between science and conservation, forests and reefs, and wildlife and communities recently won her the prestigious MacArthur Fellowship in Conservation. She’s a hugely impressive lady working at the cutting edge of conservation in some of the most inspiring locations on the planet. Today we chat about her career highlights so far from the mud slides in Gabon to coral reefs in the Pacific and beyond and discuss the theory and practice of successful community-based conservation programmes. It’s a wide-ranging, fascinating and exciting discussion so jump in your hammock, grab a coconut and enjoy. 

On average every five minutes an albatross dies accidentally behind a fishing boat. Caught on a hook set for a fish, entangled in a net or striking a tensioned wire. During this episode a number of albatrosses will die needlessly. Dr Ben Sullivan has dedicated his career to tackling similar marine conservation issues. Starting with a PhD counting koala poo in the Australian Outback, Ben developed a passion for sea birds whilst working in the mighty southern oceans around Antarctica and the Falkland Islands. He went on to manage the hugely successful BirdLife marine programme and helped to establish the famous Albatross Taskforce. He now works in the enterprise sector for Fishtek Marine helping to innovate new products to tackle old conservation problems. One of which the Hookpod looks set to save countless accidental deaths of albatrosses and other seabirds.  Ben’s a force of nature; he’s full of passion, dedication and ability and in this episode we talk about his career to date and the challenges and opportunities of enterprise in conservation. We also hear his career advice and explore what it takes to set up a dynamic global team to successfully tackle an issue like seabird bycatch. If you’re interested in seabirds, marine conservation, innovation and more you’ll love this episode.  

Competition for conservation jobs can be tough. The good news is that there are more jobs available than ever before. We list over 8,000 conservation jobs on our site each year and that continues to grow. The bad news is there are more people like you looking to work in the sector. So how do you stand out from the crowd and get an interview? We check application forms, CVs, cover letters and resumes each week at Conservation Careers and the majority contain simple errors which are holding applicants back from getting their dream jobs. You might have all the right experiences, skills and qualifications for your chosen role but if you can’t sell yourself on paper, this could be a major hurdle to getting hired. To help we’ve produced a free step-by-step guide ‘How To Apply For A Conservation Job’ which you can download from our website. If you’re applying for a job, download it and use it; it really works! We’ve also started a series of live training events at Conservation Careers and in this episode of the podcast, we’re going to dive into a webinar we held recently whereby Kristi Foster, our Head of Engagement, and myself walk you through some steps to pulling together a successful CV or resume for a conservation job. If you’re applying for a job, if you’re struggling to get an interview, you’re gonna like this one. Enjoy. 

Rhett Butler is the founder and CEO of Mongabay, one of the largest, longest running and most important environmental news sites online.  Rhett started the site just 20 years ago when an area of rainforest he had visited and enjoyed in Borneo was cut down just eight weeks later, logged down for woodchips to supply a paper pulp plant.  He spent the first ten years of the project operating Mongabay entirely on his own, publishing thousands of stories and tens of thousands of photos. Today, Rhett serves as editor-in-chief and CEO of Mongabay, which is a non-profit media organisation with more than three dozen staff across four bureaus and a network of around 250 correspondents in 50 countries.  In today’s podcast we talk about his journey setting up and growing Mongabay and where he plans to take things next. We also talk about the importance of journalism in environmental conservation, alongside practical tips on how to craft a compelling story. If you’re interested in news, media, journalism and communications, it’s a must-listen episode. Enjoy. 

With over 800 species of birds in South Africa and over 100 of them threatened, where do you start with trying to conserve them? Growing up in South Africa, Mark Anderson was taken out into the bush for days on end by his grandfather and then from an early age he knew that he wanted to be a conservationist. He studied hard and now works even harder as CEO of BirdLife South Africa. Today on the podcast, we talk about his career to date and how he stays focused and motivated. And what he looks for when hiring new staff. We also discuss what it’s like to be CEO of an organisation which is recognised internationally and nationally for its success in the conservation of wild birds and their habitats.

There are many times in our lives when we might find ourselves at a crossroads looking for purpose and direction. At these times, we might feel stuck and confused and perhaps we don’t know what to do. And if we do have a sense of what we need to do, we might find ourselves lacking the courage to make it happen. In short, we’re heading down the wrong path.  If this is you, then you’re not alone. Today we’re talking to Neil Prem, an old friend and career coach who helps people to create and develop meaningful careers. And he’s just about to publish a book, “Seven Steps to Purpose”. In this special episode of the podcast he’ll help you to get unstuck, discover your dream job and do what matters most.

Have you ever considered doing a master's course (degree) to kick-start your career in conservation? What would completing a master's course achieve? Is it right for you and would it lead to a conservation job? These are some of the topics covered in a wide-ranging discussion with Brendan Godley, Professor of Conservation Science at the University of Exeter. Brendan is probably best known for his research with marine turtles and is described in a blog in our website as a king in conservation science. In this podcast, we talk about master's programmes, conservation science optimism, careers advice and much more. As always, if you enjoy our podcast, please do leave a rating or review and do check out our website for our free step-by-step guide, How to Apply for a Conservation Job, a detailed guide to CVs, resumes, cover letters and much more.

Professor Ken Norris is the Director of Science at the Zoological Society of London (ZSL). Ken leads ZSL's Institute of Zoology, which is the world’s only university in a zoo and he also oversees the vet teams who look after the welfare of animals at London and Whipsnade zoos. We talk about his exciting career in conservation science and he shares his advice for someone looking to secure a PhD as part of the academic route into conservation. As always, it’s a wide-ranging career-boosting episode!

When the opening line of a story mentions an Aldi bag-for-life full of human poo, you know it’s gonna be worth reading on, right? That story was the winning entry in the Wildlife Blogger of the Year competition and written by Gianluca Cerullo. He’s a conservation scientist and writer with a passion for adventure, wildlife and wild places. Gianluca has been involved in expeditions and research around the tropics from Borneo and Madagascar to the Colombian Andes and he shares his experiences on his blog. In this podcast you’ll hear from a young conservation scientist who’s really going places. He’s travelled the globe studying dung beetles and is soon starting a PhD at Cambridge University looking at rainforest restoration. On the podcast we talk about his career to date, his passion for communicating science and some great tips and advice for people seeking to follow in his footsteps. We also discuss some of the big conservation issues of the day like climate change, plastic pollution and much more. Joining me on the podcast today is co-host, Matt Adam Williams from the Wild Voices Project podcast.

What do you do if you’ve got a great degree, stacks of quality volunteer and intern experience in nature conservation but then spend over six months applying for jobs without a single interview? Having left university, this is what faced our guest today, Chris Thompson. He decided to try a different approach and one which resulted in multiple interviews and job offers within a couple of weeks. Amazing. Chris combined his passions for wildlife and travel and focused on the often-overlooked ecotourism sector. He now works happily at Audley Travel. In this podcast he talks about his job hunt, what it’s like to work in the ecotourism or responsible tourism sector, and provides some great careers advice for those seeking to follow in his footsteps. As always, if you enjoy our podcast, please let us know and do leave us a review, we read them all and they really help us to get in front of more people.

In 1968 the global population of a small brown bird called the Seychelles Warbler was down to just 30 individuals. Habitat destruction and predation by introduced species like rats had driven the birds to the very edge of extinction and it was listed as critically endangered. Cycle forwards 50 years to today and after island restoration work and translocations of the species there are now over 3,000 birds flying around and the species are the first to come off the endangered list altogether. A global success story for nature conservation. Joining me on the podcast today to discuss this story and much more is Chief Executive of Nature Seychelles, Nirmal Jivan Shah. Nirmal is a well-known name in nature conservation and works at the forefront of the movement nationally and internationally. As you’ll hear in this podcast, he’s full of passion and knowledge about wildlife conservation in the 21st century. He also provides some great careers advice for the budding conservationists looking to get their careers going.  As always, if you enjoy our podcast, please let us know and do leave us a review, we read them all and they really help us to get in front of more people.

In this episode we’re speaking to a young, budding conservationist, Ruben Hoekstra, at the very start of his career. Ruben attended the prestigious Future for Nature awards, where talented young conservationists from across the globe win support for their projects alongside a tasty cash prize of €50,000. He was inspired by what he saw and the people he met and wanted to experience for himself how it feels to be a successful conservationist day-to-day. As a result, he set out to visit as many award winners as possible. In this podcast Ruben tells us why he decided to take on the exciting global journey and what he learnt from his first-hand experiences, incredible efforts of his conservation heroes. If you enjoy our podcast, please let us know and leave us a review. We read them all and they really help us to get in front of more people.

When you think about wildlife and conservation efforts, do you feel overwhelmed by the challenges we face? Saddened by the state of the planet and the rate of biodiversity losses? Upset by the volumes of plastic in our oceans, that slaughter of migratory birds over Malta? Or the clearing of our rainforest for palm oil? Or, do you feel hopeful? Do you feel we can still turn it all around, that conservationists know what needs to be done and that nature can bounce back quickly? In these podcasts and on our website, we ask some of the most senior conservationists on the planet, what do we need to do more of to tackle biodiversity collapses? The vast majority of them see the challenge as one of communicating our messages more effectively. To attract new support, raise our profile, turn interest into action. But how do we do this? Enter Conservation Optimism. Conservation Optimism is a global community dedicated to sharing hopeful stories about conservation to inspire, educate, entertain and empower. Started at a conference just two years ago, it has grown rapidly and has attracted support from organisations and individuals the world over. Joining me to talk about Conservation Optimism is their Director, Cheli Cresswell Sinclair. As always, if you enjoy our podcast, please let us know and do leave us a review; we read them all and they really help us to get in front of more people.

Are you working in something totally unrelated to conservation and dreaming of switching into a career helping wildlife to flourish? Well that’s exactly what today’s guest has done successfully, and right in at the top. Dominic Jermey OBE worked as a senior British diplomat for over 20 years in countries such as East Timor and the United Arab Emirates, ultimately serving as British ambassador to Afghanistan. From there he switched careers and moved into wildlife conservation as the director general of the Zoological Society of London. Now ZSL is an international conservation charity with a vision of a world where wildlife thrives. They’re working every day to achieve this with science-fuelled conservation around the world, and by engaging millions of people at their two world-class zoos, ZSL London and ZSL Whipsnade. In this fascinating discussion we talk about his career journey and highlights, and decision to move from diplomacy into conservation. We also discuss his role as director general and how he’s shaping ZSL as it approaches its 200th anniversary. Finally, Dominic shares his careers advice and insights for people working in an unrelated role to conservation but looking to switch into it. As always, if you enjoy our podcast, please let us know and do leave us a review, we read them all and they really help us to get in front of more people.

In this episode we’re speaking to a rising star in conservation, Jack Randall. Jack is a global adventurer on a quest to find, study and promote the world’s most amazing animals. He began sharing his wildlife stories as a filmmaker and cameraman whilst traipsing through the jungles of the Amazon researching anacondas. And since then he’s founded Made in the Wild and his team curate, research and filming missions with a network of scientists globally. In this podcast we talk about what it takes to become a wildlife filmmaker, and how to break into the sector. How do you plan, film and fund a wildlife film? We also discuss his passion for research missions, and how people can get involved through their exciting GO WILD initiative. But one thing is clear, Jack is going places and he’s full of energy, drive and impact. Enjoy...

In this episode we’re speaking to Dr Mike Clarke, Chief Executive of the RSPB. An organisation with over 1.2 million members, 2,000 staff and 13,500 volunteers, the RSPB is a goliath in the conservation industry and needs no introduction. Mike became a member of the RSPB at age 12 and has worked professionally for them for over 30 years, of which the last 10 have been at the top of the organisation. He recently announced his intention to step down from the role. We talk about why he took this decision, what he’s proud of achieving and what next. We also discuss where his passion for conservation came from, what are the biggest challenges and opportunities in the sector in the 21st century and where things might be going into the future. And finally, we discuss the practical careers advice he would give to budding conservationists in the early stage of their career, and those seeking to switch into nature conservation from a different sector. It’s a feature-length, fascinating and thoughtful, reflective episode…

If you’re looking for hands-on conservation experience but don’t know where to start or are feeling overwhelmed by choice; perhaps you’re mid-career looking to take a break from the grind and get back to nature whilst also exploring new career paths. Joining us this week to discuss these matters and more is Steve Gwenin, Chief Executive of Global Vision International (GVI). GVI is an award-winning organisation that tackles local and global issues by operating education and training programmes on sustainable development. If you want to find out more about Conservation Careers then go to www.conservation-careers.com for the best advice, support, training, jobs and lots more. All designed to get your clear about your career options, get ready and get hired more quickly. If you enjoy the interviews, we’ve spoken to over 400 professional conservationists, from across the globe, you can find their interviews on our website here. We’ve also collated their best advice into a FREE eBook which you can download from here.

If you’re interested in wildlife conservation and concerned about the loss of species from this little planet of ours, then you’ve probably heard of a term called community-based conservation. But what is it? And how can wildlife conservation provide a pathway to helping people out of poverty? And finally, why have some of the poorest communities in Africa decided to protect nearly a fifth of their coastline as marine protected area? Joining us this week to discuss these matters and more is CEO of Blue Ventures, Alasdair Harris. Blue Ventures is an award-winning marine conservation organisation which rebuilds tropical fisheries with local communities. If you want to find out more about Conservation Careers then go to www.conservation-careers.com for the best advice, support, training, jobs and lots more. All designed to get your clear about your career options, get ready and get hired more quickly. If you enjoy the interviews, we’ve spoken to over 400 professional conservationists, from across the globe, you can find their interviews on our website here. We’ve also collated their best advice into a FREE eBook which you can download from here. For suggestions and questions for the show, please tweet us at twitter.com/conservcareers

Have you ever dreamt about going on a conservation expedition? Travelling to a remote corner of the globe to explore and discover the wildlife found there? Where would you start? What would be the destination and what would be its purpose? Who would you choose to take with you? Perhaps most importantly of all, how would you fund it? These are some of the topics I discuss this week with conservation scientist, blogger and expedition leader James Borrell. If you want to find out more about Conservation Careers then go to www.conservation-careers.com for the best advice, support, training, jobs and lots more. All designed to get your clear about your career options, get ready and get hired more quickly. If you enjoy the interviews, we’ve spoken to over 400 professional conservationists, from across the globe, you canfind their interviews on our website here. We’ve also collated their best advice into a FREE eBook which you can download from here. For suggestions and questions for the show, please tweet us at twitter.com/conservcareers

In this episode of the podcast we're speaking to Justin Lennon - CEO of Conservation Guide and marine biologist at the National Marine Aquarium. In this podcast you’ll hear us talking about what to look for when searching for your next volunteering project, and we also discuss what it’s like to work in marine conservation and how to take the seed of an idea and turn it into a successful conservation business. If you want to find out more about Conservation Careers then go to www.conservation-careers.com for the best advice, support, training, jobs and lots more. All designed to get your clear about your career options, get ready and get hired more quickly. If you enjoy the interviews, we’ve spoken to over 400 professional conservationists, from across the globe, you can find their interviews on our website here. We’ve also collated their best advice into a FREE eBook which you can download from here. For suggestions and questions for the show, please tweet us at twitter.com/conservcareers

In this episode we’re speaking to Andrew Lewin, who’s the founder of Speak Up For Blue, a marine ecologist and an Ocean-preneur. He also runs three podcasts of his own so we’ve got a real veteran on today. We talk about marine careers, what the different jobs in the marine environment are and how you can go about securing them. We talk about optimism in conservation too. Whether the future’s bright, what we need to do more of and what we need to do less of? Finally we touch upon what is becoming a bit of a recurring theme in the podcast so far, which is entrepreneurism. People starting their own enterprises that really have wildlife conservation at their core that are looking to do really good in the world through business.  As always, if you want to find out more about Conservation Careers then go to www.conservation-careers.com for the best advice, support, training, jobs and lots more. All designed to get your clear about your career options, get ready and get hired more quickly. If you enjoy the interviews, we’ve spoken to over 400 professional conservationists, from across the globe, you can find their interviews on our website here. We’ve also collated their best advice into a FREE eBook which you can download from here. For suggestions and questions for the show, please tweet us at twitter.com/conservcareers

In this episode we speak to Alasdair Davies - Shuttleworth Foundation Fellow and creative technologist on a journey to deliver affordable, open conservation technology for all. We talk about how fast-changing technologies from drones, to sat tags, camera traps and mobile phones are rapidly changing the way we collect and interpret data in the quest to conserve threatened wildlife globally. If like me you LOVE tinkering with technology you’ll love this episode. [I once fitted a dozen barn owl boxes with sensors linked to talking clocks and voice activated Dictaphones to monitor when the owls visited the boxes…!] We also discuss the career ways into becoming a creative technologist, and where the field is heading over the next decade. If you want to find out more about Alasdair Davies and his work please visit the Shuttleworth Foundations website at shuttleworthfoundation.org and the Aribada Initiative at blog.arribada.org As always, if you want to find out more about Conservation Careers then go to www.conservation-careers.com for the best advice, support, training, jobs and lots more. All designed to get your clear about your career options, get ready and get hired more quickly. If you enjoy the interviews, we’ve spoken to over 400 professional conservationists, from across the globe, you can find their interviews on our website here. We’ve also collated their best advice into a FREE eBook which you can download from here. For suggestions and questions for the show, please tweet us at twitter.com/conservcareers

In this episode we speak to Anna Kloth, founder of Paradise Interns. Paradise Interns runs free digital marketing internships at leading dive centers in Indonesia. During your time they teach you how to run a successful digital marketing strategy for any company. You then get to use these skills by running the social media and digital presence of a local dive center, whilst also enjoying free diving and scuba training. Calling in from Komodo National Park, on the island of Flores, Anna shares what it’s like to work as a dive instructor – the highs and lows – and the growing opportunities for you to become a digital nomad. Working online as you travel the globe. We also talk more about Paradise Interns and explore what to look out for, when finding your next volunteer opportunity or Internship. If you want to find out more about Paradise Interns check out www.paradiseinterns.com. As always, if you want to find out more about Conservation Careers then go to www.conservation-careers.com for the best advice, support, training, jobs and lots more. All designed to get your clear about your career options, get ready and get hired more quickly. If you enjoy the interviews, we’ve spoken to over 400 professional conservationists, from across the globe, you can find their interviews on our website here. We’ve also collated their best advice into a FREE eBook which you can download from here. For suggestions and questions for the show, please tweet us at twitter.com/conservcareers

This week in the Conservation Careers Podcast Nick talks to Professor Bill Sutherland - Miriam Rothschild Chair of Conservation Biology, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge. Bill is proposing a 'revolution in conservation practice', and we talk today about his drive to develop a sound evidence base for conservation. Doing more of what is proven to work, and less of what isn’t. Bill also shares his thoughts on the ways to progress an academic career, along with practical advice on how to apply for PhDs (and jobs), and which mistakes to avoid. If you want to find out more about Conservation Evidence, please go to www.conservationevidence.com and check out the 2,000 reviews on the site. It’s a gold mine of world changing information! As always, if you want to find out more about Conservation Careers then go to www.conservation-careers.com for the best advice, support, training, jobs and lots more. All designed to get your clear about your career options, get ready and get hired more quickly. If you enjoy the interviews, we’ve spoken to over 400 professional conservationists, from across the globe, you can find their interviews on our website here. We’ve also collated their best advice into a FREE eBook which you can download from here. For suggestions and questions for the show, please tweet us at twitter.com/conservcareers