Today is my 27th birthday and what a 27 years it has been. I have gone through GCSE's, A Levels, Degrees (including a masters), a few girlfriends, late nights, early mornings, Meerkats, Cheetahs, the african sunrise, the african sunset and met the most amazing people from all walks of life.
It has only really been in the past 5 years or so that i have really kicked into high gear regarding the wildlife career and when relfecting back i have realised that i have done many things right, but also a few things wrong and on this day i know that i need a new view on things. I need to be more positive, despite all the destruction, death, greed, wasted money, extinctions, melting glaciers and everything else, what do we really achieve from moaning? beating the same drum? playing the heart felt card? It is time to move from destruction to fascination, from a fashion statement to a way of life.
The thing is, today has not been about the presents, gifts, money and getting what i want on the television! (although it is a rather nice change!). For me, my birthday is all about finding that quiet place, a little time for me to reflect and to spend outdoors and just to make sure i do something that costs nothing for my rather empty wallet. It is also a day that reminds me what amazing friends i have and that somehow i need to go and see them more often (living on Jersey can only be used as an excuse for a limited time).
Life is all about the free things, (as the saying goes) and that is how we need to move forward.
Merry christmas everyone :-)
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Sunday, December 12, 2010
The Last 6 months...
Okay, well i did write this post about 10 minutes ago and then i somehow deleted it! Bugger....
The train of thought has evaporated so this will be a shorter entry to prevent my mind going on overload.
It is time for an update...
So i am back in Jersey, 6 months back in the so called real world, a world of television, celebrities, ready available food, consumerism and money, and does it make me feel?! Ok i guess, well....lets just say i really miss Africa with its wilderness, space and lack of total and utter b%'?^£!t. It is nice to be home, but the adventurer has awakened in me and it will be sooner rather than later until i head off again.
I have hit the ground running over here and could not do more if i tried, I am training to be a BTEC qualified Forest School leader, training to be a qualified bird ringer, actively involved in charities such as the Jersey Climate Action Network, Jersey Bat Group, Durrell and the National Trust for Jersey as well as fundraising (sponsor me!) and soon to be training for Trek Iceland next year (that will be amazing! Have you seen Iceland!?).
So the current plan is to move into film-making/photography/communicating...In a way i think it is great that at 26 years of age i am only just discovering what i want to do, yet another part of me tells me to get on with it! (Sometimes i do go round in circles and make myself smile with the thoughts that come out my head and on to this blog).
All in all, the update is that i am doing all that i can and have learnt that what society gives me does not make me 100% happy, i am only 110% happy when i am emersed in the wilderness of Nature.
P.S. I have recently bought the New Linkin Park album and it is freaking amazing.
The train of thought has evaporated so this will be a shorter entry to prevent my mind going on overload.
It is time for an update...
So i am back in Jersey, 6 months back in the so called real world, a world of television, celebrities, ready available food, consumerism and money, and does it make me feel?! Ok i guess, well....lets just say i really miss Africa with its wilderness, space and lack of total and utter b%'?^£!t. It is nice to be home, but the adventurer has awakened in me and it will be sooner rather than later until i head off again.
I have hit the ground running over here and could not do more if i tried, I am training to be a BTEC qualified Forest School leader, training to be a qualified bird ringer, actively involved in charities such as the Jersey Climate Action Network, Jersey Bat Group, Durrell and the National Trust for Jersey as well as fundraising (sponsor me!) and soon to be training for Trek Iceland next year (that will be amazing! Have you seen Iceland!?).
I do NOT see myself as a teacher though, more of a wildlife educator, a communicator. Someone i hope that people can approach and see that i am dedicated to my job and that i am here to help with no personal agendas.
The main thing i have learnt is that wilderness is addictive and i am totally addicted. Yet the Meerkat Project taught me that i am not quite a researcher, i am too passionate, take things to personal and too impatient to do research. Yet i love the remoteness and the discovery that comes with scientific research!So the current plan is to move into film-making/photography/communicating...In a way i think it is great that at 26 years of age i am only just discovering what i want to do, yet another part of me tells me to get on with it! (Sometimes i do go round in circles and make myself smile with the thoughts that come out my head and on to this blog).
All in all, the update is that i am doing all that i can and have learnt that what society gives me does not make me 100% happy, i am only 110% happy when i am emersed in the wilderness of Nature.
P.S. I have recently bought the New Linkin Park album and it is freaking amazing.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Forest School, wildlife education and the first step...
Hey all,
I feel like blogging tonight so here i go, usually i try and plan out a blog entry or at least have a very rough plan in my head as to what i am going to say, but not for this one. This is all about cutting through the crap and getting to the point.
Since i have just being employed as an education officer for the National Trust for Jersey as well recently returning from a 4 day Forest School Leaders training course in Wiltshire, education and more importantly wildlife education is in the front of my mind, i do feel really strongly about it, perhaps more strongly then i first thought.
So, where to start? hmmmmm.... well 2010 seems to be the year of the conservation convention as we have the UN year of biodiversity, the Nature forum in Japan, plus another attempt to create a follow up to the Kyoto Protocol in Cancun at the end of the year. But what is going to be achieved? I mean as a species we love to talk, discuss, gather in groups and voice our opinions but then it just all falls a bit flat. I am not saying nothing will be done, as history will say otherwise but i think if we are to really start the 'green revolution' then it needs to come from the bottom not the top, from communities and not from politicians.
I said to myself that i was not going to get too political right now, but i seemed to be going that way, so i will stop and say FOREST SCHOOL...
I have just returned from a Forest School leaders course (run by Bridgwater College) and i love the concept, the ethos behind it. Forest School is all about creating a non-threatning child-led environment so children can improve their confidence, self-esteem and independence, it is all about giving children their free play back (with a bit of teaching as well!), basically giving them the tools to become the individual they want to be and the opportunity to re-connect with the natural world.
What does this have to do with the wildlife movement you say? Bloody everything!
It is the key to everything, as to put it simply, people in the 21st century do not know enough about the planet to care about it (it is not 'that' persons fault either), to do something about the hole we are currently digging for ourselves.
Have you ever wandered what is the spark, the reason why people work in the wildlife sector? It is certainly not the money. Studies have shown that 2 factors are the absolute key, these are:
1. Free independent play to explore and discover
2. A role model, a 'significant other' to look up to and to show them the way
Getting children back outside is not the only part to the puzzle of a sustainable future but it is a huge, huge piece and one in which we all can do our bit.
But the benefits are not just in play, studies have shown exposure in the natural world can reduce aggression, behavioural problems, help with learning, reduce stress, deal with ADHD...I could go on, but the scientific evidence is there.
And for adults i hear you ask? Nature has been seen to help the building of communities, aid in crime reduction, reduce aggression, anti-social behaviour, help recovery from illness and depression. PLUS, investing in green infrastructure will create jobs, cheap enery sources and boost the economy, it is estimated that ecological damage is costing us trillions of pounds per year. Crazy ay? Natural processes do gives us clean air, water and food.
All in all, Mother Nature is one of the most effective restorers and antidotes from the stressful 21st century lives we lead, and at the moment it is under valued and under used.
I am not saying that the natural world is the miracle cure for everything, but there are strong messages coming out from the world of environmental and human psychology that if we let in the natural world a bit more it really would help us all. This is where the conservation community needs to focus on. In the end, if we understand, we will care.
The famous quote from Lao Tse says “The largest journey starts with a single step”
The long journey to save and preserve this living planet is to take a chance on the natural world and take that single step into the wilderness that is waiting outside your front door.
I dare you :-) and i would love to know how it goes...
Stephen
I feel like blogging tonight so here i go, usually i try and plan out a blog entry or at least have a very rough plan in my head as to what i am going to say, but not for this one. This is all about cutting through the crap and getting to the point.
Since i have just being employed as an education officer for the National Trust for Jersey as well recently returning from a 4 day Forest School Leaders training course in Wiltshire, education and more importantly wildlife education is in the front of my mind, i do feel really strongly about it, perhaps more strongly then i first thought.
So, where to start? hmmmmm.... well 2010 seems to be the year of the conservation convention as we have the UN year of biodiversity, the Nature forum in Japan, plus another attempt to create a follow up to the Kyoto Protocol in Cancun at the end of the year. But what is going to be achieved? I mean as a species we love to talk, discuss, gather in groups and voice our opinions but then it just all falls a bit flat. I am not saying nothing will be done, as history will say otherwise but i think if we are to really start the 'green revolution' then it needs to come from the bottom not the top, from communities and not from politicians.
I said to myself that i was not going to get too political right now, but i seemed to be going that way, so i will stop and say FOREST SCHOOL...
I have just returned from a Forest School leaders course (run by Bridgwater College) and i love the concept, the ethos behind it. Forest School is all about creating a non-threatning child-led environment so children can improve their confidence, self-esteem and independence, it is all about giving children their free play back (with a bit of teaching as well!), basically giving them the tools to become the individual they want to be and the opportunity to re-connect with the natural world.
What does this have to do with the wildlife movement you say? Bloody everything!
It is the key to everything, as to put it simply, people in the 21st century do not know enough about the planet to care about it (it is not 'that' persons fault either), to do something about the hole we are currently digging for ourselves.
Have you ever wandered what is the spark, the reason why people work in the wildlife sector? It is certainly not the money. Studies have shown that 2 factors are the absolute key, these are:
1. Free independent play to explore and discover
2. A role model, a 'significant other' to look up to and to show them the way
Getting children back outside is not the only part to the puzzle of a sustainable future but it is a huge, huge piece and one in which we all can do our bit.
But the benefits are not just in play, studies have shown exposure in the natural world can reduce aggression, behavioural problems, help with learning, reduce stress, deal with ADHD...I could go on, but the scientific evidence is there.
And for adults i hear you ask? Nature has been seen to help the building of communities, aid in crime reduction, reduce aggression, anti-social behaviour, help recovery from illness and depression. PLUS, investing in green infrastructure will create jobs, cheap enery sources and boost the economy, it is estimated that ecological damage is costing us trillions of pounds per year. Crazy ay? Natural processes do gives us clean air, water and food.
All in all, Mother Nature is one of the most effective restorers and antidotes from the stressful 21st century lives we lead, and at the moment it is under valued and under used.
I am not saying that the natural world is the miracle cure for everything, but there are strong messages coming out from the world of environmental and human psychology that if we let in the natural world a bit more it really would help us all. This is where the conservation community needs to focus on. In the end, if we understand, we will care.
The famous quote from Lao Tse says “The largest journey starts with a single step”
The long journey to save and preserve this living planet is to take a chance on the natural world and take that single step into the wilderness that is waiting outside your front door.
I dare you :-) and i would love to know how it goes...
Stephen
Monday, September 27, 2010
Flying with the Swallows
Hey all!
I was not planning to blog this evening but considering the afternoon i just had, i would consider myself selfish if i did not share :-)
As we now come to the end of September with October just round the corner it is safe to say that the changing of the seasons is upon us. This time of year is an amazing time to be a naturalist as the natural world shifts from one state to another, insects are shutting up shop, trees are closing for the winter and many birds are leaving for warmer climates.
It really is a great time to get outdoors and see the changes for yourself and one of these i was very lucky to see this afternoon in all its amazing and sheer mind blowing glory.
First of all i better introduce you to the stars that i love, and that is the humble Barn Swallow, yes that air dazzler himself, one of the true aerial acrobats and one species that migrates around 6,000 miles to South Africa (crazy ay?).
So at about this time of the year they are basically either on their way or about to leave the shores of the UK in groups to travel the long distance, and today whilst working outside making some compost bins i was greeted by a huge group of swallows that decided to check up on me for the whole afternoon. I swear they were quality controlling my work and decided to also test my senses by flying as close as possible without contact.
To say i was gobsmacked would be an utter understatement, so what did i do? Well i put down my tools, sat down in the middle of the field and watched the aerial masters at work. I really did have a huge, huge smile on my face, who needs money when you have this kind of inner joy.
In the midst of my excitement i managed to take a short video on my camera, which is not of the best quality, but what i want to know is...How many Swallows can you count?
Enjoy! and let me know how many you can count!
Nature as a way of life...
I was not planning to blog this evening but considering the afternoon i just had, i would consider myself selfish if i did not share :-)
As we now come to the end of September with October just round the corner it is safe to say that the changing of the seasons is upon us. This time of year is an amazing time to be a naturalist as the natural world shifts from one state to another, insects are shutting up shop, trees are closing for the winter and many birds are leaving for warmer climates.
It really is a great time to get outdoors and see the changes for yourself and one of these i was very lucky to see this afternoon in all its amazing and sheer mind blowing glory.
First of all i better introduce you to the stars that i love, and that is the humble Barn Swallow, yes that air dazzler himself, one of the true aerial acrobats and one species that migrates around 6,000 miles to South Africa (crazy ay?).
So at about this time of the year they are basically either on their way or about to leave the shores of the UK in groups to travel the long distance, and today whilst working outside making some compost bins i was greeted by a huge group of swallows that decided to check up on me for the whole afternoon. I swear they were quality controlling my work and decided to also test my senses by flying as close as possible without contact.
To say i was gobsmacked would be an utter understatement, so what did i do? Well i put down my tools, sat down in the middle of the field and watched the aerial masters at work. I really did have a huge, huge smile on my face, who needs money when you have this kind of inner joy.
In the midst of my excitement i managed to take a short video on my camera, which is not of the best quality, but what i want to know is...How many Swallows can you count?
Enjoy! and let me know how many you can count!
Nature as a way of life...
Sunday, August 8, 2010
The challenge of being positive with a crumbling planet
Hi all,
I have been thinking long and hard about what to write next on this blog, in the world of wildlife and conservation there is always something new happening or some news story that could be commented on. I hate preaching though and i am not going to just write something here, which tells you, the reader what to do, for us naturalists to make our point there needs to be understanding and sometimes people just do not know enough.
The other reason is that nothing has really been happening in my life, something which i have struggled with. I recently returned to Jersey from a year in South Africa and it has been a pretty hard landing to be honest. I really have found it hard to re-adjust to how different society is in the modern world and i have just not felt in the mood to blog. I do not want to be negative on here as negativity does nothing apart from create more negativity and uncertainty, but i feel that honesty is best.
At the moment i am unemployed and in a state of limbo as i wait for job opportunities or just any opportunity. I am still volunteering and helping out many great environmental causes (like at the Grassroots Festival in Jersey last weekend)but i am rather stuck at the moment as i try to do something with my life. I do not want sympathy or any of that. I would just like people to understand that creating a career in wildlife conservation takes many years and many small steps.
This then brings us into the topic of the personal challenges every conservationist or anyone working with wildlife faces on a day to basis of staying positive when the natural world is slowly crumbling around them.
The whole world of wildlife conservation is not well paid at all and has too many people applying for too fewer jobs. Yes, we do what we love and that must never be taken for granted, but to do this sort of work a person must love wildlife, or they will just take another direction. However, with this love comes concern, understanding, feelings and a connection to the natural world. This then brings a burden, a burden of trying to turn the tide, to save the planet and trying to find a balance and not be taken in by all the negativity concerning the state of the planet.
For me, it can be really hard, there is new research daily on climate change, biodiversity loss, the state of the oceans, species extinctions and if i were to think about all of it then my head will explode (not a good sight!). I had a great example just last night, I was out in St. Helier last night to meet a few good friends and i sore these two young chaps eating take-away (the food looked semi-edible) and what really annoyed me is that they just dropped all their litter and were not even bothered, a total lack of respect for the planet and believe you me, it took a lot of strength to not tear in to them. But what good would that do? Nothing, although it might of made me feel a bit better!
It really is a challenge for everyone who works with wildlife, one we must all go through, to find that level playing field. That balance of working hard for wildlife, yet enjoying your life and not feeling guilty about it as no-one can be 100% environmentally friendly.
Working with wildlife is the best career in the world, words really cannot describe it. However with this amazing honour,does come a lot of personal challenges for every individual trying to do their bit.
I promise that the next blog will be a lot more positive...
I have been thinking long and hard about what to write next on this blog, in the world of wildlife and conservation there is always something new happening or some news story that could be commented on. I hate preaching though and i am not going to just write something here, which tells you, the reader what to do, for us naturalists to make our point there needs to be understanding and sometimes people just do not know enough.
The other reason is that nothing has really been happening in my life, something which i have struggled with. I recently returned to Jersey from a year in South Africa and it has been a pretty hard landing to be honest. I really have found it hard to re-adjust to how different society is in the modern world and i have just not felt in the mood to blog. I do not want to be negative on here as negativity does nothing apart from create more negativity and uncertainty, but i feel that honesty is best.
At the moment i am unemployed and in a state of limbo as i wait for job opportunities or just any opportunity. I am still volunteering and helping out many great environmental causes (like at the Grassroots Festival in Jersey last weekend)but i am rather stuck at the moment as i try to do something with my life. I do not want sympathy or any of that. I would just like people to understand that creating a career in wildlife conservation takes many years and many small steps.
This then brings us into the topic of the personal challenges every conservationist or anyone working with wildlife faces on a day to basis of staying positive when the natural world is slowly crumbling around them.
The whole world of wildlife conservation is not well paid at all and has too many people applying for too fewer jobs. Yes, we do what we love and that must never be taken for granted, but to do this sort of work a person must love wildlife, or they will just take another direction. However, with this love comes concern, understanding, feelings and a connection to the natural world. This then brings a burden, a burden of trying to turn the tide, to save the planet and trying to find a balance and not be taken in by all the negativity concerning the state of the planet.
For me, it can be really hard, there is new research daily on climate change, biodiversity loss, the state of the oceans, species extinctions and if i were to think about all of it then my head will explode (not a good sight!). I had a great example just last night, I was out in St. Helier last night to meet a few good friends and i sore these two young chaps eating take-away (the food looked semi-edible) and what really annoyed me is that they just dropped all their litter and were not even bothered, a total lack of respect for the planet and believe you me, it took a lot of strength to not tear in to them. But what good would that do? Nothing, although it might of made me feel a bit better!
It really is a challenge for everyone who works with wildlife, one we must all go through, to find that level playing field. That balance of working hard for wildlife, yet enjoying your life and not feeling guilty about it as no-one can be 100% environmentally friendly.
Working with wildlife is the best career in the world, words really cannot describe it. However with this amazing honour,does come a lot of personal challenges for every individual trying to do their bit.
I promise that the next blog will be a lot more positive...
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
An Insight into Meerkat Manor
I have never really written on here about my past 12 months working in South Africa in the Kalahari. It was the most amazing experience of my life and yet i have never given even the slighest insight into life, living in the heart of Africa.
I could sit here for hours and explain the wildlife, the people, the meerkats, the parties, the work and my own personal adventure, but i have just found something even better.
I did manage to write a journal during 12 months away and i have just found an entry for my last morning research session with the Meerkats. Yes its a bit deep, a bit heavy but i think it perfectly portrays the journey and experience of the past 12 months.
Saturday 22nd May 2010
My first journal entry in the field! And what a beautiful day it is, the air is clean and crisp, the sky is clear, the birds are singing and the sun has just awoken from its slumber as it creeps into view warming the land and its inhabitants.
Today i am on habituation duty with the group Columbians, there are only five in this Meerkat group and they are coming on well. The dominant female is the only individual still unsure of our presence, but then again usually one of the dominant individuals is usually difficult when getting wild groups habituated to people.
I am currently sat under a quite sharp and uncomfortable blackthorn tree, about 3 metres away from the burrow, which is situated under one of the many water dams that our nextdoor neighbour Johnny has for his cattle on his farm.
The sun is gradually stretching its influence over the land but has yet to reach me at the burrow i can still feel the chill in the air from last night. It might be Africa, it might be the semi-arid Kalahari but the winter gets bitterly cold here, because as soon as the sun disappears the temperature plummets and the thermals are out, just another part of this amazing experience that i have the priviledge to be a part of.
I am very peaceful here, enjoying the pale blue sky, the bird song and even the slight chill in the air.
Things are so much simpler here, in the middle of nowhere (3 hours drive to the nearest town, with modern conveniences), the pressue of modern society, consumerism and celebrities is gone and without it a person can feel free again.
There is no stress and no pressure to buy, sell, hoard, all i have is me, the meerkats and the vast african landscape stretching as far as i can see and that is all anyone could need.
I am not trying to preach or tell someone what to do, or to force my views upon people (that is just not right). I am just telling the truth, the way it is, what most people ignore or miss out on due to their hectic modern lifestlyes. In my opinion our society has the wrong priorities, lives the wrong way, but that is for discussion on another day.
It takes a lot of courage to seperate oneself from moderns society with its technology, fashion trends, choice and the modern consumer lifestlye. Do not get me wrong i buy clothes (pretty much need to there as i am not a naturist!), CD's when i need and want to, but does it really mean anything? Seriously, does it really matter? Why does material wealth matter so much? It is just a form of cheap junk food that we are addicted to.
I sometimes just wish that people would take a leap into the dark and switch off their television, radios, ipods and just go for a walk outside, because you really are missing out on another world, another way of life and you might just surprise yourself.
Oh! My first Meerkat is up and he is not a fan of the cold weather...
I could sit here for hours and explain the wildlife, the people, the meerkats, the parties, the work and my own personal adventure, but i have just found something even better.
I did manage to write a journal during 12 months away and i have just found an entry for my last morning research session with the Meerkats. Yes its a bit deep, a bit heavy but i think it perfectly portrays the journey and experience of the past 12 months.
Saturday 22nd May 2010
My first journal entry in the field! And what a beautiful day it is, the air is clean and crisp, the sky is clear, the birds are singing and the sun has just awoken from its slumber as it creeps into view warming the land and its inhabitants.
Today i am on habituation duty with the group Columbians, there are only five in this Meerkat group and they are coming on well. The dominant female is the only individual still unsure of our presence, but then again usually one of the dominant individuals is usually difficult when getting wild groups habituated to people.
I am currently sat under a quite sharp and uncomfortable blackthorn tree, about 3 metres away from the burrow, which is situated under one of the many water dams that our nextdoor neighbour Johnny has for his cattle on his farm.
The sun is gradually stretching its influence over the land but has yet to reach me at the burrow i can still feel the chill in the air from last night. It might be Africa, it might be the semi-arid Kalahari but the winter gets bitterly cold here, because as soon as the sun disappears the temperature plummets and the thermals are out, just another part of this amazing experience that i have the priviledge to be a part of.
I am very peaceful here, enjoying the pale blue sky, the bird song and even the slight chill in the air.
Things are so much simpler here, in the middle of nowhere (3 hours drive to the nearest town, with modern conveniences), the pressue of modern society, consumerism and celebrities is gone and without it a person can feel free again.
There is no stress and no pressure to buy, sell, hoard, all i have is me, the meerkats and the vast african landscape stretching as far as i can see and that is all anyone could need.
I am not trying to preach or tell someone what to do, or to force my views upon people (that is just not right). I am just telling the truth, the way it is, what most people ignore or miss out on due to their hectic modern lifestlyes. In my opinion our society has the wrong priorities, lives the wrong way, but that is for discussion on another day.
It takes a lot of courage to seperate oneself from moderns society with its technology, fashion trends, choice and the modern consumer lifestlye. Do not get me wrong i buy clothes (pretty much need to there as i am not a naturist!), CD's when i need and want to, but does it really mean anything? Seriously, does it really matter? Why does material wealth matter so much? It is just a form of cheap junk food that we are addicted to.
I sometimes just wish that people would take a leap into the dark and switch off their television, radios, ipods and just go for a walk outside, because you really are missing out on another world, another way of life and you might just surprise yourself.
Oh! My first Meerkat is up and he is not a fan of the cold weather...
Sunday, June 6, 2010
It has been a while...
To say that it has been a while since i posted on this blog is an understatement and firstly i must apologise for the lack of anything on here. i do have a good reason though!
I have just returned from 12 months in the Northern Cape of Africa working on the Kalahari Meerkat Project, which is run by the University of Cambridge and the University of Zurich. Initially i did intend to post updates but in the end it was not possible with the cost of the internet, the lack of time as we worked 6 days a week and the fact that the connection was not that great.
I returned two days ago and will post a meerkat blog entry soon, but as you can see changes have been made to the blog and hopefully i have returned a different and better person, we will just have to wait and see.
My passion for wildlife though still burns strong and the journey has only just begun...
I have just returned from 12 months in the Northern Cape of Africa working on the Kalahari Meerkat Project, which is run by the University of Cambridge and the University of Zurich. Initially i did intend to post updates but in the end it was not possible with the cost of the internet, the lack of time as we worked 6 days a week and the fact that the connection was not that great.
I returned two days ago and will post a meerkat blog entry soon, but as you can see changes have been made to the blog and hopefully i have returned a different and better person, we will just have to wait and see.
My passion for wildlife though still burns strong and the journey has only just begun...
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