Rewildology

In this episode, we meet Devin Jaffe. Devin is a bird conservationist, the Founder of Nature’s Educators, a world-class raptor breeder, Master Falconer, and a musician. I have no idea how she successfully wears so many hats, but let me tell you what, she’s absolutely crushing them all. I learned so much from Devin and I hope you all will, too.

This week’s question:
For bird life in your area, what is the biggest issue they are facing? What work is being done to conserve them? Do any species of raptors live near you, and if so, how do you feel about it?

Send me your thoughts on Instagram, Rewildologists Community Facebook, email, or anywhere else you’d like to chat!

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See full show notes at rewildology.com.
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Michael grew up in the mountains of Colorado and while on a trip to Laos after college, saw elephant treatment that he couldn’t bear. He had previously been on several trips abroad working on various conservation programs and he wanted to start his own impactful project. So, he and his close friend partnered with locals Laotians to found Mandalao, a no-riding, sustainable elephant tourism experience. They immediately grew in popularity, but his road has been anything but easy.

This week’s question: Have you participated in elephant tourism anywhere in the world? If so, what were your thoughts about the experience? Did Michael’s stories clarify the conundrum of captive elephants in Asian countries?

Send me your thoughts on Instagram, Rewildologists Community Facebook, email, or anywhere else you’d like to chat!

If you’re liking the show, please hit the follow button and share with someone you think would enjoy this episode. Sharing is the best way to help the show grow!

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See full show notes at rewildology.com.
Discover more ways to watch, listen, and interact: https://linktr.ee/Rewildology
Join the Rewildologists Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/rewildologists
Follow Rewildology on Instagram: @Rewildology

Rinzin grew up in Humla, a remote and isolated mountain village in Western Nepal. He spent his childhood playing in nature with friends and skipping class as much as possible. When the Royal Massacre of 2001 sparked the Nepalese civil war, Rinzin’s parents decided to pack up and leave their tribal home for the capital city, Kathmandu. It was Rinzin’s first time in a city and he had a lot to learn. But, he dedicated himself to his studies, and with a lot of twists and turns, found his passion for wildlife biology and dedicated his career to conserving the elusive snow leopard.

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See full show notes at rewildology.com.
Discover more ways to watch, listen, and interact: https://linktr.ee/Rewildology
Join the Rewildologists Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/rewildologists
Follow Rewildology on Instagram: @Rewildology

In this episode, I’m speaking with Charles van Rees, PhD. Charles and I chat in-depth about the current water crisis and its effect on wildlife. We also talk about a huge paper he’s currently working on that might change the way we view and handle freshwater ecosystems. In his free-ish time, Charles is also a regular host on The Nature Guys Podcast, a super fun show all about getting outdoors and exploring our backyards, which I highly recommend you all check out after listening to this show. We recorded today’s episode in my living room in Denver, Colorado as Charles was road-tripping from Montana to Georgia to start his new and exciting career at the University of Georgia. We had so much fun recording this conversation for you all and I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Note: @ timestamp 17:45, Charles is discussing the martial art, Jeet Kune Do.

If you’re liking the show, please hit the follow button and share with someone you think would enjoy this episode. Sharing is the best way to help the show grow!

Check out the new Rewildology merch shop! https://rewildology.com/shop/

See full show notes at rewildology.com.
Discover more ways to watch, listen, and interact: https://linktr.ee/Rewildology
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Born in Nigeria, Iroro grew up watching nature documentaries from all around the world, planting the seeds for her future love of biology. Her big breakthrough happened when she signed up for a research course in Uganda which was led by a UK organization. After years of searching, she finally found what she was looking for – hands-on biological research with bats. After her Master’s in the UK, Iroro returned to Nigeria to study the status of bats for her Ph.D. During what seemed like a normal field day, Iroro made the discovery of a lifetime. She successfully trapped a short-tailed roundleaf bat, a species that hadn’t been seen in the country for 45 years. However, her elation was soon squandered. Later that same evening, they could tell something was wrong. In the distance, they saw a fire heading their way and they had to leave the forest…fast. Since that moment, Iroro has been working diligently learning everything she can about this rare bat, and collaborate with local communities to keep them alive.

If you’re liking the show, please hit the follow button and share with someone you think would enjoy this episode. Sharing is the best way to help the show grow!

Check out the new Rewildology merch shop! https://rewildology.com/shop/

See full show notes at rewildology.com.
Discover more ways to watch, listen, and interact: https://linktr.ee/Rewildology
Join the Rewildologists Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/rewildologists
Follow Rewildology on Instagram: @Rewildology

Content Warning: Some stories are graphic and may be difficult to listen to.

In this episode, I’m chatting with Andre Robberts, the founder of Enviro Crime Solutions. Formally an IT corporate 9 to 5’er, Andre found his passion for wildlife crime forensics while volunteering at Kruger National Park during his summer holiday. Instead of washing cars and pushing papers, he was asked to carry a rifle and bring in the South African police force to process outstanding rhino poaching cases. It was exhausting work, but he finished the cases and his life was born. Andre transitioned out of his corporate career and became an expert wildlife forensic investigator. He is one of the best in the world at what he does, and it’s all for his love of alive and thriving rhinos.

If you’re liking the show, please hit the follow button and share with someone you think would enjoy this episode. Sharing is the best way to help the show grow!

Check out the new Rewildology merch shop! https://rewildology.com/shop/

See full show notes at rewildology.com.
Discover more ways to watch, listen, and interact: https://linktr.ee/Rewildology
Join the Rewildologists Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/rewildologists
Follow Rewildology on Instagram: @Rewildology

Today I’m bringing you a special episode. This Thursday, July 29th, is International Tiger Day, a holiday dedicated to raising awareness about tiger conservation. To celebrate and contribute in the best way I know how, I want to share with you all a large chunk of what I’ve learned about tigers throughout my years of studying conservation biology, as well as my experiences traveling internationally to see these big cats in the wild. I share the science that’s being conducted to save tigers from extinction and empowering the people that live with them. As you’ll soon hear, living with dangerous predators isn’t easy, but we can find ways to coexist.

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See full show notes at rewildology.com.
Discover more ways to watch, listen, and interact: https://linktr.ee/Rewildology
Join the Rewildologists Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/rewildologists
Follow Rewildology on Instagram: @Rewildology

In today’s episode, I’m chatting with Tehri Parker, Ph.D., Executive Director of Rocky Mountain Wild. Tehri grew up in the small town of Hygiene, Colorado, and was influenced by the 70s environmental movement and political artists like John Denver. When Tehri graduated from high school, she left her tiny town as quickly as possible and moved to California to study TV and broadcasting. She soon realized that radio and TV weren’t her thing. After some soul searching and research, she found her passion in Environmental Education and went on to receive her Masters and Ph.D. in the field. After her studies, she led a renewable energy nonprofit in Wisconsin for 20 years before moving back to Colorado to become the Executive Director of Rocky Mountain Wild where she has been working since the early 2010s.

We chat in-depth about what it takes to lead a nonprofit organization, the work Rocky Mountain Wild is doing to protect and restore biodiversity in Colorado, and the growing socially-conscious business movement.

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See full show notes at rewildology.com.
Discover more ways to watch, listen, and interact: https://linktr.ee/Rewildology
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Follow Rewildology on Instagram: @Rewildology

Today’s guest, Carolina Powell, is the perfect combination of perseverance and determination. Being a first-generation Colombian-American, Carolina was raised by a single mother who immigrated to Miami, Florida, in the hopes of offering her daughter a better life. Like many of us in this field, Carolina first thought she was going to be a veterinarian until she worked with a vet whose values (or lack thereof) didn’t align with her own. After interning in the Bronx Zoo’s development department, she was introduced to the zoo conservation field and spent the next year doing everything she could to finally land a full-time zookeeping job. Her perseverance paid off and she’s now a primate keeper at the prestigious Smithsonian’s National Zoo. Carolina is also a member of the leadership team for the newly-formed AMZAP organization, whose mission is “to build a sense of community amongst minorities currently working in the zoo field and to promote animal care and conservation careers as viable options for interested minorities.”

If you’re liking the show, please hit the follow button and share with someone you think would enjoy this episode. Sharing is the best way to help the show grow!

See full show notes at rewildology.com.
Discover more ways to watch, listen, and interact: https://linktr.ee/Rewildology
Join the Rewildologists Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/rewildologists
Follow Rewildology on Instagram: @Rewildology

In this episode, we meet Pedro Fruet, PhD. Surfing off of the coast of Casino Beach in Southern Brazil, Pedro encountered bottlenose dolphins for the first time and fell in love with the species. Casino Beach has a culture focused on ocean conservation, and every summer that his family visited the area, his love for the ocean grew. He later received his Ph.D. in Biological Oceanography, and with the help of his colleagues, he determined that the bottlenose dolphins he swam with as a kid was their own subspecies, the Lahille’s Bottlenose Dolphin. Through his studies, Pedro discovered that only 600 individuals currently exist in the population. Now, he’s focusing his attention on the local community to reduce bycatch, the species’ number one threat.

Pedro is a 2021 Whitley Award recipient, which is how I met him. The Whitley Fund for Nature provides support and training to grassroots conservation projects around the world. THE Sir David Attenborough is a WFN trustee, which just shows you how prestigious this organization is. If you have a grassroots conservation project that needs funding, I highly recommend checking out whitleyaward.org and apply for one of their grants.

If you’re liking the show, please hit the follow button and share with someone you think would enjoy this episode. Sharing is the best way to help the show grow!

See full show notes at rewildology.com.
Discover more ways to watch, listen, and interact: https://linktr.ee/Rewildology
Join the Rewildologists Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/rewildologists
Follow Rewildology on Instagram: @Rewildology