Beatriz de la Pava talks to birdwatchers from Zimbabwe and Uruguay about their passion for birdlife. Zimbabwean ornithologist Merlyn Nomsa Nkomo was on her way to secure a work placement to study wild dogs as part of her degree when she went birdwatching for the first time. It changed her life and she went to work in a vulture rehabilitation centre instead. She's now studying for a PhD in conservation biology in the Fitzpatrick Institute of African Ornithology at the University of Cape Town. She writes and blogs about her passion for raptors and is keen to bring more black women into the world of birdwatching. Florencia Ocampo started bird watching in Uruguay as a teenager after coming across baby falcons in a street market. While teaching herself falconry from books she became fascinated by the birdlife around her. Motivated by conservation issues she started birding and became a biologist. As well as doing ornithological research she now runs her own tour guide company, Birding With Me. (IMAGE: (L) Florencia Ocampo, courtesy of Florencia Ocampo. (R) Merlyn Nomsa Nkomo, credit Linda Nordling.)

Women watching birds

Two women from different parts of the world, united by a common passion, experience or expertise, share the stories of their lives.

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In recent years women have overtaken men as the majority on allotments and community gardens. These spaces for growing fruit and vegetables to eat at home have been peaceful places that provide families with healthy food. Datshiane Navanayagam talks to two women from Kenya and Ukraine about the appeal of these plots. JC Niala is a writer, academic and creative from Kenya who has written about the history of allotments. Alongside Greenpeace, she has co-created ‘The Waiting List’, an allotment-sized artwork highlighting the significant demand and lengthy waiting lists for allotments.  Olia Hercules is a Ukrainian cook and author of the award-winning Mamushka cook book. Raised in rural Ukraine she later moved to London where she missed the fresh tastes of homegrown food. This led her to start the lengthy process of securing an allotment, which she says helps make a place feel like ‘home’, particularly during times of war and displacement.  They've written essays for a book celebrating allotment life called This Allotment: Stories of Growing, Eating and Nurturing. Produced by Jane Thurlow (Image: (L) JC Niala, courtesy of JC Niala. (R) Olia Hercules, credit Joe Woodhouse.)

Women on allotments: soil in the city

Ella Al-Shamahi speaks to two of the first generation of women to ever fly F16s, Manja Blok for the Netherlands Air Force and Heather Penney for the US Air Force.  Manja Blok was the first female operational F-16 fighter pilot in the world. After taking the aviation exam at 19, Manja was told she was unfit to become a pilot and pursued a career as a beautician instead. She tried again at 22 and in 1991, made her F-16 debut in a career that lasted a decade and paved the way for women behind her.   Heather Penney joined the US Air Force in the late nineties, after Congress lifted the combat exclusion for women in aviation in 1993. Six months after becoming qualified for combat, Heather was assigned a mission on September 11th 2001 during the attacks in New York and Washington D.C, to intercept hijacked Flight 93. Produced by Elena Angelides  (Image: (L) Manja Blok, courtesy of Joni Isreali. (R ) Heather Penney, courtesy of Tim Engle)

F-16 fighter pilots: Breaking barriers in combat aviation

Datshiane Navanayagam speaks to two female neurosurgeons to hear about the pressures and rewards that come from working in their intense and male-dominated medical field.  Dr. Lola Chambless is an American neurosurgeon based in Nashville. She is passionate about medical education and serves as the Residency Program Director in Neurological Surgery.  Dr. Giselle Coelho is an award-winning paediatric neurosurgeon from Brazil who has a PhD from Harvard. She is currently the Scientific Director of the EDUCSIM Institute and works at Sabará Hospital. Produced by Emily Naylor (Image: (L) Dr. Lola Chambless, credit Vanderbilt University Medical Center. (R) Dr. Giselle Coelho, credit Trianon Clinic.)

Pioneering women in neurosurgery

A British explorer who transformed travel and travel writing and a Nigerian novelist and travel blogger talk to Ella Al-Shamahi about their adventures around the world. Hilary Bradt co-founded the world's largest independently owned guidebook publisher fifty years ago. She’s been inspiring travellers to go off the beaten track ever since, publishing guides to destinations where no guidebook previously existed, like Uganda, Yugoslavia, North Korea, Eritrea and Madagascar. Lola Akinmade Åkerström is a Nigerian travel storyteller, photographer, speaker and an international author whose books are published in 18 languages. She lives in Sweden, teaches travel writing and is the current editor-in-chief for Slow Travel Stockholm. Produced by Jane Thurlow (Image: (L) Lola Akinmade Åkerström, credit Jessica Wikström. (R) Hilary Bradt, credit Alex Graeme.)

Women writing about travel

Ella Al-Shamahi talks to two women from Wales and Goa rescuing people in trouble on the coast.
 
Vivienne Grey was one of the first women to become a crewmember at Little and Broad Haven RNLI in Wales when she started as a volunteer in 1990. She's been involved in more than 120 ‘shouts’ on the lifeboat and is credited directly for saving the lives of eight people. She’s now training coordinator at the lifeboat station and works part-time as a teacher. Vivienne also volunteers with the local Coastguard Rescue Team.
 
Ananyaa Bath is a lifeguard and lifeguard trainer in India. She works for Drishti Marine, a safety and life-saving service, which has 400 life-savers patrolling Goa's 103km coastline. Produced by Jane Thurlow (Image: (L) Vivienne Grey, credit RNLI. (R) Ananyaa Bath, credit Drishti Marine.)

Women watching birds

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