I am an outdoorsman, podcaster and speaker. I talk and write about the natural environment, biodiversity, conservation, hunting and fishing, rewilding and more. I am particularly interested in wildlife and human-wildlife interactions. I enjoy reading scientific papers on those subjects as much as being outdoors weathering the elements and getting first-hand experiences.
🐺 Coexistence with Wolves in Estonia
Tommy's OutdoorsConservation and ScienceCoexistence with Wolves in Estonia with Helen ArusooOn my podcast, we talk a lot about coexistence with large carnivores and the challenges it poses. Some of those challenges might seem insurmountable to some. To shed some light on overcoming these hurdles, I contacted Helen Arusoo, an Estonian nature journalist and the leader of the National Animal Working Group. In this conversation, we talk about how Estonia overcame these hurdles and created something that I would consider the gold standard of coexistence with large carnivores. Unsurprisingly, the majority of our time was spent discussing wolves as they seem to be the most difficult carnivore species to coexist with, at least in the northern hemisphere. However, we did discuss other large carnivores like bears too. Our conversation focused mostly on social and cultural factors. We also touched on the European Commission's proposal to lower the protection status of wolves, something we’ve discussed extensively in one of the previous episodes. It was a wonderful conversation and I enjoyed speaking with Helen. Her profound understanding of the challenges of coexistence is impressive. She presented a deeply thought-out perspective and I can only wish that more people who care about wolves could learn from her experience and the Estonian model of coexistence with large carnivores. Upcoming Interintellect Salon“What’s Interintellect?”, you might ask. It’s a platform that, in their own words, “reinvented the art of the French salon for the 21st century”. The idea of connecting thoughtful people from all over the world, to discuss topics of their interest, in a friendly and respectful manner, is something that I like a lot. And so I decided to give it a go and list my very own salon. The topic we are going to discuss is the connection between climate change and biodiversity loss. The angle I would like to specifically explore is that climate change can’t be tackled without rectifying the biodiversity crisis at the same time. If that’s something that interests you and you would like to discuss, please go to the salon page below and get your ticket. It is free for Interintellect members. |
I strive to deliver the most interesting and educational conversations with the most engaging guests about the natural environment. It is my goal to continue to deliver this content at no cost to you. However, the production of the podcast requires a significant investment of time and money. So I would appreciate any help you can give me. |
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Tommy's Outdoors: Conservation and Science
I am an outdoorsman, podcaster and speaker. I talk and write about the natural environment, biodiversity, conservation, hunting and fishing, rewilding and more. I am particularly interested in wildlife and human-wildlife interactions. I enjoy reading scientific papers on those subjects as much as being outdoors weathering the elements and getting first-hand experiences.
Conservation and Science This week, it is my great pleasure to once again bring you my conversation with Alexander Lees. Alex is one of those special people - a walking encyclopaedia on the topic of birds and all things ecological. On top of that, he's an incredibly effective science communicator and an all-round good chap! I definitely encourage you to give him a follow on social media. If social media is useful for anything, it's to pay attention to people like Alex. Oh, and in case you're...
Conservation and Science Fair warning folks, this might be a controversial one for some of you. I got in touch with today's guest after a listener contacted me following one of the previous episodes. Shout out to Rod and thank you! In the end, the episode isn't about what Rod had suggested, though I think the topic is no less interesting. While talking to Ryan, I knew we were going to discuss a topic that is highly controversial and one I dealt with back in the day in episode 76. Some people...
Conservation and Science The topic of interactions between beavers and salmon was something I wanted to cover for some time. The most interesting aspect for me was that anglers are usually on the side of nature, conservation and restoration. In this case however, anglers were the group who weren't so keen on the return of beavers to British rivers, despite the unequivocal benefits beavers bring to ecosystems. How strange! Sometimes the "boots on the ground" attitude might be the source of...