AFON
A Focus On…Kathy James
A Focus On Nature is committed to finding shiny new talent for nature conservation, specifically young people aged 16 to 30.
Another one to watch out for is…
#2 Kathy James, wildlife tour leader for naturebites
Tern Warden, Cemlyn Bay Nature Reserve, Anglesey, North Wales
People Engagement Officer at RSPB South Stack, Anglesey, North Wales
Residential volunteering with the Isles of Scilly Wildlife Trust
Kathy James was introduced to the project by Dr Rob Lambert, who she met whilst volunteering with the Isles of Scilly Wildlife Trust. The judges were impressed by Kathy’s commitment to communicating nature conservation to a wide audience, both through her work with the RSPB and the North Wales Wildlife Trust, and through her blog, naturebites.wordpress.com; despite her fantastic CV, Kathy never owned her own pair of binoculars, vital for anyone in the industry, and as such Opticron kindly donated Discovery optics to assist her in her work. She has now set up her own business with well-known birder Ken Croft, leading wildlife tours around Anglesey; their combined knowledge will guarantee an informative day out for anyone in the area, and Kathy’s infectious smile, relaxed manners and enthusiastic personality make her the perfect companion for exploring a new environment.
© Kathy James 2012
Where do you see yourself in five years’ time?: “I hope that ‘naturebites’ will have been trading as a business for the past five years primarily as a wildlife guiding service; but also to engage local communities in the natural world. I would like to be a point of contact for conservation organisations and the media for enthusing others about our natural world.”
The Entry: “My entry is a post from my blog ‘naturebites’. The blog is important to me as it is the way in which I can share my enthusiasm for the wildlife where I live, and I hope that it inspires others to get out and visit the places and spectacles I write about. Inspiration for my blog posts comes from my everyday life where I am lucky enough to be immersed in the natural world through conservation organisations that I have been employed by, my choice of location and my out of work pastimes.”
“The internet is a brilliant way of connecting with modern nature enthusiasts and a great way to scoop up those unsuspecting “not-yet -nature-enthusiasts”. Naturebites offers a showcase of natural history in North Wales to those within and of course can inspire visitors from anywhere in the world!”
If you, like Kathy, are young, enthusiastic and interested in a career in nature conservation, contact A Focus On Nature by heading to their website, or emailing lucy@blog.afon.org.uk. We’ll send you an application form, and you’ll be in with a chance of winning books, binoculars, mentoring by a professional, and the opportunity to build your CV by taking part in our projects.
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