BeProvided Conservation Radio Podcast

I met Monika Egerer through Colby Anton (previous podcast interviewee about studying cougars in Yellowstone) , both are PhD candidates in the Environmental Studies at University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC). I am excited to share Monika's work with urban garden ecology because urban gardening can bring quality food and quality of life to neighborhoods where affordable fresh food is not readily...

*Dr. Rodney Jackson and his wife, Darla Hilard with snow leopard cub Jackson. Photo credit: Robbi Pengally. Today's episode is part 2 of 2 episodes with Dr. Rodney Jackson of the Snow Leopard Conservancy. If you have not yet listened to Part 1, I highly recommend it. In Part 1 Rodney talked about his background and how the Snow Leopard Conservancy came to be. You can find Part 1 here:  http://bepr...

Celebrating Snow Leopard Conservancy on July 4th! *Photo Credit: Karen Czekalski. Rodney in front of a mountain vista taken in Hemis National Park in Ladakh, India in 2013. I have a treat for you today- a conversation about snow leopards with Dr. Rodney Jackson founder of the Snow Leopard Conservancy. For the past three decades, Dr. Rodney Jackson is the leading expert on these elusive and beautif...

  Suzi Eszterhas , our next podcast guest, told me she is no longer a workaholic, but as our conversation progressed, I had to wonder if she was telling me the truth! Suzi has created an internationally recognized name for herself in wildlife conservation photography, particularly baby animals and their families. She leads three group photo tour adventures per year, started a non-profit for young...

Healing Power: The Human-Animal Bond This week our guest on the show, Susan Janin, is an advocate for all animals from domestic cats to snow leopards in the Himalayas. My interview with Susan, especially our conversation about Pets Are Wonderful Support ( PAWS ) gave me a reason to reflect on how my own pets have helped me heal during traumatic times. My two cats, China and Kitty, got me through t...

I am excited to introduce our guest today, Kathryn Arnold the co-founder, Story Curator and Editor in Chief of Wild Hope Magazine . Wild Hope is a beautiful publication sharing stories from scientists, nature writers, artists photographers, poets, naturalists and citizen scientists all dedicating their lives to help protect our planet. I just received three new issues in the mail yesterday and am...

It was a sunny April afternoon as I approached a tree-lined apartment complex located in San Mateo. I avoided any extra caffeine that morning because my mind was already racing. I was to meet and interview an artist and naturalist I admire, John Muir Laws. In my head were so many questions that I knew I could not fit them all in during the time we had and I didn't want to screw it up!   I got out...

  Marian Brickner: Wildlife Photographer, Artist and Author   At age 55, Marian Brickner realized she had to do something to stop people from killing each other and anything that looks different. She set out to show the world through photography that, even though we all look different, we are living beings and should be respectful to each other. This goes for humans and all living things, big or s...

Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom television show during the 1970s inspired so many people I have interviewed, including myself, to fall in love with wildlife. If you aren't familiar with this show, (maybe you are too young!) it was a show bringing adventure, exotic animals, and different cultures into our American living rooms every week. Marlin Perkins, a zoologist, and his partner, Jim Fowler, als...

Igniting Change With Ash Lauth and Blake Kopcho On May 8, 2018, Marcia from BeProvided Conservation Radio will publish her recent interview with two campaigners from Ignite Change, a program of the Center for Biological Diversity. In this episode you will learn the importance of activism and grass root campaigning for the environment and wildlife. You will also learn how you can make a difference....

How many of us have followed a path in life because people said: "it is the right thing to do?" I know I did and so did our guest Kerri Wolter. Kerri says as a true animal lover, "this was not really the direction I wanted to take, but my horse needed to eat!" She was speaking about having to take a corporate job to pay bills. The paths we follow that least excite us can sometimes lead us to an un...

This is a story of what can happen if you have so many air miles accumulated that you can take you and your partner anywhere in the world. In 2000, a lawyer, Alan Feldstein, accumulated so many air miles that he could take his wife and himself anywhere they wanted. Alan and his wife, Diane decided to take their first adventure to Africa. So off they went. After stepping onto the African soil, Alan...

During last week's mist net and bird banding field trip with Point Blue Conservation Science at the Palomarin Field Station facility just north of San Francisco, Marcia had the pleasure to hear the stories from four interns in the conservation science field. Marcia thought these stories were great to hear. She is sharing them with you in today's episode, with the goal that these young passionate p...

Spring is the busy season for the avian ecologists and interns of Point Blue Conservation Science working at the Palomarin Field Station just north of Sausilito, California. Point Blue Conservation Science has been at the forefront of protecting nature for over half a century. The Palomarin Field Station is one of the premier national locations for long-term studies on birds and their habitats and...

I am re-publishing this podcast from last year for a couple reasons: One, I have lost my voice and have had the flu for the past couple weeks and have fallen behind in interviews! Two, the Spring Wildlife Conservation Expo is just around the corner on April 21, 2018. If you love wildlife and nature and meeting amazing like-minded people, you should attend the Expo!  Location: 4200 Farm Hill Blvd (...

  Angelina Mertens is referred to as a "Sustainable Bridge Builder!" She helps bridge the private, public and social sectors with the work she is doing. She also creates the bridge between California and Namibia for the Cheetah Conservation Fund.  I first met Angie through volunteering at the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) in Namibia where I worked briefly with her sister Tess. As I got to know A...

Meet Colby Anton, PhD candidate at the University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC). Marcia interviewed Colby Anton at the beautiful UCSC campus to talk to him about his work with cougars and wolves in Yellowstone National Park. (This is Colby in the photo by Justin Duffer:NPS with his four legged workmate. Not a bad work setting at all!) In this episode we learn about: It is important to ask questi...

Meet the two men behind the Bird School Project located in Santa Cruz, California; Darrow Feldstein and Kevin Condon.  Darrow and Kevin founded the Bird School Project in 2014. Both found a lasting connection to the natural world after attending a backpacking course for new students enrolled at University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC). After graduating they combined their lessons in experiential...

This episode is about a personal story of human-wildlife conflict mitigation. Meritho Juma Katei grew up as a traditional Maasai in Tanzania. As a child he thought of lions and carnivores as his enemy because they would eat his family's livestock. As he grew up, his mother would teach him how to love life and nature; including people and animals!  During his secondary education he visited a nation...

Join Marcia as she speaks with Ashley Stone of the Bonobo Project and the upcoming events for the Second Annual World Bonobo Day. With the 2nd Annual World Bonobo Day around the corner, please join us in celebrating bonobos on February 14 . We have some awesome and creative events so that anyone and everyone can join the effort to build awareness for bonobos and make Feb 14, 2018 the largest world...

Today's episode is interesting and inspiring; it is about a new online tv series created by our guest Jonathan Barron. He created, narrated and wrote the music for Johnny Ocean and Me, the collective title of three TV series: Johnny Ocean in the English language, Juanito Oceano in the Spanish Language and Johnny Da Hai in Mandarin Chinese. Jonathan was not only able to discover his passion but too...

Jillian Estrada, the Preserve Manager and Conservation Coordinator for the Desert Tortoise Preserve Committee (DTPC) explains why we should all care about the desert tortoise and her love for nature and Africa adventures in our upcoming podcast on Tuesday, December 26th. You can find out more about the DTPC's work, events and how you can help at www.tortoise-tracks.org . If you are in the area in...

Veronica Yovovich is a wildlife biologist whose research focuses on understanding and preventing conflict between livestock and carnivores. She recently completed her Ph. D. in the Environmental Studies Department at U.C. Santa Cruz, and is currently the Wildlife Conflict Specialist and Science Program Director at the Mountain Lion Foundation.  She has spent the last decade studying different carn...

  Doug Smith grew up on a farm outside Cleveland, Ohio, which his father purchased, not to farm but to educate youth about nature and outdoors. Like many midwest parents I know that had children during the same time as Doug's youth, they gave him freedom to roam and explore the natural world. His first love were birds but he enjoyed every aspect of the woods from trees to salamanders. Around the a...

Morris Animal Foundation: Helping animals have healthier lives This week our podcast is with Dr. Kelly Diehl, DVM (Doctor of Veterinarian Medicine) of the Morris Animal Foundation. They are the foundation providing scientific research to help save our domestic animals, such as cats, dogs and horses, to wildlife around the world. Kelly's passion and love for animals really shows in this interview m...