Category: Podcast
Conservation and Science is a podcast about human-wildlife interactions and our relationship with nature. I talk with world-class scientists, members of environmental organisations, practical conservationists, farmers, nature writers, and last but not least, hunters and anglers. My conversations cover biodiversity, conservation, hunting and fishing, rewilding and more. Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or YouTube.
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Episode 40: Pleistocene Megafauna with Richard Doran Sherlock
This episode of the podcast is going to take you back in time to the Pleistocene epoch of the Quaternary period, an epoch often referred to as the Ice Age. Our guest is Richard Doran Sherlock who has a particular interest in Quaternary science and megafaunal collapse. Over the years Richard has worked in many capacities including research for rewilding projects and not-for-profit groups. Since I also have a keen interest in natural history I was really glad when Richard…
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Episode 39: Cycling with Fiola Foley
In this episode, once again, we return to the subject of cycling. Our guest, Fiola Foley, has a great deal of experience when it comes to all aspects of cycling and the outdoors. In her outstanding career, Fiola has been a pro athlete, worked as a race organizer and spent time working for BMC Switzerland, a world-leading performance cycling brand. Currently, she is the Communications and PR manager for Komoot, an outdoors app. During the podcast, we talk about bicycle…
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Episode 38: Time to Panic with John Gibbons
In recent weeks the news and media have been filled with reports about protesters demanding action on climate change. So, in the interest of covering important and current events related to the outdoors, once again, I am bringing you a recording of a talk. This time the speaker is the campaigning journalist and climate change activist John Gibbons. You can find more about John and his work by visiting his blog thinkorswim.ie. The talk was recorded during the March Green…
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Episode 37: Mountain Biking in South Africa with Shaun Emslie
It all started on Twitter. Shaun contacted me and casually suggested that I record an episode of the podcast from South Africa. We exchanged a few messages and Shaun sent me a few photos. It quickly became obvious that he can talk for hours about riding a mountain bike in the stunning landscapes of South African game reserves. In the episode Shaun describes not only the South African mountain biking scene but we also talk about encounters with African wildlife.…
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Episode 36: Rebike with Paul Carroll
I was introduced to Paul Carroll by one of our mutual friends. He couldn’t speak highly enough about Paul’s initiative called Rebike. So, I sat down with Paul in his Greenway Café in Dungarvan, Co. Waterford and talked about Rebike Ireland. In a nutshell, Paul collects broken and unused bicycles that otherwise would end up in a landfill. He then repairs them and donates them to schools, charity organizations or individuals in need. In the podcast, we talk about Rebike…
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Episode 35: Whittled Away, Ireland’s Vanishing Nature with Pádraic Fogarty
Today we’ve got something a little bit different. Instead of a guest, I have brought you a recording of a live talk by Pádraic Fogarty from Irish Wildlife Trust titled: Whittled Away, Ireland’s Vanishing Nature. Pádraic is also the author of the book with the same title and I had the pleasure to chat with him last year on episode 20 of the podcast. Last Wednesday, Pádraic was invited to give the talk to the Kildare branch of BirdWatch Ireland…
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Episode 34: Cycling through Africa with Kuba Standera
Some of you might remember Kuba from episode 12 of the podcast where we talked about his hand-made fishing lures. We ended that episode teasing about Kuba’s planned cycle through the Sahara desert to reach his bucket list fishing destination. Well, Kuba is back and in this episode we talk about that cycling and fishing adventure. It is really great to hear his stories from exotic countries. The cycle was also a fundraiser for aware.ie, a voluntary organization which aims…
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Episode 33: Game Management with Aaron Turner
Aaron is a professional gamekeeper, farmer, veteran of the war in Afghanistan and all around badass. I keep meeting Aaron at various outdoor events and training courses. Since our interests are definitely aligned, we finally decided to get together and record an episode of the podcast. During our conversation, we talk about general game management issues, woodcock shooting and conservation, lethal fox control, badger cull, hill farming and how to move forward with the wildlife and habitat conservation agenda.
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Episode 32: Photography and Sound with Madeleine Weber and Greg McNamara
A while back I jumped into my car and took the beautiful Ring of Kerry route to meet Madeleine and Greg in their art gallery located on the coast of Iveragh peninsula. Honestly I was stunned by the beauty of Madeleine’s work and you can get a glimpse of it by visiting her website at www.madeleinemariaweber.com. Madeleine and Greg are like our artistic eyes and ears. Madeleine preserves special moments on camera while Greg records the associated sounds. They spend…
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Episode 31: Wildlife Rehabilitation Ireland with Aideen Magee
Wildlife Rehabilitation Ireland is an organization dedicated to helping injured wild animals return to the wild in full health. But that’s not all. WRI’s mission is to develop a coordinated approach to wildlife rehabilitation in Ireland. They are also involved in efforts to fight wildlife crime. Since the topic of wildlife is an important part of Tommy’s Outdoors, I was eager to sit down with Aideen Magee, one of WRI’s directors, and talk with her about their work. In the…