If you’ve ever wondered how and why diversity is so important in wildlife, nature, and conservation careers, you’ll love this discussion with Corina Newsome (@hood__naturalist). Corina is an awesome social and environmental justice activist who JUST YESTERDAY announced her new position as Associate Conservation Scientist at the National Wildlife Federation!! Woohoo!

In this episode you’ll learn: 

• Why representation for all races, ethnicities, and backgrounds is invaluable in conservation
• How to overcome barriers and dream BIG
• How nonprofits like Georgia Audubon (which she used to work for) are engaging with the community to overcome racial and historical prejudices (like government land grabs in the name of “conservation”)
• The effectiveness of taking action locally
• What #ShutDownSTEM is
• The importance of having a mentor who understands your needs
• The perspective of a black woman doing fieldwork in Southern Georgia in the era of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery

We even get into some church-y and political talk, like how the evangelical movement needs to get on board with issues like climate change and biodiversity loss. If that’s not your thing, that’s cool, but it’s my podcast and I can talk about whatever the hell I want! (hah)

But seriously, this is an episode you won’t want to miss. It’s another deep, amazing conversation and I am SO excited to share it with you all. Enjoy!

Resources:

Corina’s website: https://corinanewsome.wixsite.com/hoodnaturalist/bio

Young Evangelicals for Climate Action: https://yecaction.org/

https://brenebrown.com/podcast/brene-with-ibram-x-kendi-on-how-to-be-an-antiracist/

Nova Conservation website: http://novaconservation.com

Support us on Patreon! http://patreon.com/novaconservation

Laura's TEDx Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nqip9NcV2qQ