Two Women, One Vision: Challenging Expectations in Conservation Leadership

Just trying to be, give yourself a bit more forgiveness, I think, for not having to be excellent at everything all the time.

It's impossible.

No one can do that.

So you do, I think a lot of the perceived challenges Feelings and judgment come from within and from society more broadly.

So I don't think, you know, there are issues of being out in the field and physical safety sometimes and real challenges of being in the bush and pregnant or breastfeeding.

I remember desperately when I was away from my son trying to keep my... milk supply up because i was going back to see him and i'd done it for like weeks and weeks it was all good and then i left the the uh pump outside my tent and a hyena ate it i was absolutely furious about it's probably my strongest thing of human wildlife conflict i want to kill this hyena but um

you've ruined my whole i think and uh

but i think you're trying to there are challenges of trying to struggle things i'm sure there are different challenges for guys but i think just trying to say women are much better at talking about these things and and being working out a way together so i do think there's a power then in being women as well so i do think there are challenges but there are also lots of opportunities

I totally agree.

And I think I've had relatively little challenges around being a woman in terms of how accepted I've been and how able I've been to work.

I think I haven't been stopped from doing what I do at all for being a woman by others around me.

So in that respect, it hasn't been a problem at all.

um but as amy said it's all the sort of self-imposed issues that you think you've got to do um and and there are some obviously biological issues like you are the only one who can be pregnant in a couple you are the only one who can breastfeed in the couple so as amy's story says you know there are some practical considerations around those things um but in general it's it hasn't been a big handicap being a woman at all.

Well, perfect.

That's good to hear.

In general, it can be real positive.

So I think when you're dealing with conflict often and people can, they tend to see males coming in sometimes as a bit more aggressive, a bit more combative.

Whereas I think as women, sometimes you're, you know, people just say, well, you know, you won't be too much of a challenge.

So you can be a bit more subtle.

You can approach it in a different way.

You know, you can sort of approach it in a way that really does fit this partnership at the heart of it.

And then, yeah,

and go forward in a

more positive

way.