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Join an expert panel made up of National Geographic explorer and biologist Dr Niall McCann, adventurer Henry Cookson and conservationist Jamie Gaymer, in conversation with filmmaker, Matt Pycroft, for a fascinating and wide-ranging discussion around the impacts of tourism on conservation in Africa. 

The evening will also be the public premiere of Keystone: How to Move a Rhino, short film co-produced by Cookson Adventures and Coldhouse Collective, which goes behind the scenes on one of the largest rhino translocations at the Ol Jogi Wildlife Conservancy in Kenya. The film will take you to the heart of this complex and high-stakes operation as you watch Jamie and the Kenya Wildlife Service work together in a race against time to move a group of one of our world’s largest mammals to a safer location.

The panel will reflect on the impact of this experience, debating the role tourism can play in conservation today and how it could be used more effectively to help fund scientific research and facilitate ground-breaking wildlife projects in the future. 

Jamie Gaymer

Wildlife and Conservation Manager at Ol Jogi Wildlife Conservancy, Kenya. Jamie has overseen the wildlife conservation at Ol Jogi since 2007. This 58,000 acre (235 square km) private wildlife conservancy in Laikipia, Kenya, is an important safe haven and breeding ground for indigenous and critically endangered species. Jamie leads a team of over 300 people to oversee the daily protection of over 100 rhinos within the conservancy, which also has the world’s largest population of Grevy’s zebras and represents an important stronghold for several other endangered species.

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Henry Cookson

Explorer and Founder of Cookson Adventures. Henry is constantly in search of authentic experiences and new challenges, whether that’s exploring Ethiopia’s notorious Danakil Depression, climbing Aconcagua in Argentina or visiting remote tribes in Nagaland, Myanmar. He began his career in polar exploration winning a 360nm race to the Magnetic North Pole with his teammates in just eleven days – a course time which remains unbeaten to this day. Henry founded the experiential travel company Cookson Adventures in 2009. From taking the first private submersible to Antarctica in 2012 to discovering a new sub-species of orca off Cape Horn, conservation and purpose is placed at the heart of each of his client adventures, wherever possible.

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Headshot of Dr Niall McCann, a speaker at the RGS Explore symposium.

Dr Niall McCann

TV presenter, explorer and biologist. Niall has spent around two years on biological expeditions in some of the most remote parts of the globe, and in his role as a conservationist he has worked on many endangered species around the world. He is the Conservation Director for National Park Rescue, a direct-action conservation organisation protecting some of the most threatened national parks in Africa, and is co-chair of the global End Pandemics Alliance. In addition, Niall lobbies the UK government to put conservation and the environment at the heart of their International Development Aid strategy and is involved in multiple projects at the nexus between innovative finance and conservation.

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Matt Pycroft

Matt specialises in working in remote and hostile environments as a highly experienced filmmaker and photographer. He began his career creating short research-based films for the United Nations and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation before falling in love with life on the road and expedition filmmaking. Matt has a passion for seeking out untold stories and has worked as both director and principal photographer on numerous world-class expeditions. He is the host of The Adventure Podcast, and Creative Director of Coldhouse, a content agency and platform for authentic storytelling.

Filmmaker and photographer.