From First Footsteps to Lasting Impact: Turning Exploration into Conservation Action

​In this fireside chat, Catherine Barnard, CEO of World Land Trust, speaks with modern explorer Lucy Shepherd about what it means to witness environmental change first-hand.

​Drawing on her experiences in some of the world’s most remote and fragile landscapes, Lucy reflects not only on the environments she has encountered, but on the communities already responding to these challenges with resilience, ingenuity and leadership.

​Together, they explore how direct, lived experience can transform perceptions of conservation, moving it from an abstract concept to a deeply personal responsibility.

​Lucy shares how her journey has shaped a more immediate and human understanding of environmental protection, one that inspires action and fosters a sense of shared stewardship.

​The conversation highlights the vital importance of working in partnership with local people, whose knowledge and leadership are central to effective conservation.

​In doing so, it connects directly to World Land Trust’s mission to support communities around the world to protect and restore their land, safeguarding biodiversity and strengthening climate resilience for the future.