LAWRENCE D'SILVA
Nature+Science Presenter and Filmmaker
B,Sc, M.Sc, F.R.G.S
MIXED BRITANNIA
What am I constantly asked?
"Where are you really from?!".
Answer: One side Welsh and the other South Indian, via Malawi - as many did! I grew up on tales of Malawi and India's Malabar coast and love both places (& Britain of course!)
Both are subject to intense environmental pressures that impact communities and nature alike.
Sea level rise damage on Kerala-Karnataka border
PRESENTING & FILMMAKING
This year - 2021 - I have been a reporter-presenter several times for BBC 1 on a major, UK, primetime show. To view my agent's profile and contact details click here.
It is nothing short of a privilege to be able to speak to people of all walks of life that I wouldn't have otherwise had the chance to meet. Interacting with people in front of the camera, as well as behind it, gives me a real buzz. I love it when contributors share their opinions and energy on topics that matter a great deal to them.
Away from my day job in green investment, I make my own documentaries and selectively work on large broadcast productions. My own docs have been commended by the likes of The Guardian, The National Geographic and Huffington Post. On the larger productions: I have most recently worked on a new BBC studios documentary on biodiversity loss, presented by Sir David Attenborough, Tx late-2020. In radio, I have produced and presented programmes for BBC R4.
I made my first wildlife documentary back at the tender age of 13! It was a shaky attempt on an ancient camcorder. More seriously; my skills in factual filmmaking were developed at City University, London.
NATURALIST BACKGROUND
After many years of studying and working in nature-related disciplines, I was delighted to be made a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society in 2020. My initial training was in Natural Sciences covering both the environment and medical science. In post-grad I hold a Masters titled 'Environmental Technology - Global Environmental Change & Policy' from Imperial College London.
Further afield I have worked as a safari park driver guide in southern Africa and have worked on conservation projects.
In the UK, I work in green tech - developing renewable energy projects as well in the field of ethical/environmental investment in the City of London. It was the latter that afforded me the chance to polish my interviewing skills. I had access to meet and quiz leaders of major multi-national companies on what they are doing for nature and the planet.
I like to distance myself from a traditional 'green activist' minded which I feel alienates the majority of ordinary people. I recognise protecting the natural world has to go hand in hand with continued progress, development, and at least the meeting of the basic human needs. I believe people will be all the better off for it if we can ensure these two forces work together. We need to be solutions-focused and somehow bring joy & optimism into this otherwise gloomy - and too often - moralizing topic. For people far less fortunate than myself, 'green issues' are not always high up on the agenda. This is understandable when just managing to survive feels like a great effort. For the rest of us, our job is not to lecture or to guilt, but to work caringly for a better tomorrow.
Head over to the 'Video Documentaries and Blog' section of this site to check out some of my self-made content. Happy browsing! Lawrence