About the episode
Co-host of The Dirty Down Under, Julia Wheeler joins Paul De Gelder for a candid interview into the life of this highly wild and adventurous, driven and inspiring human being. Openly admitting to loving “the wild places”, Australian-based investigative-journalist and Documentary film maker, explorer and World Champion Freediver, Julia Wheeler, is at her happiest when she’s either 50 metres below the sea’s surface exploring shipwrecks and interacting with ocean giants or on the frontline of endangered species conservation, exposing the stories of real life heroes who are fighting to protect the planet and ecosystems. “If you really want to tell a story about someone, you have to be willing to put aside your fears and step into their shoes on an intimate level.You must be open to embracing and experiencing everything in front of you. You may not agree with all peoples views but always want to understand them.” Julia has visited Africa many times where her passions for the natural world flourished. Almost ready to hit your screens, for the last 7 years, Julia completed a four-part wildlife / exploration documentary series, which follows her into the compelling lives of the humans who work behind the scenes of endangered species conservation to protect, rehabilitate and defend global wildlife. Julia explains how the series explores the ecosystems who's wildlife depend on it for survival and shows the severe impact of climate change, poverty and animal exploitation but all the while wanting to maintain an uplifting and positive outlook for anyone who watches.. Julia's passion and devotion for protecting the world's wild places is evident as she was recently asked to appear in Virgin Unite's 30x30 campaign, narrated by Richard Branson and Sir David Attenborough to raise awareness around the plight of the oceans and more recently featured in Australia's top selling conservation and sustainability magazine, Peppermint Mag. Hot Topics: - What are you Julia? - Where did Julia come from? - What drives Julia? - Background on how Julia's wildlife series came to flourish - Dangerous times on the African continent - Julia tells the story of being charged by a 250kg male lion, on foot! - Julia dives into the world of FreedivingSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
