Feminists Around the World: Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant

Today, we highlight the work of ecologist and scientist Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:05):
Hey, this is any and Samantha. I'm welcome to stuff
I never told you production of iHeart Radio.

Speaker 2 (00:18):
And welcome to another activist around the world. And for
today's activists, we are talking about bears kind of. I mean,
actually we're talking about ecologists and scientists doctor ray Wynn Grant,
who specializes in large carnivores like black bears, and she
does mention it even though we're really not talking about
black bears. I'm sorry, y'all, she does talk about what

(00:39):
she does and how she does specialize in the large
animals like black bears. So as we give you this
information afterwards, you should go check out her content. I
have a feeling a lot of you already do, but
just in case, to find out more about these black bears.
But of course, like many of our other features, doctor
wyn Grant is so so much more than just an

(01:01):
ecologist and scientists and all the above whatever. She has
many titles. But before we get into that, doctor win
Grant attended Emory University, which is here in our fair city,
and she got a BS in environmental studies and went
on to get her Masters of the same at the
Yale School of environment and her PhD in Ecology and
Evolution from Columbia University, and here's a little bit from

(01:24):
her website. Ray is passionate about science communication and is
also the creator and host of award winning podcasts Going
Wild with Doctor Ray Win Grant, produced by PBS Nature.
Her current field system encompasses the central coast of California,
where she is studying the unique ecology of carnivores in
coastal zones, as well as the role of protected areas

(01:45):
in connectivity of high quality habitite for large carnivores. Her
previous research questions surrounded the ecological drivers of human carnivoral
conflict with grizzly bears in the Northern Great Plains, black
bears in the Western Grape Basin, African lions in rural
Kenya and Tanzania, as well as grizzly bears in the
Greater Yellowstone ecosystem. A native Californian, doctor Wingrad attributes her

(02:08):
interest in wildlife and conservation to the television shows she
watched as a child, including the iconic original series Mutual
of Omaha's Wild Kingdom. So there you go. She likes
big animals. It's gotta be fascinating too. To have that
intersection between human yeah, and grizzly bears, because we already
know the stories, well a few a few of those stories, right,

(02:31):
But then we also know most of the time humans
are at fault.

Speaker 1 (02:34):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (02:35):
But anyway, moving on, She has stuck to her dreams
of working in this field, so in an interview with
oprah Daily dot Com, she talked about her interests in ecology.
She says, as a kid, I had a very urban
family and we did not spend time outdoors or in nature.
All of my access to wild places was through television,

(02:55):
and in my little kid mind, I thought, well, I
don't know anyone who hangs out with a wild animal
and goes into the wilderness except these nature show hosts.
I wanted to go to the places they went, And
when it came time for college, I said, what do
I major in? To be a nature show host? What
I quickly realized was that by being an ecologist, I
would be doing all the show hosts stuff, just without

(03:15):
the cameras. So she has talked about her dreams of
being a host of a wildlife show. In the news
article for Edu, doctor Wynn Grant is featured for her
work and there she talks about how she wanted to
be a host. So quote Wynn Grant soon found herself
infatuated with animal and nature shows, the ones hosted by

(03:37):
Steve Are When David Attenborough and Marlon Perkins, these hosts
showed me a completely different part of the world I
had never seen, she recalls, and I immediately fell in
love with all the fauna and flora cross far flung
locales on the globe. One night at the dinner table,
when she was around seven years old, she announced that
when she grew up, she was going to host a
nature show of her own. I was going to live

(03:59):
in the jungle and tell people about the animals. When
Grant writes in her recent published memoir wild Life, finding
My Purpose in an Untamed World, Yes, she has a book, yil,
and when she started college she still has that dream.
Here's another quote from that emory article. At the urging
of a student mentor who jotted down the simple yet
momentous prompt raised life for her at the top of

(04:19):
a yellow legal pad. When Grant followed up by listing
her singular goal host a nature show. She then created
a rough timeline that included classes she needed to take
Environmental sciences seem to be the best major as well
as the first job she thought she'd have after graduating
from Emory and any other degrees she needed along the way,
and her years of hard work and planning has paid off.

(04:42):
In twenty twenty three, doctor Wyn Grant became the first
black woman to co host a wildlife conservation series on
television as the co host of Mutual of Omaha's Wild
Kingdom Protecting the Wild. She talked about how she had
grown up watching this program and is now a part
of it. It also works on educating others about wildlife,

(05:03):
so I love that complete circle. And she also talked
about how immediately after college from Emory, she did work
with the WWF, the World Wildlife Fund, but she didn't
love the position she has, so she went on to
get like her PhD and such. But she's not just
doing network TV. She also hosts an award winning podcast,

(05:24):
as we talked about earlier, titled Going Wild with Doctor
ray Win Grant. And here's a bit of information from
her site, Raywindgrant dot com. On the new season of
Going Wild, hosts and acclaimed wildlife ecologist doctor ray Win
Grant goes beyond animal stories to take listeners on a
journey through the entire ecological web, from tiny planets to

(05:45):
apex predators. In this expedition, Going Wild poses the question
how can humans look at our relationship to nature? Differently?
Each episode, doctor ray win Grant speaks with a notable scientist, activist,
or adventurer of color to see how they grapple with
that question in their own lives and work. Episodes also
invite listeners to reconsider long held understandings of conservation nature

(06:08):
and our relationship to it, and who's considered a scientist.
We don't talk much about it, but she does go
on to talk about how a social justice and conservation
and wildlife ecologists like, how they go hand in hand,
especially today, I think I think it'd be really on point.
And she specialized in that type of intersection and having

(06:29):
these conversations online and making people consider what needs to
happen to expand for other marginalized peoples to be a
part of this community, which is very important work. And
through all this amazing work, she talks about the challenges
she's faced in the field. In the interview with oprah
Daily dot Com, she says there haven't exactly been people
rallying around young black women to get into wildlife, ecology

(06:52):
and conservation. The messaging or like thereof essentially said that
this isn't a space for you to be involved, let
alone be a leader. I remember doing a whole presentation
for one network executive and he thought I was perfect
for a nature show. But in the same breath he said,
that'll never happen. I'm not a white guy with the beard.
America isn't ready for it. He was a person who
had the power to change all that, and instead he

(07:14):
was like, Wow, I could really see it, but it
won't happen. Oh but it did. And she did so
much more, including writing a book. The book, titled Wildlife,
a Memoir, was released in twenty twenty four. Put it
on our list and from her website. Wildlife follows Ray
from her urban childhood in California and Virginia to her

(07:35):
adventures and explorations in some of the world's most rugged
and remote locales. Hers is a story about a career
in the wild spanning nearly two decades, carving a niche
for herself as one of very few black female scientists,
and the challenges she has had to overcome expectations she
had to leave behind in the mini lessons she has
learned along the way. Through her personal story of resilience

(07:56):
and adaptation, Ray argues for more connected, more socially and
ecologically conscious world. An incredible journey spanning the great planes
of North America to the rainforests of Madagascar, wildlife shows
light on our pivotal relationships and responsibility to the natural
world and the relatives, both human and otherwise, that we
share it with. And of course, with all of these

(08:17):
accomplishments under her belt, she has many others as well
as being named one of the one hundred if THEN
Ambassadors by the American Association for Advestment of Science in
twenty nineteen, being on the board of directors for the
Explorers Club, and so much more. And when she was
asked about advice for future generations, I'm interested in wildlife conservation,

(08:37):
she told Mutual of Omaha dot com. For young people,
I always advise finding the fund in it early. I
don't think it's important to get an internship or volunteer.
Those can be forms of work, and once you're an adult,
you'll have lots of work to do. No need to
start early. But finding a fun way to engage with
conservation is key, whether it's watching your favorite show, following

(08:59):
a social media account, spending time in nature with friends
or family. All of this positions young people to be
leaders in conservation without burning out early. Such good advice.

Speaker 1 (09:09):
That's wonderful advice.

Speaker 2 (09:12):
And yes, now we have several other options on podcasts
and books for our list for sure, and even TV shows.

Speaker 1 (09:19):
Yes, absolutely, I always love that. Well. Listeners, please let
us know if you have any thoughts about this, any suggestions,
You can email us at Hello a Stuff I'llever Told
You dot com. You can find us on Blue Sky
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Stuff I've Never Told You. We're also on YouTube. We
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you can get wherever you get your books. Thanks as
always too, our super producer Christine, our executive producer Maya,

(09:41):
and your contributor Joey. Thank you and thanks to you
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