I am a sports physician who has been lucky enough to spend most of my life in two of the most beautiful, wild countries on earth (South Africa and New Zealand). I firmly believe that our physical and mental health is interconnected with the natural environment, including the wild animals, around us. For example, researchers found that, from 1990 to 2016, increases in outbreaks of zoonotic diseases (like COVID-19) were linked to deforestation. The effect was present even where trees remained but biodiversity was lost, such as at palm-oil plantations. According to the authors, the loss of predators and habitats allows disease-carrying animals, such as mosquitoes, ticks and sandflies, to flourish. (https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fvets.2021.661063/full)

Sadly, many of our animal friends are quietly dying out, and will continue to do so, unless ordinary people like you and me take action. My biggest challenge was not in deciding whether to help, but rather HOW to help. I would love to travel to some exotic location and get my hands dirty in a heroic conservation effort - but the reality is that most of us have neither the time, nor the expertise, to act out these romantic fantasies. Instead, I would like to invite you to join me in helping those who do have the expertise and the time, but who need the money: the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust. 

Durrell is an international charity on a mission to save species from extinction and create a wilder, healthier more colourful world. Your support helps to recover wildlife, revive ecosystems and reconnect people to nature.

I will be doing the 13km virtual Durrell Challenge on the weekend 22-23 May 2021. I am asking you to support this worthy cause by donating on this page. I now live in Qatar and the outside temperatures by then are usually between 30 and 40 degrees Celsius, and often go much higher. Nevertheless, to acknowledge your contribution and to celebrate our connection with nature, I will run outside, no matter how hot it is. This will require the right amount and type of training and I’m committed to it. Thank you in advance in believing in me, and in supporting the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust in this way!

If you’re interested, I’ll post regular updates on my Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/celeste.geertsema/