Ally previously worked as FFI's Deputy Director of Communications. Before this she worked in media management and PR for clients including comedians Eddie Izzard and Ed Byrne. She has also worked for Melbourne International Arts Festival, conservation organisation Greening Australia and the production company Roving Enterprises.
Fauna & Flora International’s newest recruit Serge Negus is a young man committed to sustainable conservation.
Building on his existing knowledge of wildlife and the environment, Serge’s new role will let him witness first-hand the successes and challenges of creating sustainable, science-based conservation programmes, through one of the world’s most respected NGOs, Fauna & Flora International (FFI).
“As someone who has grown up surrounded by nature and been instilled with a great passion for conservation, it is an honour to be invited to work with an organisation that has such a great history and track record in the conservation world,” Serge remarked.
FFI Chief Executive Mark Rose, who recently met with Serge in Melbourne, commented: “FFI is a hands-on, science-based organisation and our work, by its very nature, can be difficult to communicate to a wider audience.
“Our ambassadors play a vital role in this respect, and I believe that Serge, with his natural charm and enthusiasm, is just the right person to help get the message out to the next generation of conservationists – which is perhaps the most important demographic of all.”
By the age of 10 Serge was already well travelled, having visited Venezuela, Jordan and much of Europe and as an 11 year old he spent a month trekking through Madagascar in search of new chameleon species. During school holidays in Australia, Serge worked in wildlife parks and with scientists doing research, getting up close and personal with snakes and crocodiles – an experience that sparked his life-long obsession with all things herpetological.
Currently studying geosciences at the University of Sydney, for the last two years Serge has been resident environment reporter for Australian national television programme The Project, an enviable job that has fuelled his love of wildlife and understanding of issues facing conservationists.
Speaking about his experience as a reporter, Serge said, “Amongst many other amazing, beautiful places, I travelled to East Arnhem Land to report on the devastation of marine life caused by ‘ghost nets’, to Kosciusko National Park to see the last corroboree frogs left in the wild, and to the Great Barrier Reef to tag sea turtles.”
Earlier in 2012 Serge was named as an ambassador for National Youth Week, an Australian government initiative aimed at celebrating the contribution of youth in society.
Mark Rose continued, “As an FFI ambassador, Serge will play a vital role in the success of the organisation, especially within Australia. Despite our long history (we were established in Africa in 1903), we are still relatively new and unknown to Australian audiences. In choosing ambassadors we look for people who share our principles, understand our mission and vision, and are willing to commit to a long-term association with FFI, in much the same way our vice-president Sir David Attenborough continues to do.”
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