About Lauren De Vos

I figured out early on that two things would dictate how I lived my life. I love to learn, and I’d be absolutely delighted if I never had to be indoors again. My parents and professors managed to curb the latter tendency long enough for me to complete my MSc in Conservation Biology at the University of Cape Town, South Africa (an academic path that actively encouraged my tree-climbing tendencies!). My research has placed me in unique situations – scaling termite mounds in the Kruger National Park, hurtling after chacma baboons up Cape mountains, spending salt-encrusted days at sea, facing stand-offs with buffaloes in Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park in KwaZulu-Natal and spending afternoons submerged in the Mutale River’s crocodilian waters … mine is a life lived in love with Africa’s wildest spaces. I am currently an assistant researcher at UCT’s Marine Research Institute, conducting the first underwater camera survey of False Bay. A deep reverence for our natural world keeps me driven to find conservation solutions. 'll be sharing my research and experiences with you on a regular basis. Look out for me – I'm the one surrounded by sea!