Our Patron’s, President and Ambassadors help us share the work we do to protect and conserve dragonflies!
Our Patrons
BDS Patron - Sir David Attenborough
Sir David Attenborough OM CH FRS, Britain’s best-known natural history film-maker, became only the second BDS Patron (in 2008), following Dame Miriam Rothschild who sadly died in 2005.
His career as a naturalist and broadcaster has spanned five decades and there are few places on the planet he hasn’t visited. It was the Zoo Quest series of the mid-1950s to 60s that gave him his first opportunity to undertake expeditions to remote parts of the world, capturing intimate footage of rare species in their natural habitats. Sir David became Controller of BBC2 in 1965, then Director of Programmes for the BBC in 1969. He was responsible for bringing colour television to Britain, but in 1973 he decided to return to documentary-making and writing. He was soon standing knee-deep in bat droppings in a cave in Borneo; something he much preferred to administration work. Since that time he has brought many memorable series to our screens, including ‘Planet Earth’ documentaries.
President
Mike Dilger
Mike is a well-known TV presenter as well as a qualified and skilled naturalist and writer. His enthusiasm for dragonflies and damselflies has seen him support our work on many occasions and he has fulfilled the role of President since August 2016. Accepting the invitation, Mike said: “With new species recently reported to have begun breeding here, it’s an exciting time to be watching dragonflies and damselflies in Britain. These charismatic insects are not just utterly entrancing to observe and study in their own right, but their continued presence in many of our rivers, streams, pond and lakes also tells us a much bigger story about the health of our waterways up and down the country. I’m delighted to have been asked to become the new President of such a proactive charity, and look forward to ‘banging the Odonata drum’ at every available opportunity to ensure these wonderful creatures get the limelight they truly deserve.”
Ambassadors
Joel Ashton
Joel Ashton has dedicated his life to creating habitats for wildlife in gardens across Britain. He has gained a lot of media attention over the years for being an expert garden designer and for taking the messages about building wildlife habitats in our back gardens to the world too through his website, YouTube and social media channels. He has featured on television programmes such as BBC Springwatch and BBC Gardeners’ World, repeating the messages of how important our gardens are for wildlife. His designs are beautiful too! We are delighted to have Joel’s wealth of experience on board our team and to have him flying the flag for Dragonflies across the country and the online world.
“It is fantastic to have this association with the British Dragonfly Society. The sheer variety of dragonflies and damselflies that you can attract to a garden from installing a wildlife pond is incredible. To be able to work more closely with this small yet well run charity through the work we do, to create habitats for these amazing insects is truly wonderful.” Joel Ashton.
To keep up to date with all the wonderful work Joel does for wildlife you can follow him on Facebook, Twitter and on Instagram too!
Green Fingered George
George is a passionate advocate for gardening and wildlife and has been so supportive of our work to promote ponds and dragonflies. He has won awards for his gardening efforts since a young age and has gone on to be an ambassador for the RHS and been drafted in by the RSPB to help promote the Big Garden Birdwatch. He is a passionate campaigner and inspiring communicator. George says:
“I’m absolutely overwhelmed and honoured to become part of this amazing society and the incredible work they do. For me, watching dragonflies emerge from our pond and transform right before our eyes, is one of the wildlife highlights of the year. “
Find out more about George’s work on his website and keep in touch with him via Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.