About the Producer:
Francesca Turauskis is a freelance podcast producer, writer, and Digital Editor for Pod Bible magazine. She has produced and written episodes for award-winning podcasts 'Out There' and the New York Times featured 'Ochenta Stories', and works on several independent shows. Her work focuses on underrepresented stories in the Wilderness category. Her show 'Seize Your Adventure', shares stories of adventure and outdoor living, with epilepsy.
Francesca is a judge for the first International Women’s Podcast Awards. She is a big advocate for active travel (which she was initially steered into by her epilepsy diagnosis) and has been known to walk and run silly distances across countries by herself.
About the Panel:
- Soraya Abdel-Hadi is Award-winning writer, artist, advocate for diversity in the UK outdoors and founder of the All The Elements network. Soraya writes about sustainability, nature and travel.
- Ani Patas is mixed race South Asian and passionate about anti-racism and access for people with disabilities/chronic illnesses. She’s chronically ill herself but feels free when she’s wild swimming and hiking.
- Neil Russell is finding his inner adventurer in his mid-30s, while trying to navigate the hurdles disability can throw at you. Handcyclist, teacher and advocate for inclusion for all.
- Frit Tam is an adventurer, filmmaker and photographer and loves exploring the outdoors in as many ways as possible - preferably with a camera in-hand, shooting underrepresented stories for his film studio, Passion Fruit Pictures.
- Eden Elgeti is a Swimmer, campaigner for LGBTQIA Rights & Visibility and is also an advocate for adventures. She is the co-host for Freestyle Fridays, a weekly LGBTQIA swimming session in London.
- Kirsty Pallas is an outdoor instructor passionate about climbing and mountaineering, and co-founder of Our Shared Outdoors, a diversity and inclusion activist organisation. She’s a Training Officer for Oban MRT, and is learning to mountain bike and rollerskate!
- Vedangi Kulkarni is a 22 year old adventure-traveller, content creator and an expedition manager. Through her business, The Adventure Shed, her goal is to make adventure accessible.
- Oge Ejizu is a hiking enthusiast and London regional leader of Black Girls Hike_UK which seeks to create a safe space and encourage Black Women to explore and enjoy the outdoors.