Damian Welch

Damian's interest in Polynesia started with too much reading, too early in life and led to being kicked out of Fiji when George Speight held a coup in 2000. Tokelau leapt off the map as a remote (and politically stable!) atoll nation that might hold learning opportunities to understand Polynesia and a dying culture. Tokelau delivered on this when Damian visited for 3 months in 2002 to make the RGS and BBC Radio 4 documentary, "Hoping for a miracle", a programme about climate and culture change in Tokelau. The award that led to sleeping alone on an islet with hundreds of Polynesian rats and the tupua matai spirits is still going strong and has a page at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/factual/journeyofalifetime.shtml. Chris Brown, who recently returned from Ladakh, Northern India, will be sharing his adventure with the Kharnak people on Radio 4 in September.

Damian is a seminar leader with Gallup in central London, where he consults on employee and customer engagement and stockpiles expedition gadgets and sailing charts for the South Pacific. Given an extra 24 hours in the week, he'd spend them at the RGS or with his fiance, Talia- or preferably with Talia at the RGS.

Need to know: Damian has a great collection of expedition illness stories... just ask!