Amplify the Flock:
Social Media for Bird Nerds

From a young age, Samara was captivated by the natural world and the stories of the fauna she learned about, nurturing a curiosity that grew into a lifelong commitment to protecting wildlife. Her career has since been dedicated to protecting wild species, improving evidence-based conservation, and strengthening the systems that allow people and wildlife to coexist.

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As Senior Programs Officer for IFAW UK, Samara supports the organisation’s work on wildlife crime and policy engagement. Her role focuses on addressing the illegal wildlife pet trade and contributing to efforts that strengthen protections for animals across the UK and beyond.

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Samara has eight years of experience across research, conservation planning, wildlife rescue, and science communication. Her work has taken her from field monitoring and rescue support to developing training initiatives in underrepresented regions. Before joining IFAW, she spent six years contributing to conservation and capacity‑building efforts in Lebanon, working closely with local partners and communities.

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Samara holds a BSc (Hons) in Zoology, and a Postgraduate Certificate in Environmental Law & Practice.

Dr. Noémie Hofman is a Belgian exotic and wildlife veterinarian based in Dubai with nearly ten years of clinical experience across exotic pets, aquatic species, and conservation medicine. Her fieldwork includes sea turtle rehabilitation in the Maldives, primate health in Ivory Coast, and zoological medicine.

 

She holds the Certificate in Aquatic Veterinary Medicine from WAVMA and a Master's degree in Conservation Medicine. She is the founder of The Vet Beyond podcast and a social media educator, with a focus on exotic animal welfare, species sentience, and the link between responsible pet ownership and conservation. Her clinical work with psittacines spans both private practice and zoological work.

Kirsty has spent her career wedged between science and storytelling, turning complex environmental issues into accessible communications that move people to act.

 

She began in the field of behaviour change campaigns, focused on sustainable resource use, working for a UK government agency. The past eight years have focused on human-wildlife interactions—particularly in tourism and the wild animal pet trade. Her driving interest is empowering people to become informed advocates for the natural world.

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Within IFAW, Kirsty leads media and communications for the organisation's European wildlife crime portfolio, as well as the UK region. Most recently, she has overseen the ‘Liked to death’ campaign, which urges the public to think twice before engaging with wildlife content online—where clicks can carry hidden costs for wild animals.

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Outside the office, she's a novice birdwatcher, SCUBA diver, trained marine mammal medic, and sailor in training. She holds a BA (Hons) in Public Relations, an MSc in Science Communication, and a PG Cert in Sustainable Behaviour Change.

Josh is a trained journalist and a communications consultant with over a decade of experience in writing, content management and web development. He has worked with dozens of organizations across industries like higher education, public policy, cybersecurity, SaaS, data centers and cloud computing, semiconductor manufacturing, as well as insurance.

 

Josh has been a guardian to six parrots since 2018, a consultant for One Earth Conservation since 2020, a digital organizer for the International Alliance for the Protection of Parrots since 2022, and a vegan since 2024.

Kyle is a veteran of the social media industry with nearly a decade of experience managing five of the top twenty creators in the world.
 

As the Founder of Squawk Global and co-guardian of Gizmo the Grey Bird, he has leveraged his access to a combined network of over 1 billion followers to pivot toward welfare-centered storytelling.

After realizing the impact of viral content on parrot demand, Kyle now leads the project’s strategic reach and media partnerships, ensuring the “Unfiltered Truth” reaches a global audience.