Have you ever stood still and wondered what it is that creates hope within us?

I am writing this, sitting on my stand-up paddle board, bobbing along in the waters of Jersey in the Channel Islands. The sheer beauty surrounding me is stunning. The sun has just risen, the majestic, uniquely shaped cliffs around me are dressed in warm hues of yellow and gold. I can see the bottom through the crystal-clear turquoise waters that are bordering the sweeping lush green of the coast. Even after all these years, it is mesmerising to think that in a few hours’ time I could be walking on what currently is the seafloor.

Meet my former teacher David Goldsborough. I just knew it was going to be good to talk to him about this question of hope of mine.

Always having valued his opinion, I was a little nervous. David is someone I trust and who I feel slightly self-conscious around as I feel that he can see the turbulences of my mind more clearly than I could even begin to articulate, when lost in them. Knowing alone that he felt an importance to understand the concept of hope gave me, well.. hope.

When I ask him how he keeps going, he happens to touch on a core of my thoughts around hope. “50 % faith”, he says, and “50% of loving what I do and what I learn daily about my job, myself and others.”. It is about what he can learn for the future, and he feels gratitude for it. Funny how gratitude never entered my mind in the context of conservation.

Jerry manages something I never really considered myself. His foundation has more than one pillar. And the perceived absence of change does not crush him, or throw him into a world of doubt. And yet, that is the crucial bit, he is not emotionally detached.

D“That sea turtle”, she begins, “is essentially one of the prehistoric creatures on our planet that has evolved over centuries and centuries, coexisting with dinosaurs. And it’s been only for the last century or so that they are truly threatened.” A threat that’s predominantly man-made, and these days accumulative.“And it’s when I look at the sea turtle, I almost just think you have literally just withstood the test of time, and I could potentially witness you going extinct in my lifetime”. escription goes here

Hearing Jens talk about hope really struck a chord with me. It resonates deeply, and creates a noticeable lump in my throat. And at the same time, a big smile. He must be on to something here!

He visualises hope as a sort of big, fluffy bouncing ball confined by walls in a room with obstacles. “Sometimes it finds a clear path and appears stable; other times it appears completely uncontrolled and able to break down the entire room.”.

Conservation, “it’s what I want to do with my life”, Kazz recalls when telling me about the people who inspired him, and showed him how his calling could turn into reality. Influences he feels lucky and grateful to have had - as even to someone with that passion and certain knowledge, it seemed such an unattainable line of work.

It’s one of those precious winter days here in Jersey - with a clear blue sky and a warm sun despite the crispy air. Yesterday we had gale force winds and dark fronts rolling in. Today the promise of spring is audible all around.

Listening back to my recording of our interview it’s really quite fitting - hope can find us as quickly as a change in the weather can. And just as the sun today, hope can keep us warm for days to come.