Ug Media is run by me, Stewart Macdonald. I’ve been interested in wildlife ever since I moved out to Australia from England. I have a particular soft spot for snakes, but all animals interest me. I have a Bachelor of Science (Wildlife and Marine Biology) from the University of Queensland and then completed post-graduate research in crocodilian biomechanics and muscle activation, also at UQ.

Today’s technology enables us to do amazing things. The application of information technology to biodiversity information and research can produce very powerful results. I believe this technology has amazing power as a conservation tool. Two areas in particular that interest me (and therefore form a focus at Ug Media) are information products and geospatial analysis.

My work and play take me to some interesting places around Australia. I’ve written about some of my travels on my blog, Stewed Thoughts.

My favourite charity is Bush Heritage Australia. They raise funds to purchase, manage and conserve large tracts of land across Australia. Private conservation organisations such as Bush Heritage will be the future of conservation in Australia. Bush Heritage manage some properties that contain awesome reptile habitat, like Ethabuka Station in the Simpson Desert.

Overseas, I ‘donate’ to microfinance organisations through Kiva. Kiva provides a way for people to lend small amounts of money to entrepreneurs in developing countries. For example, you, along with 19 other people, can lend $25 to a woman in Peru with a business idea. She can use that $500 of capital to start her business and thereby make a living for the rest of her working life. She’ll pay the money back over the course of a year, after which you can lend the $25 to someone else. Technically this isn’t donating, since the money is paid back. But by forfeiting the interest you would have earned on that $25 over the course of a year, you can help make a difference for someone else on the other side of the globe.

To offset the greenhouse gas emissions generated by the sites I run, I purchase carbon offsets from reputable carbon trading companies. I have to admit that I don’t know exactly how much carbon dioxide this site generates, but I’m pretty sure that by offsetting a few tons of emissions each year we’re actually carbon negative (as opposed to simply being carbon neutral).

Marty the Mammoth from Ug Media