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Hello Spring

Making space for LGBTQ+ and wildlife communities | Out & About

Jaylen Bastos talks about the connections between urban wildlife and the queer community, and what it’s like being a queer scientist in the environmental field.

Urban wildlife has a greater connection with the queer community than we might think!

CBC ·

What is urban wildlife ecology?

4 years ago
Duration 5:35
Black and Latinx urban wildlife ecologist Jaylen Bastos (they/them) teaches Connel about their research on wildlife in downtown Vancouver, the potential connections between urban wildlife and the queer community, and what it's like being a queer scientist in the environmental field.

Diverse wildlife lives in even the most densely-populated cities, yet these species are underrepresented in wildlife research. That's where urban ecologists like Jaylen Bastos come in — they study animals that thrive in human-dominated landscapes.

Top predators like bears, cougars and wolves, who once called these areas home, have been removed by city developments. This has created a more welcoming space for other animals who are lower in the food chain, like raccoons and skunks.

Jaylen blends their research with their queer identity, and according to them, urban wildlife have a greater connection with the queer community than we might think! 

Watch part two of Out & About in the video above, hosted by wildlife conservationist and educator Connel Bradwell. 

Click here for more scenes from spring across the country. Show us your spring with the hashtag #HelloSpringCBC.

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