INTERVIEW AND WORDS BY NAZ TOORABALLY

T: @NAZTOORABALLY // IG: @NAZTOORABALLY

We started 2022 with the intention of sharing a monthly interview series spotlighting South Asian creatives and changemakers in the alternative scene where you could find out how they got into what they do and what they’re up to now. We hoped that by sharing these stories, it would help inspire alternative South Asians and people of colour - and it has. However, it’s not something we’ve been able to keep up as a volunteer-run project, but we hope to bring it back in a different format next year.

Back in March 2022 I interviewed wildlife TV researcher, journalist, speaker and filmmaker Jasmine Isa Qureshi, and I’m excited to be able to finally share this interview with you this month.

Jasmine Isa Qureshi (they/she) reached out to me back in January 2022 after reading a gal-dem article about the latest print issue of WEIRDO. They messaged to say how happy they were to finally see people who looked like them represented in alternative and punk music – their message made my day as this is a big reason why WEIRDO exists. After exchanging a few messages and learning more about Jasmine’s work, I knew I had to interview her as part of this series to discuss her wildlife work, activism and love of punk, which she says are two of her favourite things to talk about. We caught up over Zoom early March and I had the pleasure of meeting Jasmine in real life at the WEIRDO two-year anniversary event later that month.

Jasmine, 23, is a queer and trans writer, journalist, wildlife filmmaker and speaker/presenter. They work as a researcher at BBC Natural History Unit and BBC Earth, is an ambassador for the Bumblebee Conservation Trust and engagement officer for the youth-led nature organisation A Focus On Nature. Believe it or not, they graduated from university only last year with a degree in Marine Biology – everything they have done and do in their field of work is admirable. Jasmine describes herself as being “absurdly passionate” about wildlife, conservation and the environment, and speaking to her I can assure you this is no exaggeration. As I listen to them tell me about their journey I’m in awe of their passion and dedication.

I wanted to learn more about where Jasmine’s interest in wildlife and conservation began. They tell me they grew up in Southall, West London and lived in a flat above a shop where they didn't have access to a garden or nearby parks and green areas. Reading my mind, Jasmine says that people find it interesting that she’s interested in nature and conservation and the work she does around wildlife. But to anyone finding her interests at odds with the area she grew up in, Jasmine says that we “really haven't seen any of the nature that is in London and that you can see walking around and looking under things and looking on top of buildings or inside cracks and crevices, because that's what I grew up with.”

The kind of nature Jasmine grew up around led them to become interested in bugs, which led to their obsession with bees, butterflies and pollinators. She tells me her love for other wildlife grew through watching documentaries, explaining that she was homeschooled up until around the age of 11 and watched a lot of documentaries as part of homeschooling.

It was only recently that I realised that I'm the only trans person of colour who's ever done that kind of thing on CBeebies… I'm often up there alone being the only person representing and I don't represent everyone.

Fast forward to June 2021, Jasmine’s writing was noticed by a researcher at the BBC and was invited to talk about starfish on an episode of Teeny Tiny Creatures on CBeebies. People of colour are not well-represented in nature and conservation, and through their work Jasmine is bringing in much-needed perspectives as a queer, trans, South Asian, Muslim punk. “It was only recently that I realised that I'm the only trans person of colour who's ever done that kind of thing on CBeebies,” Jasmine reflects. “I was like, oh my God, that's quite a big thing – also quite sad because I'm often up there alone being the only person representing and I don't represent everyone.”

“I don't think people usually see someone who looks like me talking about wildlife in any sort of big capacity,” she tells me. Despite their love for David Attenborough who inspires them to be a wildlife filmmaker and conservationist, “he's very much the demographic that presents wildlife TV and does anything around wildlife TV or even writing about wildlife.” As Jasmine carves out her own space in this field of work, she tells me that she considers herself a storyteller first and foremost, with writing being her primary outlet. Jasmine believes that “storytelling is literally, one of the best forms of communication we have and it's one of the best ways we can teach people.”

It wasn’t too long after finishing university that Jasmine was noticed again by the BBC which eventually led to their current role as a researcher for the BBC Natural History Unit and BBC Earth. “I really love this show called Springwatch – it's one of my favourite shows since I was like nine,” she laughs. “I was fangirling over it on Twitter, which I do like every single year that it comes on,” which led to someone from the BBC sharing a job opportunity with her. Although Jasmine didn’t get the job after going through the application process, another job opportunity came up which they did get.

You see lots of people around you with lots of strong support systems and I didn't have it. I really felt like I was falling behind a lot of the time because I was trying so hard to get to the same level as other people.

It’s important to say that they didn’t easily land a job at the BBC straight out of university – from freelancing as a journalist to volunteering at various nature and conservation organisations while still studying, Jasmine has gotten involved in this field of work at every opportunity. That’s not to say that you need to do this if a job at the BBC is your dream though, and I don’t think she would recommend it. Jasmine admits to not getting enough sleep at university and not always keeping up with her lectures. We’re all becoming more aware of how overworking ourselves in this way can lead to burnout and Jasmine has recently been vocal about the ways they are overcoming this on Instagram.

As we chat about the period between them finishing university and getting a job at the BBC, they tell me how difficult those months were after being outed to their family. With the safety of home and family pulled from under her, she felt everything was collapsing around her. Jasmine continued freelancing as a journalist during this time, although “freelance journalism is barely a job sometimes,” and was staying on a friend’s sofa. They try to lighten the mood and jokes about how their latest Gay Times article was the perfect way to remedy the situation with her family.

I think as a person of colour, who isn't as conformative as you are told to be, you do grow up with a sense [of] I'm not really good enough to do a lot of things.

“It's quite hard to find the hope to do other things because you see lots of people around you with lots of strong support systems and I didn't have it,” says Jasmine. “I really felt like I was falling behind a lot of the time because I was trying so hard to get to the same level as other people, especially in the wildlife and conservation industry that is very whitewashed, very cis-washed, and very much a place where if you're young, white and cis and straight, you're going to get somewhere.”

“I thought I'm not getting the job and I'm kind of struggling with money and everything – I might have to put this on hold for a bit.” But it was getting an interview and landing a job at the BBC that gave Jasmine the hope and belief in herself that a career as a wildlife filmmaker is still a possibility, despite not having her parents’ support.

Although Jasmine is recognised in the field of nature and conservation, having been invited to give several talks, they still struggle with self-belief. “I think as a person of colour, who isn't as conformative as you are told to be, you do grow up with a sense [of] I'm not really good enough to do a lot of things,” they explain. “So you really have to unlearn a lot of toxic traits and really have to battle with that.”

Non-conformity to me is essentially queer. I'm using those ideas to change how people think about wildlife, because if you conform to society you are not ready to be very good at caring for the environment because the environment is very much being destroyed by what society is pushing.

Jasmine takes a non-conformist, punk approach to their work as they challenge the status quo on tackling the climate crisis. “As much as punk is about the raw kind of music anger it's also about euphoria, learning and really understanding, and even in terms of activism, it's very much lent to that,” says Jasmine. “You see a lot of people who are punks and they're very much activists as well because it’s more about how you feel about things and it's on a very primal level - the music just links into how you feel about everything.”

“Non-conformity to me is essentially queer,” they say. “I'm using those ideas to change how people think about wildlife, because if you conform to society you are not ready to be very good at caring for the environment because the environment is very much being destroyed by what society is pushing.”

It’s difficult to feel hopeful at the moment as we weather a pandemic and cost-of-living crisis alongside the climate crisis - none of which are being taken seriously by the Tory government. “There are a lot of people who are suffering because of it, and I think playing that down is quite unfair to those people,” says Jasmine. “What makes me hopeful is talking to people who are not working in a system that forces them to uphold the ideologies of that system.”

It’s this energy they carry in their work at the BBC. “I actually thought I wouldn't take the job because it's the BBC,” she says. “The BBC is really amazing at a lot of things, but they are quite bad at being a good voice for a lot of people. And in fact, they misconstrue a lot of information.” Jasmine laughs about being worried they’ll get fired over publicly speaking out against their employer on social media, but being able to use their voice freely is non-negotiable. “I enjoy the fact that as someone who is working at entry-level, I can still tweet and share Instagram stories about lots of issues to do with the BBC and still call them out for all of that and go, ‘I do work here.’”

For anyone looking to get into wildlife TV or work in conservation, Jasmine has some advice to share. “If you feel like you want to be authentic, please just constantly be authentic because it really shows that you are strong in what you believe in,” she says. “I've seen a lot of people who aren't happy doing jobs that would otherwise be enjoyable if they were allowed to express themselves as they wished.” But in terms of more “practical” advice, Jasmine emphasises how important it is to network and talk to others - reach out to people and organisations you want to work with. As with many industries, it’s about who you know when you’re trying to enter and Jasmine says she’s always happy to help connect people who are trying to enter this field of work.

Since our interview, Jasmine has featured in Attitude Magazine as part of a project called #SeaOurFuture, spoken at several events at the Cheltenham Science Festival and continues to expand the conversation on queer ecology.

So, what’s next for Jasmine? Well, they hope to one day write a book, give a TED Talk and “find a dinosaur - but I can't do that.” And outside of her work in nature and conservation, Jasmine is learning to play the drums, so we might see Jasmine drumming in a punk band soon - we’re keeping an eye out!

If you want to stay up to date on Jasmine’s work, you can follow them on Instagram and Twitter.

ABOUT NAZ

Naz Toorabally is a queer, British Indo-Mauritian musician, model and zine maker based in north London. She is the founder of WEIRDO Zine and fronts post-punk band Dogviolet. When she’s not making music or zines, you’ll find Naz hanging out with her cat.