Conservation Careers: How I switched industries

In our next blog, you’ll discover the details of one of the roles which helps our teams to produce, organise and deliver our communications here at WWF UK. Meet our Senior Communications Planner, Lorin Ord, who’s been a panda for the last five years (although she has loved the panda for a lifetime!). She plays a key role in the project management of our key communications and campaigns in her role at WWF. Growing up in Northumberland, she fell in love with red squirrels, and this was her first introduction into the importance of wildlife conservation and perhaps the start of her journey to her role today. 

What does a typical day doing your job look like?

One of the great things about being part of the Strategic Communications team is that we get to connect with colleagues across almost every area of the organisation, from our conservation and fundraising to our digital and content creation teams. The day starts with a run through of what’s in the news and what activity we have going out externally. Do we want to react to any news? Are there any opportunities or clashes with what we’re already talking about? Are there any issues we need to handle? As communicators, we need to meet people where they are and stay tuned to what’s going on in their world, which means being flexible in our planning. After that, I might be in a longer-term planning meeting to discuss our communications priorities and objectives for the year, or I’ll be creating and monitoring project plans for current and upcoming campaigns.

Tell us about something you're currently working on.

WWF works on a range of projects aiming to stop the global destruction of nature. But in a world full of information, how can we craft simple, relatable messages that not only demonstrate the impact of our actions but also inspire others to take meaningful steps for the planet? Currently, I’m developing an external communications strategy to guide our communications for the next 3 years, aligning with WWF’s overarching aims. It’s a collaborative process - working with our conservation and policy teams to identify topics and themes that resonate with people and inspire them to take action. My focus is on finding ways to empower people to help us, whether that’s taking an action themselves or using their voice to call for change from business or government. We also need to stay reactive to news, but we can be proactively reactive – planning what topics or types of news we will react to and how we might do that so when the news drops, we are as ready as we can be! 

How did you get into a communications role within the environmental sector? 

I didn’t know what I wanted to do when I finished school. I studied biology at university because I love wildlife and believe in science’s potential to solve many of the world’s problems. After a few months of despair after graduation and a couple of volunteering gigs that left me feeling like I’d never get a job, I landed on my feet with an internship that led to a permanent role at a medical communications agency. There, I worked on publications and events management with pharmaceutical companies. I learned so much during those years, learning from smart colleagues and clients, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that I wanted to do more to protect our environment. I signed up for environment job alerts and kept an eye out for roles where I could apply my communication or project management skills. One day, I stumbled upon a Strategic Communication Executive job at WWF - on the day of the deadline, and wrote my application on a train to Newcastle that evening! It was a last-minute effort, but it paid off – I got the job. A true sliding doors moment. 

If you could give one piece of advice to someone looking to apply for a similar role, what would you say?  

Champion your transferable skills. In addition to project management, my role requires active listening, collaboration across teams, and the initiative to propose solutions to problems. I was worried in my interview that I’d be caught out for not being able to describe the greenhouse effect well enough or know how many species of walruses there are, but what they really wanted to hear were practical examples of how I had managed projects.  

And don’t worry if you find yourself in a job which isn’t where you want to go long term – focus on learning skills and take them with you to wherever you go next. Being on the career ladder is rewarding in some ways, but is it taking you to the right room? Be brave in trying new things and don’t be afraid to take a step backwards to take the right step forwards.  

Finally, what gives you hope in our mission to bring our world back to life?  

Our planet’s landscapes have an incredible ability to recover when given the chance. It gives me hope to see former industrial landscapes, where my Grandad once worked as a coal miner, can be transformed into havens for wildlife and peaceful spaces where communities can connect to nature. But of equal importance is sustainable livelihoods in those communities. I’m hopeful about the power of communities to come together and influence leaders, driving the changes they want to see in their area for a brighter and greener future.  

I truly believe we all care about nature – we just don’t always make time to notice it, or have the opportunity to do so. At a recent event, we had the privilege of hearing from an Indigenous activist who reminded us ‘You are nature too, you just forgot that’. By helping to reconnect people to nature at all levels of society, we can remind people why they care and inspire action to restore our natural world.