Chief Cook, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society
Born and bred in Sydney, Australia, Benjamin Potts grew up amongst rocky sandstone escarpments, emerald coastal rain forests, diverse eucalypt wood lands and beautiful sandy southern beaches. Surrounded by two large national parks and the myriad of wildlife and skirt white mans' invation of the Sydney basin, his home was an ideal place to explore and develop a love of the natural world in his youth.
Ben's father worked for the National Parks and Wildlife Service. He used to bring home animals that he had seized from smugglers and trappers. These animals would either be taken to a wildlife refuge to rehabilitation or, if they were local, released back into the bush. These animals gave Ben the opportunity to form friendships and an appreciation of Australia's unique and amazing wild citizens and he considers these creatures to be part of his extended family.