Dr Cal Major BVM&S MRCVS MSc

Cal Major is an extraordinary young woman who is passionate about reconnecting people to nature for its mental health benefits and to nurture stewardship of our natural world, in particular the ocean.

She is a veterinary surgeon who has dedicated her career to the protection of ocean ecosystems and animals, and is the founder of the Paddle Against Plastic campaign, for which she was awarded the Prime Minister’s Point of Light Award and an honorary Masters Degree from Marjon University. She was named one of Devon’s people of the decade, and on The Independent’s Happy List for making the world a better place

Cal uses unsupported Stand-up paddleboarding (SUP) expeditions to bring positive, engaging and actionable messages to the often gloomy environmental issues our ocean faces.

In July 2021, she paddled around the whole coast of Scotland to explore and highlight the vital importance of the ocean in the climate and biodiversity crises. The 1,200km expedition took two and a half months and took in both the incredible wildlife and coastal landscapes of Scotland and the destruction befalling the ocean close to home. She produced and presented a 3-part series for STV, “Scotland: Ocean Nation”, which features coastal communities around Scotland in the positive and inspiring ways people are connecting to and protecting the ocean.

The expedition also raised vital funds for Seaful, the UK-wide charity Cal set up to help reconnect more people to our ocean.

Her previous worldwide expeditions include circumnavigating the Isle of Skye solo for Paddle Against Plastic, circumnavigating Baa Atoll in the Maldives in aid of turtle conservation and becoming the first person in history to SUP the entire length of the UK, from Land’s End to John O’Groats. She holds several SUP world firsts as well as a Guinness World Record for her 1000mile Land’s End to John O’Groats expedition.

Cal is passionate about the power of reconnecting to nature for mental health, and as the vital first step for inspiring environmental stewardship. She is an exceptionally inspiring speaker and loves using her talks and presentations to engage the audience in thinking differently about their own connection to nature, and how they too can become part of the solutions to some of the planet’s biggest threats. An established campaigner against plastic pollution in her local community and nationwide, and having witnessed firsthand the extent to which plastic is affecting our wildlife, coastline and inland waterways, Cal is well versed in the details of the plastic pollution crisis but believes strongly in bringing positive and actionable solutions to light rather than focusing on doom and gloom. As such she has worked with businesses and individuals worldwide to inspire the need to change and empowered them to do so with pride.

Cal has worked extensively within the ocean conservation space as a storyteller and communicator on a wide range of ocean conservation topics, including destructive fishing and climate change. In a veterinary capacity she works with seabirds on Scottish islands near her home in the Highlands, where she also rescues and rehabilitates wildlife.

Cal speaks from the heart and her passion and warmth are deeply infectious and inspiring. She uses storytelling from her expeditions to bring inspiring tales of resilience and tips on the endurance mindset that can be incorporated into anything from the audience’s everyday life to big projects to tackling environmental crises. She relates the skills she has acquired and the lesson’s she’s learnt from her expeditions to empower the audience to realise their potential too. Her vast knowledge of the ocean and her own experiences at sea on her paddleboard help to bring to life ocean conservation topics with positivity and solutions.

Cal tailors each presentation to the individual event and is happy to work on specific topics relevant to your event or workplace. Be that environmental information and practical advice, how to improve mental health through connection with nature, or inspiring achievement, positive mindset and resilience.

Professionally produced films have been made of Cal’s expeditions, which have won numerous prestigious awards, and are available as an adjunct to her talks, or as stand-alone screenings with Q&As. She uses engaging short clips and photographs to enhance her presentations.

Cal is also available for film and television presenting roles and has worked with programmes such as BBC Springwatch and online outlets such as BBC Earth, as well as presenting her charity’s own film series, ‘Vitamin Sea TV’, and hosting its podcast, ‘Our Ocean’. She is currently renovating a sailing boat to enable low carbon ocean adventures and exploration even further afield than her paddleboard will take her. When not working, she is a passionate surfer, kite-surfer, wild swimmer and diver.