Fellow's Profile
Fellow's Profile
Saving insects to save ourselves: a cultural, community-led exploration
Saving insects from extinction through awareness-raising workshops for the public
2020
South East
I am the founder of Pestival, where I create eco-entertainment to help reverse the decline in insects. Since 1970 about 50% of insects have disappeared. Without them we wouldn't be here. Insects provide vital ecosystem services such as soil aeration, pollination and food. As a world authority on cultural entomology for over 20 years, I've created awareness campaigns that inspire the public to fall in love with insects. From 200,000 humans descending on the Southbank Centre over one weekend to celebrate insects to an opera at the opening of the Cultural Olympiad at the Natural History Museum, I'm going to travel to understand how insects are seen culturally in Asia and the USA. From Japanese 'Mushi' Manga, to non-pesticide Indian tea farmers, to the largest firefly festival in the world, I hope my new thinking will be utilised across the environmental movement, from eco-fashion designers to serious scientists, youth activists and politicians. I believe due to past efforts my new thinking will support change in how we all communicate to a wider audience. I'm an established key thinker and doer in this field, working with both brands and institutions to communicate in a populist way.
Bridget Nicholls (CF 2020) premiered Zombie Ant Fungus: The Chemistry of Control at the Royal Institution, a live interdisciplinary production inspired by her Churchill Fellowship travels.
By Bridget Nicholls, 10 May 2026
Cultural Entomologist Bridget Nicholls (CF 2020) undertook her Fellowship to help save insects from extinction through awareness-raising workshops for the public. She appeared on The Museum of Curiosity on BBC Radio 4. In the programme Bridget talks about how insects aerate soil, thereby making it healthier for growing food and they get rid of rubbish we leave behind. Bridget says that insects "do the job of running the planet and we don't even thank them". She emphasized how many insects are becoming extinct and how her Pestival event showcases the ingenuity of insects through arts and culture.
By Bridget Nicholls, 31 March 2023
All Reports are copyright © the author. The moral right of the author has been asserted. The views and opinions expressed by any Fellow are those of the Fellow and not of the Churchill Fellowship or its partners, which have no responsibility or liability for any part of them.
Bridget Nicholls (CF 2020) premiered Zombie Ant Fungus: The Chemistry of Control at the Royal Institution, a live interdisciplinary production inspired by her Churchill Fellowship travels.
By Bridget Nicholls, 10 May 2026
Cultural Entomologist Bridget Nicholls (CF 2020) undertook her Fellowship to help save insects from extinction through awareness-raising workshops for the public. She appeared on The Museum of Curiosity on BBC Radio 4. In the programme Bridget talks about how insects aerate soil, thereby making it healthier for growing food and they get rid of rubbish we leave behind. Bridget says that insects "do the job of running the planet and we don't even thank them". She emphasized how many insects are becoming extinct and how her Pestival event showcases the ingenuity of insects through arts and culture.
By Bridget Nicholls, 31 March 2023
All Reports are copyright © the author. The moral right of the author has been asserted. The views and opinions expressed by any Fellow are those of the Fellow and not of the Churchill Fellowship or its partners, which have no responsibility or liability for any part of them.
