My name is Danielle Khan Da Silva, but you can call me Dani (she/they).

I’m an award-winning South Asian-Portuguese scientist-turned storyteller and National Geographic Explorer who is generally interested in the intersections between habitat conservation and collective liberation. I am currently working on longterm projects on: Indigenous science and the parallels between orcas and Coast Salish matriarchs; intuitive interspecies communication in French Polynesia; ocean guardians in Colombia; and Indigenous women in Indonesia who are protecting their natural heritage and critically endangered orangutan and tiger kin. I write and educate about decolonized conservation and ethical storytelling (because we can’t fix these problems with the same mindsets or tools that created them).

I am the Founder and Executive Director of Photographers Without Borders and Founder of the acclaimed annual Reclaim Power mentorship program. I have an Hons. BSc. degrees in conservation biology, psychology and global studies from the University of Western Ontario, as well as an MSc. in Environment & Development from the London School of Economics. I am passionate about Indigenous science, rematriation, and Indigenous land and water stewardship and have consulted for many organizations around various topics.

My work has been published by the Guardian, Patagonia, The Globe and Mail (with A1 publication), British Journal of Photography, National Geographic, the United Nations, The Independent, The Economist, and the book Cities, Slums and Gender in the Global South: Towards a Feminised Urban Future (Chant & McIlwaine, 2016), among others.

I have published research in the book Climate Governance in the Developing World (Held, Roger & Nag, 2013) and completed a distinguished Master's dissertation exploring the psychology of climate change messaging.  I was also an instructor at Fleming College for the Environmental Visual Communications post-graduate program taught at the Royal Ontario Museum for several years.

I love speaking engagements and being on panels. Here are a few I’ve been part of:

• 2025 National Geographic Society Listen to the Animals

• 2025 Bioneers Rethinking Conservation panel

• National Geographic Explorer Fest 2023 Inclusive Approaches to a Complex Idea panel

• National Geographic Exodus Fest 2019 – Rediscovering the Role of Humanity

• Storytelling for Change Podcast Host

• TEDx Connection is the Key to Conservation

• TEDx Grassroots Narrative

I was one of the original Sony Alpha Female award recipients and was a 3-time fellow at the Safina Centre. I was named a Canadian Top 30 Under 30 Sustainability Leaders Award, and was listed as number 2 in Matador Network's Top 17 Female Photographers of 2017 as well as their Top 5 Women Changing Media. I was nominated for the 2018 Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Award, for Canada's Top 100 Powerful Women 2016, 2016 RBC Canadian Women Entrepreneur Awards, and the 2015 Women in Biz Social Good Award. I won an Ontario Volunteer Service Award for over 10 years of Community Service in 2017 and was also named “Woman of the Week” at Women’s Post. I was a Reelworld E20 participant and received the Helge Hummelvoll scholarship for the prestigious Missouri Photo Workshop in 2019. In 2022 I was a Senior Fellow for the Safina Center and has been mentored by Carl Safina, Ami Vitale, Cristina Mittermeier, Brooke Shaden, the late Dr. Sylvia Chant, and Dra. Rosales Mesa to name a few.

Did I mention I love being in the water? I am trained in underwater photography/cinematography, scuba diving (18 years experience, advanced open water and dry suit), and freediving. I also love flying high and am an experienced drone operator. I am also a practitioner of animal communication, yoga, and Ayurveda, I am a reiki master and I am certified in the Trauma of Money™ method.

My documentaries have also received numerous awards and accolades. I was also featured in an episode of the Photographers Without Borders series that I also co-directed, called “Love the Oceans.”

I also live in a beautiful forest next to the mighty Magnetewan River in Ontario with my two dogs.