Chris Thorogood on Pathless Forest at Kew Gardens | 5x15

Chris Thorogood is a botanist and lecturer at the University of Oxford, where he holds the position of Deputy Director and Head of Science at Oxford Botanic Garden and Arboretum, and a Visiting Professor at the University of the Philippines. His research focuses on the evolution of parasitic and carnivorous plants, taxonomic diversity in biodiversity hotspots around the world, and biomimetics - exploring the potential applications of plants in technology. An author and broadcaster, he makes regular appearances on TV and radio and is also an award-winning botanical illustrator and wildlife artist.
Obsessed with plants, he is on a mission to make us see them differently, and realize how we, they, and our planet, are all connected. His new book is called Pathless Forest: The Quest to Save the World’s Largest Flowers. It’s an inspirational, mind-bending story of his obsession to protect and save Rafflesia, the vanishingly rare, metre-wide, monstrously beautiful, stinking ‘corpse flowers’ that have captured his imagination since his childhood.
5x15 brings together five outstanding individuals to tell of their lives, passions and inspirations. There are only two rules - no scripts and only 15 minutes each. This talk was recorded live at Kew Gardens, London, in May 2024.
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