Bringing people closer to trees
I’m an arborist, canopy climber and conservation storyteller, with a special interest in very tall and very big trees. My talks invite audiences into the living world of trees — not as inanimate objects, but as complex organisms, habitats and teachers.
Drawing on practical experience, tree biology and a deep love of the natural world, I explore what canopies can teach us about ecology, resilience, interconnection and the way humans relate to the more-than-human world.
What I bring to a talk
I bring an unusual combination: practical arboriculture, a scientific background and first-hand experience of life in the canopy.
I work on trees for a living, but I also spend a great deal of time trying to understand them: how they grow, adapt, decline, respond to stress and support whole communities of life. My route into arboriculture began in molecular biology, so I look at trees through a scientific lens. I am equally interested in what they can teach us about being human — not by romanticising them, but by recognising that we too are part of nature, shaped by place, relationship and the living world around us.
I’m interested in what changes when we stop seeing trees simply as objects to manage, own or tidy, and begin meeting them with more curiosity, restraint and respect. I want audiences to leave not only knowing more, but seeing trees as living worlds — and understanding more deeply why our relationship with them matters.
Signature talks
My talks sit at the meeting point of arboriculture, ecology and the larger human questions trees invite us to ask. Rather than delivering technical information for its own sake, I use science, lived experience, imagery and storytelling to help people see trees differently.
These are three of the talks I currently offer. Each can be adapted to suit the audience, theme and setting.
Life Lessons from Trees
This is the talk closest to my heart. It draws on time spent climbing and working with trees, alongside a scientific curiosity about how they grow, adapt, survive and relate to the wider world around them. It also asks a more human question: what can trees teach us about how to live better?
Without romanticising trees, I explore what they can show us about time, resilience, restraint, interdependence, conflict, life and death, boundaries and belonging. It asks how changing our relationship with the natural world might also change the way we move through our own lives.
Inside the Canopy
Most people know trees by looking up at them from the ground. I spend much of my working life inside their crowns. This talk brings audiences into the canopy: what it feels like to climb into the crown of a tree, what becomes visible from that perspective, and how close observation changes our understanding of trees as organisms, habitats and ecosystems.
Drawing on climbing, practical arboriculture and conservation experience — from British woodlands to the giant sequoias and coast redwoods of California — I share stories, images and reflections from a world most people never get to see.
A Woman in the Canopy
Arboriculture remains a male-dominated profession. The challenges I encountered as a woman in the industry were among the reasons I founded my own company. The environment in which we learn and work profoundly shapes who we become.
In this talk, I reflect on building a business and a life in the trees as a woman — from strength, fear and physicality to authority, visibility, conflict and care.
This is not a generic “women in business” talk. It is about finding a way to work in a demanding outdoor profession without simply adopting its loudest or hardest version, and about how a different perspective can change both the culture of tree work and the quality of our relationship with the natural world.
Bespoke talks
I can also develop bespoke talks around women in arboriculture, conservation storytelling, tall-tree biology, canopy research and the role of trees in helping us rethink place, ownership and the living world.
Who I speak to
My talks are suited to audiences who care about trees, the natural world and our relationship with both — through science, conservation, education, storytelling or practical land-based work.
I speak to specialist and non-specialist audiences, including arboricultural and forestry groups, conservation organisations, schools, universities, festivals and public events. I am equally at home speaking to people who work with trees every day and to those who may never have climbed one, but are curious about ecology, place and resilience.
I also work with brands and organisations whose values genuinely align with the natural world, particularly around sustainability, women in outdoor work and thoughtful environmental storytelling.
Formats
I speak in a range of formats depending on the event and audience:
- Keynote and conference talks
- Panel and fireside conversations
- Workshops and question-and-answer sessions
- Online talks and digital events
- Guided walks and talks
Sessions can be reflective, practical or a combination of science, storytelling and life in the canopy. Every talk can be tailored for environmental, educational, industry, commercial, brand or public-facing audiences, with emphasis adjusted across conservation, science communication, representation, canopy access or adventure storytelling.
About Me
I am the founder of Girl in a Tree, a female-led arboriculture company and conservation storytelling project. With a background in molecular biology and hands-on canopy experience, I bring together practical tree work, ecological understanding and visual storytelling to help people connect more deeply with trees, forests and the living systems they support.
Before I ever climbed a tree professionally, I spent years working in science and research. I came to arboriculture later, and that shaped how I entered the field: not with certainty, but with curiosity. Trees have taught me patience, attention and restraint, and continue to shape not only how I work, but how I think.
Alongside practical arboriculture, I write, speak and take part in canopy research and conservation projects. Trees have changed me, and part of my work is helping other people develop a more honest, thoughtful and meaningful relationship with them.
“I want someone to look at the trees in their garden and love them. Part of that solution lies in knowledge, and part of it lies in language.”
“What changes when we stop seeing trees as objects to manage and begin meeting them with curiosity, restraint and respect?”
“Trees do not follow human rules. The most useful approach I have found is close observation — and the humility to be wrong.”
“You cannot work well on trees without trying to understand how they live, adapt and die.”
In the canopy
My talks are supported by original photography and footage from within the canopy, helping audiences step into places and perspectives they would rarely otherwise see.
Book Bianca Thomas
I’m available for conferences, festivals, panels, workshops, guided events and online talks. If you are looking for a speaker who brings together trees, ecology, science, conservation and a deeply personal perspective from within the canopy, I would love to hear from you.