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Karlee Taylor

Mekong & Cambodia Instructor

B.A. in Science with major in Ecotourism, Flinders University
Graduate Diploma Environmental Management, University of Queensland

Karlee grew up on Kaurna and Peramangk country in Humbug Scrub, South Australia, often spending the whole day roaming the family property and adjoining National Park. Ever curious to find out more about the little things admired on these adventures, she developed a passion for ecology and went on to lead custom-guided experiences on the Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia and the National Parks and Wildlife Service in an Australian Sea-Lion colony; swimming with whale sharks, snorkeling with turtles and manta rays, kayaking, hiking and observing sea lions throughout all the seasons. The Parks Service led to field work with koala research projects across southeast Australia and her first experience with a bush camp, inspiring young people to live more sustainably.

Through the Australian Volunteer Program, Karlee lived in rural Laos for two years, developing a community-based ecotourism model in a National Protected Area and establishing a not-for-profit organization, Creative Literacy Laos – sharing a love of literacy, storytelling, and lifelong learning with remote communities in the Annamite Ranges. These critical ecosystems and cultures have continued to draw her back over the last 6 years to continue working in conservation education in the region. Her interests in the areas of non-formal education, conservation biology, and community development have seen Karlee take on a variety of roles from vertical gardener and landscaper to youth worker in out-of-home residential care and swimming teacher.

Taking her love of exploration further, Karlee travelled from Laos to London overland, riding a bicycle through northwest Vietnam and western Mongolia, with a few motorbike journeys in Mongolia and Siberia. More recently she has been sailing through the South Pacific. On quieter days, she loves to get her hands in the dirt and garden, read a good book, and thrash out some songs on the ukulele.