It was indeed an eye-opening session as Dr Jim Frazier, the celebrated wildlife cinematographer, visited SMART Campus for Leadership Lecture Series in November 2018, and spoke about the extent of environmental damage that is happening in the world.

Dr Jim Frazier is known for his contribution to wildlife conservation and other environmental issues and has filmed a number of documentaries with David Attenborough, the acclaimed producer of BBC. Dr Frazier has won a number of prestigious awards and out of those, Academy Award for Technical Achievement and Emmy Award are worth a mention.

As Dr Fazier took over the stage to mark the beginning of session, the students welcomed him with a loud applause. He then spoke at length on various aspects of environmental conservation and stated that the three most glaring issues to be addressed are -  global warming, deforestation and the risk of 5G radiation to wildlife and human beings.

Students were intently listening to the keynote speaker as he shared some stark realities like 60% of plants and animals destroyed due to irresponsible acts of mankind. He urged the students to take up the cause of environmental conservation more seriously and keep contributing in every small way, whether it is saying no to plastics and palm oil products or avoid using 5G cellular phones. Dr Frazier shared a series of wildlife pictures and videos that highlighted the beauty as well as the extreme damage that human beings are causing to the flora and fauna.

It is worth mentioning that Dr Frazier’s love with the camera has brought him acclaims as he invented ‘Frazier’s Lens’, which has been widely used in Hollywood and wildlife cinematography by directors like Steven Spielberg and James Cameron. The main feature of the lens is an extended tube and rotating prism that allows cinematographers to capture shots in minutes that previously took hours and required specially designed sets. The lens became such a sensation in the field of photography that Steven Spielberg went to the extent of saying “ I am never going to the set without Frazier’s Lens”.

Later Dr Frazier shared the stage with a panel of students where he answered various questions related to his career and success. During the discussion, he pointed out that he did not start thinking about this career very early in life but rather got inspired by events at a much later stage. He emphasised that persistence and hard work is the key to bring the ideas into reality and the same thing applied when he was inventing the Frazier's Lens.

Dr Frazier gave 100 points to the SMART Campus for its green and sustainable design and said that “the school has turned the right page” by doing its bit for the environment.

Community Connection, Care and Conserve is one of the 9GEMS that school practices as part of its educational framework and this series of the LLS motivated the students to take a deeper look at the cause of environmental conservation.

Watch the video here: