“Britain’s Most Fearless Man”, Bristol-based Benedict Allen, will share the secrets of his wilderness survival on Monday 12th October at the Pierian Centre. Benedict is the author of 11 books, but is probably best known for his TV programmes of exploration and endurance.

Benedict Allen has narrowly escaped death six times – and arguably no-one has more experience of surviving alone in as many remote environments. Last seen on our screens in BBC’s Travellers’ Century and Channel Five’s Unbreakable, Allen paved the way for the current generation of TV adventurers. “We are all explorers,” he says, “it's part of what makes us human. You don't need to be a professional, like me, hacking through a jungle or listening to the tales of a remote tribe. We all explore, whether working as dealers in the Stock Exchange, or hunting as nomads in the heart of Borneo.”

Benedict is speaking at the opening of the Indigenous Perspectives Conference on Columbus Day, Monday 12th October. His first-hand experience of indigenous people in jungle, tundra and desert enables him to speak about the phenomenal relationship they have with their environment. “For me,” he says, “journeying to remote places is about learning to live in a hostile environment from its indigenous residents. Travel is about shedding our preconceptions and trying to see the world from new perspectives. That's why I try not to take a GPS, and certainly not a satellite phone. These things connect me back to home, the place I'm trying to leave. Gadgets prevent you from becoming exposed to the place you're in – from making yourself vulnerable. Exploration to me is about that – not making your mark on a place, but allowing that place to make its mark on you.”

The Indigenous Perspectives Conference brings representatives of indigenous peoples from all over the world together with campaigners and academics specialising in different aspects of indigenous culture. It’s a unique opportunity to hear the indigenous voice in all its variety, and to find out how close to silence and extinction it’s being pushed. The cultures covered include the Jumma of the Chittagong Hill Tracts, the Mapuche of Chile, the Emberá of Panama, West Papua, Tibet, the Kiribati islands of Micronesia, and the Yagan and Kawesqar peoples of Tierra del Fuego. Speakers range from academics to individuals who have been jailed and beaten for defending their culture.

Benedict Allen looks back on his earlier journeys, saying “I belonged to the last generation that might pass through a wilderness for months on end and not encounter a single person of my own culture. It was a privileged time: never in all those years can I remember coming across a single other foreigner, whilst out on a trek.” But times are changing. “I think we all have to acknowledge that the world is not a playground,” he says. “As we become more and more aware of our carbon footprint, we will have to start, whether we like it or not, to justify our journeys.”

The Conference takes place on Columbus Day: Monday 12th October, 9.30am–4.30pm. It’s at The Pierian Centre, 27 Portland Square, St Pauls, Bristol BS2 8SA. The delegate rate of £45 includes lunch and refreshments – with limited concessionary places at £25 for low income, and £12.50 for students. To book ring 0117 924 4512 or info@pieriancentre.com. It’s a unique mix of academic rigour and warm, individual humanity!

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