Podcast Summary: The Origins Foundation Podcast

Episode 612: Karla Pound || Alone In The Wild

Date: December 16, 2025
Host: The Origins Foundation
Guest: Karla Pound, Expedition Leader, Survivalist, TV Personality

Episode Overview

This episode features an in-depth conversation with Karla Pound, Australian survivalist and influencer known for her time on the television shows Alone (Australia, Season 3) and Million Dollar Island. The discussion explores Karla’s journey from growing up in a non-hunting family to becoming deeply involved in outdoor survival, conservation, and most recently, bow hunting. The exchange highlights her career with National Geographic, experiences on survival reality shows, challenges as a woman in the hunting/outdoor world, and her thoughtful approach to hunting, conservation, and public perception.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Karla’s Background and TV Experience

• Reality TV Path: Karla participated in two survival-based TV shows:
  • Million Dollar Island (placed ninth): More of a social/strategy game with 100 contestants (03:28).
  • Alone Australia, Season 3: True isolation and survival, filmed in Tasmania’s west coast during winter (14:31).
• Difference Between Shows: She emphasized Alone’s authenticity—total solitude, self-filming, and raw survival stress compared to social politics on other shows (04:14–04:26).

Notable Quote:

“For some weird reason when you’re out [on Alone], you just feel so okay being vulnerable… like, I haven’t even told my best mates about [the things I said on camera].”
— Karla, (04:26)

Expedition Career & Connection to Nature

• Professional Life: Karla is an expedition leader for National Geographic (05:25), running educational, boutique eco-tourism experiences, mostly around the South Pacific, New Zealand, Antarctica, and Mediterranean (06:00–06:38).
• Guiding Philosophy: She values deep cultural immersion and bringing naturalists, scientists, and guests together to learn and explore (06:08–06:38).

Australian Outdoor Culture and Gender

• Women in the Outdoors: Discussion on why Australian women are visible in fields like mining, construction, and the outdoors—cultural encouragement and hiring preferences for careful machinery operation (13:40).
• Army Reserve: Karla is also an Army reservist and always seeks new skills and qualifications, reflecting her lifelong “try harder” approach (12:41).

Early Exposure to the Outdoors

• Upbringing: Despite a non-hunting and non-camping family, Karla’s parents enrolled her in Girl Guides, sparking her passion for outdoor skills, navigation, and self-sufficiency (11:47–12:28).

Experience on Alone - Survival, Strategy, and Mental Challenge

• Real Survival: On Alone, she had minimal clothing, selected survival items, and had to self-film everything, making everything harder and more draining (15:09–16:39).
• Physical Impact: Survived five weeks on “two eels and one fish,” lost 18 kg, and discussed the physiological aftermath of starvation and challenges of refeeding (16:40–18:24).
• Psychological Impact: Left not due to hunger but to declining mental health and motivation, showing how psychological endurance can be as vital as physical strength (20:02–21:24).
• Uncertainty of Outcome: Contestants (and viewers) only learn the winner when the season airs (21:27).
• Preparation: She bulked up and switched to a carnivore diet pre-show to increase survival odds (16:52).

Notable Quote:

“My first bit of protein was 12 days in. I survived for five weeks on two eels and one fish. I lost 18 kilos... I put on 10 kilos before I went out.”
— Karla, (16:40–16:52)

Path to Hunting & Ethics

• First Steps: Until a few years ago, Karla had never hunted. Her growing love for “living off the land” and seeing indigenous cultures inspired interest in bow hunting, especially for its primal and skillful aspects (23:01–24:37).
• Rapid Progress: Successfully hunted a goat and pig early on, acknowledging this beginner’s luck (24:41).
• Connection to Conservation: Having worked as a zoologist and in wildlife, she struggles with the act of killing animals but sees hunting as a holistic experience tied to sustainability and respect (23:27–24:37).
• Community: She’s enthusiastic about the welcoming, supportive hunting community, especially among women (25:02–38:43).

Notable Quote:

“I’m an animal lover, number one… even now, when I take an animal’s life, there’s a very deep moment for me. It still hurts. I don’t like doing it, but it’s the whole picture…”
— Karla, (23:27)

Navigating Public Perception & Social Media

• Communication: Karla is intentionally transparent with her followers—warning before posting hunting content and explaining her reasoning and respect for the animal (27:27–29:17).
• Bridging Worlds: She sees herself as a unique, credible advocate to close the divide between animal lovers and hunters, especially as a female and a National Geographic leader (27:27–29:08).
• Social Media Dynamics: Lost followers over hunting content, but also received encouragement as someone uniquely positioned to educate (27:27–29:08).
• Hunting Imagery: Discussion on the problematic optics of traditional “trophy shots” and the need for hunters to communicate differently in the social media era (29:25–32:59).

Notable Quote:

“People are so quick to judge you being a bow hunter or any hunter, yet they’ll happily go to a supermarket and buy meat off the shelf… What we do gets so frowned upon, yet our animals have lived a wild life.”
— Karla, (28:14)

Host’s Commentary:

“We have not adjusted our communication style in 20 years. We still communicate by showing a dead animal, but now the world is watching us, and the world doesn’t understand that communication style.”
— Host, (29:25)

Bow Hunting, Skill, and Female Mentorship

• Ethics: Emphasizes only taking good, ethical shots; has not had to track injured animals and dreads that eventuality, but is committed to skill building and constant reflection (25:35–27:13).
• Mentorship: Karla, alongside mentor Sarah McDuffie, helps organize women’s bow hunting retreats and community events—addressing the high barriers women face entering hunting (36:27–38:42).
• Industry Role: Plans to work at Adventure Hunting in Brisbane to lower the intimidation barrier for women seeking to try hunting (38:30).

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• On Vulnerability in Nature:
  “For some weird reason when you’re out there [on Alone], you just feel so okay being vulnerable... you have so much time out there to reflect and to think and to feel deeper because you just have you in the wilderness.”
  — Karla, (04:26)

• On Ethical Hunting:
  “Unless it’s going to be a good shot, you don’t take the shot. And that’s how I’ve been influenced as well.”
  — Karla, (25:57)

• On Social Media and Advocacy:
  “Quite a few people have reached out to me saying you are the perfect person, the advocate for this to help close that gap. I’m a female. I’m working for National Geographic. I’m in the wildlife space as well. And I think being a female... helps to remove that stigma of bloodthirsty killers going out there and hunting.”
  — Karla, (28:00)

• On the Challenge for Women Hunters:
  “Unless you have a partner that’s into it or you grew up that way, how do you get into these things? It’s a high hurdle.”
  — Karla, (37:55)

• On the Purpose of Hunting:
  “The purpose is to kill. I want to be as lethal as I possibly can... as humane as possible. Indirectly... we want the animal to die very quickly. We want to reduce pain as much as possible.”
  — Host, (31:54)

Important Segments & Timestamps

| Time | Topic | |------------|---------------------------------------------------------| | 03:28 | Karla’s first reality show experience | | 06:00-06:38| National Geographic expedition work | | 11:47 | Childhood and Girl Guides introducing outdoor skills | | 14:31 | Details of Alone Australia, Season 3 | | 16:39-17:25| Starvation and survival challenges on Alone | | 21:24 | Psychological toll and not knowing one's standing | | 24:37 | Introduction to hunting and early bow hunting success | | 27:27-29:08| Social media backlash, advocacy, and communication | | 29:25-32:59| The need for new narratives and respectful imagery | | 36:27-38:42| Female mentorship and community growth in hunting |

Memorable Moments

• Karla surviving five weeks on minimal food during Alone, and the unique challenge of self-filming while starving.
• Reflections on women’s rise in traditionally male-dominated Australian industries and the hunting world.
• Insight into the emotional complexity of an animal lover becoming a hunter—using hunting to bridge broader cultural and ethical conversations.
• Host and guest sharing how deliberate, careful public communication can change perceptions of hunting and conservation.
• Initiatives for growing the female hunting community, including retreats and store outreach.
• Funny anecdotes about bush desserts (butter, white bread, and Milo), and the shared experiences with other women in the outdoors.

Tone & Language

The tone is open, honest, and reflective, marked by both enthusiasm and candid vulnerability. Karla’s humility, sense of humor, and earnestness in bridging two worlds—wildlife advocacy and ethical hunting—set the mood. The host is direct yet supportive, challenging but never combative, encouraging deeper reflection about hunting’s place in modern conservation.

Conclusion

This episode provides a compelling and nuanced exploration of survival, personal growth, and societal perception of hunting. Karla Pound emerges as a thoughtful ambassador at the intersection of wildlife advocacy, survival, and conservation-minded hunting. Her personal stories, reflective challenges, and mentorship efforts offer insight into how a new generation—particularly women—are reshaping the stories and values of the hunting and conservation community.