Public Speaking
Academic | Performer | Musician | Public Speaker | War Veteran
Background & Transition
Dr David Jackson is an internationally experienced speaker whose life story spans war, trauma, creativity, and transformation. A former Royal Marine Commando, David brings a rare depth of insight shaped by 21 years of military service, a diagnosis of PTSD, and a decades-long exploration of what it means to accept the past in a life journey of becoming who you want to be.
David speaks from lived experience—honestly, creatively, with emotional clarity and with humour. Audiences connect with his storytelling because it resists the typical narrative and invites a deeper reflection on identity, vulnerability, and self-expression. His talks often blend memoir, poetry, music, and philosophy, challenging stereotypes of veterans and opening spaces for shared humanity.
David’s work is rooted in a life shaped by service, creativity, and reflection. Drawing from personal history, he explores how lived experience shapes identity and how stories can bridge cultures, generations, and beliefs. His international collaborations include Minefield, a powerful project uniting British and Argentine veterans, where shared memories foster shared understanding. Through poetry, music, and film, David leads creative initiatives like Threads, helping others find their voice and reclaim their narrative. With academic grounding in psychology, counselling, and education, he brings thoughtful insight to emotional terrain, inviting audiences to reflect, laugh, and feel.
He has presented at conferences and events across the UK, Argentina, Switzerland, and Germany, and continues to work on multidisciplinary projects that invite dialogue, reflection, and personal truth.
Whether speaking to veteran communities, researchers, artists, students, or the general public, David brings warmth, integrity, and a belief that story is a bridge—not just between people, but between the self and society.