Election of Trustees

I have been lucky enough to be a trustee at EWT since 2016, first as treasurer, and now as Chair.  I fully support the work and the ambition of Essex Wildlife Trust.  I am constantly grateful to the amazing team here, staff, volunteers and trustees, who give so much to protect the wildlife in this fantastic county, and I am hugely privileged to be given the opportunity to support such a wonderful charity.

I have a finance background, having worked directly with charities and small businesses for many years, currently working with organisations in the UK and another which supports under-represented groups in sub-Saharan Africa.  I am also on the Board of two other small charities which are involved in international development and grant funding.  I have extensive governance and finance experience, and will continue to use that experience to support the Trust.

I worry about the future of our wildlife.  I worry that our leaders disregard the importance of the environment.  I worry that our children will not have as many opportunities to be in nature.  But I am also inspired by the Wildlife Trusts, by Essex, by the leaders and volunteers and supporters of EWT.  I strongly believe that together we can make a difference. 

I joined the board of trustees at Essex Wildlife Trust in January 2017, and feel enormously privileged and proud to have served the trust over this period.  I would love to continue to do so, as I am passionate about helping to protect the unique habitat and wildlife of our special county. 

My professional background and expertise is in brand and communications in the book publishing industry. I was Creative Director for the publisher Pan Macmillan (and board member for 16 years) leading their globalauthor-brand strategy, winning both individual and team awards at The British Book Awards. In 2018. I set-up my own business, a brand agency specialising in working with authors, including Jeffrey Archer and Elton John. Whilst running my business, I completed an MA in Photography at Falmouth University during 2021 and 2022, and aim to move into this new sphere on a professional basis.

I love the Essex landscape, and particularly our beautiful maritime environment, and I look forward to visiting all of our reserves, and meeting our wardens who do such brilliant work.

Since I was a boy I’ve loved nature, but now more than ever I realise that i  have to do everything i can to try and protect and grow nature. This means that on a personal basis, I’ve tried very hard to work towards net zero and biodiversity improvements in at home, in my business, in my volunteering, in my writing and in my charity donations.

Since joining Essex Wildlife Trust as a trustee I’ve helped Andrew Impey make Essex a better place for nature to thrive, encouraged improved, greener use of our funds and amplified our ability to tell people about it. 

I am a commercial specialist with over 23 years of experience in the sales and sponsorship sector. I have worked with a broad range of clients across the culture, entertainment, environmental, local government, sports & member sectors on start-up ideas through to the execution and sale of large- scale sponsorship opportunities (£5,000 - £5,000,000).  I am also Chair of the National Parks Partnerships (an entity set up to explore partnership working for the 15 UK National Parks). In this capacity I have helped to create a sustainable commercial strategy, identified prospects and generated introductions, recruited talent and helped NPP to evolve their commercial structure. This includes the development of the award-winning Revere project, which delivers large-scale private investment into nature. Partners include Santander, Estee Lauder and BMW. I am also a consultant to Forestry England and co-founder of the Women in Sponsorship networking group (a group set up and designed to support the professional development of women working within the sector). In March 2023 I was awarded an inaugural ESA Fellowship in recognition of my outstanding contribution to the sponsorship sector.

A lifelong lover of nature and the outdoors, I am keen to bring my experiences to the Essex Wildlife Trust and feel I can add value in supporting the strategic goals of the trust specifically in relation to inspiring and acquiring new members, and supporting the trusts work in the emerging financial ecosystems of “green finance”. I hope to be an active and supportive member of the board.