campaigns and communications for environmental and social change

 

I am an independent campaigns and communications professional with over fifteen years’ campaigning experience across various issues including climate change, renewable energy, forests, young people, marine and fisheries, toxic chemicals, forests and sustainable tourism.

 

I learnt my 'trade' in the early 2000s at WWF UK where I had the opportunity to collaborate with Chris Rose of Campaign Strategy to design and lead a ground-breaking campaign for safer chemicals in collaboration with the Women's Institutes and The Co-operative Bank - a middle England coalition par excellence. For the campaign, we conducted various waves of blood testing, looking for hazardous and persistent chemicals in people's bodies, and then we took our results to MEPs in Brussels to demand better control of chemicals through new EU wide legislation known as REACH. The campaign was built on a 'survey discover act' model - Chris has written about it here.

 

Later I moved to WWF International in Switzerland to campaign on European fisheries and also coral reefs, supporting WWF's Coral Triangle initiative, including commissioning Jürgen Freund to document the region in a photographic expedition with the aim of putting the Coral Triangle on the map and establishing a new natural global icon akin to the Amazon or the Great Barrier Reef.

 

Later still, in 2009, I joined The Co-operative in Manchester to run their ethical campaigns team as was where I helped develop and run campaigns on lowering the voting age, climate change, tar sands, shale gas and renewable energy. During this time we kicked off various local community-led 'frack free' campaigns that are still going strong today.

 

Since 2011, through The Change Co., I have been offering a range of consultancy services in support of campaigns and communications for social and environmental change.

 

I work both independently and with a number of collaborators depending on the needs and demands of the project at hand.

 

I am based in Montpelier in Bristol – gateway to the west country! When not campaigning, I like to cycle, walk, surf, spend time in Nature, take photographs and play guitar. I also work occasionally as a Nature-based rites of passage guide and am working with others to bring Impact Hub to Bristol for a fairer and more sustainable city.

 

Before I became involved in environmental and social campaigning, I worked in television documentaries for almost ten years learning something about visual storytelling - which is important in a good campaign.

 

On the qualifications front I hold Bachelor’s degrees in History and Psychology, and a Master’s degree in Global Environmental Change & Policy as well as a Postgraduate Diploma in Psychotherapeutic Studies.