Board of Trustees
All our board members are senior managers and experts in their field whether this is information management, business development or biological recording. For a more detailed look into who is on our board we have provided a short biography describing who they are and what they bring to the board.
The board of trustees for the National Biodiversity Network Trust are elected by the membership on an annual basis. The board members as of April 2011 are:
SIR NEIL CHALMERS
Day job: Warden, Wadham College, Oxford
Trustee since July 2005, Chair since July 2005
Sir Neil is a zoologist, trained at Oxford and Cambridge Universities with a research career in the field of behavioural ecology, based on studies of primates, principally in East Africa and Brazil.
After a number of years spent as a lecturer in Zoology at the University of East Africa, he joined the Open University in Britain, in 1970, shortly after its foundation. During the 18 years that he spent at the University, he became heavily involved in the problem of making science accessible to lay-people using a wide variety of media and education techniques. He also became increasingly involved in management issues, finishing his time at the University as Dean of Science, before becoming Director of The Natural History Museum, in November 1988.
As Director of one of the world's largest and finest natural history museums, Sir Neil was dedicated to increasing the accessibility of the Museum to the general public, so increasing their understanding of our natural world. He was also committed to increasing the quality and impact of the Museum's science programmes and, through the Darwin Centre, he brought the Museum’s science into the public arena in a new way.
Sir Neil retired from The Natural History Museum in 2004 and became Warden of Wadham College, Oxford where he is the first scientist Warden since circa 1650. He was born in 1942 and is married with two daughters. In his spare time he enjoys music and playing squash.
As well as being Chairman of the NBN Trust, he is also President of the Marine Biological Association of the UK and also the Institute of Biology. He published “Social Behaviour in Primates” in 1979 and has written numerous papers on animal behaviour.
Having had a desire to increase the accessibility of information throughout his career, the whole NBN ethos of sharing information about wildlife is one in which Sir Neil has a passionate belief. Whilst at the Natural History Museum he was a strong supporter of the NBN, and ensured that the Museum contributed vigorously to its work. Indeed, the development of the Species Dictionary was a key part of this. With his support and leadership we believe that the NBN can build on the sound foundations already in place and look forward to real successes and achievements in the future.
PROF. MARK BAILEY
Day job: Science Director, CEH
Trustee since 2007
Mark Bailey is Science Director for the Biodiversity Programme at the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology. CEH is part of the Natural Environment Research Council and is the UK’s centre of excellence for land and freshwater ecology. Mark is recognised as a pioneer in the field of molecular microbial ecology and his research interests include soil microbiology and local adaptation, particularly the factors that link ecosystem function with diversity. He is a visiting Professor at Cardiff, Newcastle and Sheffield Universities and a fellow of the American Academy of Microbiologists and the Society of Biology. Mark is a member of the Board of Trustees for Rothamsted Research and the National Biodiversity Network. He chairs the UK Environmental Change Network and has been responsible for the delivery of the 2007 Countryside survey of Great Britain.
DR PETER CAREY
Day job: British Ecological Society
Trustee since February 2008
Pete Carey was nominated by the British Ecological Society. He was a Council member of BES between 2007 and 2010 and was interim Chair of the Public and Policy Committee in 2009 and 2010. Pete Carey worked for ITE and CEH between 1990 and 2009 and specialised in studies of the determinants of the distribution and abundance of species.
He has been studying the Lizard Orchid in populations throughout England for 20 years in an attempt to understand the limits on a species at its northern range edge. He managed the Countryside Survey field campaign in 2007 and was the lead author on the reports that followed. He is currently working as an independent academic ecologist and has an Affiliated Lectureship in the Department of plant Sciences at the University of Cambridge. E-mail pdc40@cam.ac.uk
DR MARK DIAMOND PHD (ZOOLOGY), MBA
Day job: Technical Manager (Conservation and Ecology), Environment Agency
Trustee since July 2004
Two years as a lecturer in ecology, one year as an ecologist at Risley Moss Cheshire followed by 19 years in the Environment Agency and its predecessors (NRA and North West Water Authority).
I lead the technical and scientific development of methods to support conservation and ecology for the Agency. This includes the planning of data acquisition and IS support for conservation. I also play a leading role in the development of Marine and Coastal Policy. I manage a team of 18 scientists and technical staff.
DR MICHAEL DOBSON
Day job: Director of the Freshwater Biological Association
Trustee since November 2011
Mike Dobson worked for many years as a river ecologist, with particular interest in upland stream dynamics and in ecology and management of tropical fresh waters. In his current role, he is responsible for running the Freshwater Biological Association (FBA), a charitable organisation that carries out research into freshwater ecology and conservation and which provides services (publications, training courses, meetings, etc.) for professional and amateur biologists worldwide. The FBA is also active in management and archiving of data and information, both physical (via its world-renowned library) and electronic.
Mike's personal interest in freshwater invertebrates manifests itself professionally in developing training and tools to assist in identification of freshwater fauna. He has co-authored several textbooks on aquatic ecology and two introductory keys to identification of freshwater invertebrates. He is a member of the Board of the Riverfly Partnership, which encourages volunteer involvement in environmental monitoring, and chairs the Lake District Still Waters Partnership, whose remit is to promote the sustainable management of lakes in the region. He is a fellow of the Linnean Society of London and a full member of the Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management.
MR PAUL HARDING MBE
Day job: Retired
Trustee since November 2008
Paul has been a key figure in the widespread development of biodiversity recording in the UK and Europe, following on the first UK Botanical Atlas, and his enthusiasm, insight and advice have played a significant part in ensuring that biological recording in the UK is seen to be amongst the best in the world. At the same time he is an acknowledged expert on the taxonomy, ecology and distribution of the Isopoda and other invertebrate groups. In all he has published alone or jointly some 63 papers, chapters or Reports, on surveys, distribution or biogeography, been a coauthor of 9 Distribution atlases and associated, with virtually all those published during his time at Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.
In view of his unique contributions to the development of biodiversity recording in the UK and his continuous promotion of cooperative recording activities that culminated in the impetus to develop a national biodiversity network, the National Biodiversity Network Trustees unanimously recommend that Paul Thomas Grant Harding be appointed an Honorary Member of the National Biodiversity Network Trust.
GARY LEWIS
Day job: Manager of Environmental Records Centre for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly
Trustee since February 2011
MR HUGH LUCAS
Day job: Aggregate Industries
Trustee since July 2009
Hugh is a Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, Member of the Institute of Quarrying and a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.
Hugh has worked in surveying and planning roles in various organisations and is now Head of Planning and Estates at Aggregate Industries, where he has worked since 2007.
MR ALAN MCKIRDY
Day job: Scottish Natural Heritage
Trustee since February 2006
MR MARTIN PARKINSON
Day job: Countryside Council for Wales
Trustee since November 2010
PROFESSOR PHILIP RAINBOW
Day job: Marine Biological Association
Trustee since February 2008
Phil Rainbow is Keeper of Zoology at the Natural History Museum, with research interests in the marine biology of trace metals and marine invertebrate biology.
Phil Rainbow graduated (Zoology) from the University of Cambridge in 1972, and completed a PhD (1975) on the biology of barnacles at UCNW Bangor. He was appointed to a lectureship in marine biology at Queen Mary College, University of London, with subsequent appointment to Reader and a personal chair in the University of London (1994), after the award of DSc from the University of Wales. In 1995 Phil became the Head of School of Biological Sciences at Queen Mary, followed in 1997 by his appointment as Keeper of Zoology at the NHM.
Although Phil has never lost his primary interest in the biology of barnacles, much of his active research addresses the question "What is the significance of accumulated trace metal concentrations in an organism?" This has led to an appreciation of the roles of essential metal requirements, physiological accumulation strategies, uptake mechanisms, trophic transfer and biochemical detoxification systems in determining accumulated body concentrations, under particular environmental conditions from estuaries and coastal waters to deep oceans. His wide experience of tropical coastal biology is allowing application of techniques of biomonitoring, well tried in temperate coastal waters, to the rapidly expanding metal pollution problems of developing countries.
PAUL ROSE
Day job: Head of Biodiversity Information Services at Joint Nature Conservation Committee
Trustee since 8th July 2010
After a first degree in Zoology I went on to research the feeding ecology of wild rats, the behavioural ecology of the corncrake (Crex crex) and the quantification of overhead cable collisions as a factor in avian mortality. While undertaking this research I also lectured, part-time, on Experimental Design and Statistics. However, for the last 25 years I have pursued a career in conservation, first with Wetlands International where I was responsible for automating the collection and analysis of data from the international waterfowl census, extending the scope of the census from European to global and establishing processes for the routine use of the census in conservation decisions. Examples of this include setting the 1% thresholds for use in identifying wetlands of international importance and providing the evidence base for establishment and implementation of the African Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement of the Bonn Convention. Since 1998, I have worked for the Joint Nature Conservation Committee where I am currently acting Director of Science. Underlying my entire career, there has been a common theme of trying to improve the value and use of science and data to conservation decision taking, and looking for innovative solutions to conservation issues.
Much of this work has been international, dealing with European policies, The Ramsar Convention and the Convention on Biological Diversity but it has also included prominent roles in the UK Biodiversity Action Plan, UK biodiversity reporting and indicators, and establishing effective interfaces between science and policy such as the establishment of the Global Biodiversity Information Facility, and the Rural Economy and Land Use research programme (RELU). All of this started from a childhood interest in biological recording of birds, vascular plants, moths and fungi so it is a great pleasure to now be involved in getting back to my routes and helping NBN to feed the efforts of so many biological recorders into conservation action and decision making.
ANDREW WOOD
Day job: Executive Director, Operations, Natural England
Trustee since July 2007
Over the past couple of years, Andrew has worked for the Countryside Agency, most recently as the Director for Landscape Access and Recreation. Prior to this he principally managed elements of the Countryside Agency’s change programme in relation to the Modernising Rural Delivery Programme. Throughout his career, Andrew has held a variety of policy development and implementation roles. In particular, he was responsible for the childcare policy in Wales for three years and was responsible for the Local Government reorganisation in Wales in the mid-1990s. Prior to joining the Countryside Agency, he worked with the Audit Commission; his last role there was Director of Policy.
DR. BARRY WYATT
Day job: Retired
Trustee since November 2001