Bioregional Key People

Think before you print

Newsletter

About us


	Introduction

	Background

	Key People

	Eco-footprinting

	Register of interests

	Annual Reports

	Core Funders



	Key People

	Sue Riddlestone Executive Director and Co-Founder of BioRegional Sue, a mother of three, formerly practised as a nurse. At BioRegional Sue has pioneered projects on sustainable paper production including Local Paper for London and the Laundry. She led a team to develop the MiniMill, new small-scale technology to produce paper pulp and is Director of BioRegional MiniMills Ltd. She also initiated practical research into more efficient ways of producing textiles from hemp. Sue is a co-founding director of One Planet Living, a joint initiative between BioRegional and WWF. As a member of the London Sustainable Development Commission, Sue has worked on setting targets for reducing London's CO2 emissions and the London 2012 Olympic bid. BioRegional, with WWF, subsequently worked with London 2012 to write the sustainability strategy “One Planet Olympics”. Sue co-authored a book with co-founder Pooran Desai about BioRegional’s projects and approach “BioRegional Solutions”.



	Pooran Desai One Planet Living Technical Director and Co-Founder of BioRegional Pooran studied physiological sciences at Oxford University. He founded the BioRegional Charcoal Company and has worked to revive London’s lavender industry. With architect Bill Dunster he initiated the BedZED eco-village. Pooran is a member of the government’s Advisory Committee on Consumer Products and the Environment. He is also a member of the commissioning panel of the Economic and Social Research Council and the Sustainable Technology programme.



	Joanna Hills Planning and Performance Director Joanna has a degree in civil engineering. Before joining BioRegional she spent 5 years managing a programme of projects in the field of sustainable transport, including improvements to pedestrian and cycle routes, and promoting travel alternatives for schools. Prior to that, she gained 8 years engineering experience on wastewater and sewerage schemes. She also holds a teaching qualification and spent a year facilitating environmental projects for young volunteers.



	Cara Whelan Resources Manager After graduating with a degree in philosophy and literature, Cara worked as an arts festival administrator as well as voluntarily working on varied arts, homelessness and sustainability projects. Most recently Cara worked with St Mungo’s as a fundraiser for four years, specialising in charitable trusts. She is actively involved in reducing her own environmental footprint.



	Emma Croxson Operations manager Emma has a background in Ecology and Environmental Management, before joining BioRegional she worked for The Centre for Population Biology and The Mammal Society. Over the six years that Emma has been with BioRegional she has held a variety of positions including running BioRegional Charcoal Company for over two years.



	Jennie Organ Communications Manager Jennie has a BA Hons Degree in Marketing. Whist studying she volunteered for Friends of the Earth Birmingham. After graduating she worked for a commercial PR agency, leaving to join BioRegional in 2001.



	Tom Chance Communications and IT Officer Tom recently completed an MA in Philosophy, specialising in green political philosophy. Whilst at university he co-founded a successful environmental campaigning group and a community arts organisation, whilst also volunteering for Greenpeace, the Green Party and various single issue lobbying campaigns. Prior to working for BioRegional he was a freelance journalist and web consultant. Tom also sits on the Management Committee of People & Planet and is a Director of RAVE, the arts community he founded in Reading.


	Ben Gill Consultant for BioRegional Consulting Ben graduated in Earth Science and completed an MSc in Environmental Technology. He has worked in energy efficiency and waste management in between volunteering in an environmental education centre in Spain and on a sustainable farming project in Senegal. He has planted and manages a small woodland and now works with the consulting team at BioRegional.



	Anna Francis Consultant for BioRegional Consulting Since completing a BSc in International Management and French and an MSc in Environmental Science, Policy and Planning, Anna has gained a range of experience in the environmental sector. Prior to joining BioRegional she worked as an Environmental Consultant for Waste Watch specialising in sustainable resource management, recycling and waste. She has also worked on a range of local food projects, helped to co-ordinate an environmental project in the Himalayas and worked in the communications department of a multinational energy company in Paris. Anna now works with the consulting team at BioRegional.



	Liz Darley Sustainability Consultant Liz graduated with a MEng degree in civil engineering from Cambridge University. She has subsequently achieved the qualification of Chartered Engineer through the Institution of Civil Engineers. She has worked for 4 years on a variety of civil engineering projects including flood risk management, water supply and transport. Liz now works with the Consulting team at BioRegional.



	Hayley Bell Project officer, Communities Team Hayley graduated from the University of Nottingham with a First Class Hons degree in Environmental Science BSc. During the summer before her final year, Hayley completed an internship with Business Eco Group, an Environmental Management Consultancy. Her position involved assisting with Behavioural Change campaigns to improve recycling participation in several London boroughs. For three months she also worked on a conservation project in Tanzania, monitoring the biodiversity of woodlands adjacent to farmland. This research in now being used by the organisation Frontier to develop management programmes in the region .



	Sumeet Manchanda International Programme Manager, One Planet Living Communities Sumeet worked as an architectural consultant in India’s development sector for seven years, including three years as national consultant to the World Bank/ DFID sponsored District Primary Education Programme. He co-authored a standard reference book on rural primary school construction, and wrote various consultancy reports and training documents on cost-effective and low energy construction technology. He then completed an MSc in Development Management from the London School of Economics. Sumeet worked with the consulting team at BioRegional until August 2006 when he became the International Programme Manager for One Planet Living Communities.



	Matt Mellen One Planet Living Communities Coordinator Matt studied biology as a first degree with specific interests in the marine environment, evolution and Gaia Theory. He volunteered abroad doing ecological surveys in Indonesisa and then helping at a shark research station in the Bahamas run by the University of Miami. Returning to England he worked as an environmental campaigner and researcher for two UK based environmental NGOs. Since then he returned to university to complete an MSc in Environmental Technology at Imperial College.



	Kendal Marsland-Murray One Planet Living Australia Manager Kendal is a Recreation Planning and Management graduate. Having left Australia in 1998, she completed her studies in the USA before travelling and working through the States and Europe. She has been with BioRegional since 2002 in a variety of roles. She is now One Planet Living country manager for Australia, where she is based.



	Xiao-hong Chen One Planet Living China Country Manager Xiaohong is a Chinese qualified structural engineer, and has eight years experience working in China developing high rise residential buildings and office-factory mix used buildings. Prior to joining the BioRegional OPL team, Xiao Hong also worked for five years for a UK property investment and management company, gaining experience in both finance and management.



	Greg Searle One Planet Living North America Greg has lived and worked in Rome, London, and Washington DC. His technology consulting practice took him on assignment to Asia, Africa, and South America. Greg’s clients included the United Nations (FAO), Wetlands International, SR Telecom, IDRC, and most recently the World Conservation Union (IUCN), where he acted as Strategy Advisor and Brand Manager to the Save Biodiversity global campaign. Greg co-founded Tomoye Corporation in 2000. As Chief Technology Officer he designed professional online community software that is used today by tens of thousands of knowledge workers in such enterprises as John Deere, Mars Chocolate, USAID, UNESCO, and Conservation International. Greg continues to serve as an owner and Director of the corporation. Back home in Ottawa, Canada, Greg drives the electricfrog (a hideously green hybrid car), and spends his spare time converting his rustic log cabin into an unlikely eco-home.



	Rodney Wilts One Planet Living North America Rodney's background is as an environmental lawyer, having previously worked for West Coast Environmental Law in Vancouver. Upon leaving the law Rodney founded Canada's first green building supply store. While CEO of The Healthiest Home and Building Supplies he worked on green building projects big and small, including supplying materials for some of Canada's first LEED condominium projects. Rodney is a LEED Accredited Professional, sits on the Net Zero Energy Healthy Housing Iniatitive selection committee, and grows some of the best organic squash in North America.



	Sarah Alsen One Planet Living Country Manager, South Africa Sarah comes from a nursing background and has completed an Honours in Nature Conservation in South Africa and Masters in Environmental Science at London University. She started work with BioRegional on a volunteer basis and worked with Sue Riddlestone on the MiniMills project in its infancy before returning to Cape Town for consultancy work in 1999 / 2000. Sarah now works as Country Manager for the One Planet Living South Africa community.



	Nicole Lazarus BEng Hons One Planet Living country manager, UK Nicole is the One Planet Living country manager for the UK, Project Manager for Z-squared and for the BioRegional Reclaimed programme, a project specialising in sourcing, supplying and promoting reclaimed materials to construction projects. Nicole comes from a civil engineering background and joined BioRegional in 1997. She led the ZED programme within BioRegional throughout the BedZED project and Nicole now lives at BedZED as well as working there. She authored the BedZED Construction Materials Report and the BedZED Carbon Neutral Toolkit. Nicole graduated from Leeds University in 1990, spent 5 years in design consultancy at Knight Piesold & Partners and then 2 years as a site engineer for Taylor Woodrow on the Jubilee Line extension at London Bridge.


	Jane Durney Leads BioRegional's work on One Planet Olympics and is a Director of BioRegional Consulting and One Planet Products. Prior to joining BioRegional in 2003 Jane trained as a chartered accountant and also undertook an MSc in Environmental Change and Management at Oxford University. Until 2006 Jane led BioRegional's Z-squared project; developing a concept design for a 2,000 home zero carbon, zero waste community. Jane has undertaken a number of consulting projects around the world, working with developers to create sustainability action plans using the 10 One Planet Living Principles as a framework to ensure sustainability is at the heart of a project. Jane now leads our work on the One Planet Olympics while remaining as a Director of BioRegional Consulting and One Planet Products.



	Jane Hersey Z-squared waste researcher Jane has been at BioRegional since January 2003, she promoted a sustainable paper cycle through the Local Paper for Surrey project and is now working on a zero waste strategy for Z-squared. Previously, she worked at The Environment Council supporting the work of the Stakeholder Dialogue team. Jane studied Environmental Science at Bradford University.



	Jonathan Essex Reclaimed Materials Manager Jonathan is a Chartered Civil Engineer and Environmentalist with postgraduate qualifications in Development Management and Environmental Decision Making. He has consulted on the sustainability of development projects and programmes in the UK, Bangladesh and Vietnam, following a background in power, transport and maritime infrastructure with major consultants and contractors. Jonathan is a co-founder of the Living Well course and Sustainable Redhill, a local environmental forum. Jonathan combines his work with BioRegional with research and consultancy, focused on the linkages between climate change and visioning for future sustainability, economics and development strategies. Jonathan also sits on the advisory board of the Green Economics Institute.



	Jonny Miller Reclamation Project Officer



	Sarah Jeffcote MA, MBA Executive Director, One Planet Products Sarah is the executive director of One Planet Products. Sarah is a qualified solicitor and has practiced corporate and commercial law for eight years in London and overseas. She has lived and worked in London, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Melbourne. She also holds an MBA from the Judge Institute of Management Studies, University of Cambridge.




	Jess Hrivnak Supplier Manager & Product Specialist, One Planet Products Jess joined One Planet Products from Hopkins Architects where she worked as an architectural assistant with a particular focus on sustainability. During her time at Hopkins she became interested in the use of timber in architecture whilst developing a timber report on weathering and timber preservation for the office. Jess studied architecture at Cambridge, including an MPhil in “Environmental Design in Architecture”. Her diploma dissertation “Is relative sustainability relevant?” won the RIBA President’s Medal. She is on the judging panel for the RIBA Anne Spink Award 2006.



	Kate Millbank Marketing Manager, One Planet Products Kate joined BioRegional as Communications Officer in early 2006 following the completion of an MSc in Architecture: Advanced Environmental and Energy Studies in early 2006, graduating with a distinction. Kate become Marketing Manager for One Planet Products later in 2006. Whilst completing her MSc course Kate worked as a freelance environmental journalist and sustainability consultant for clients including The Energy Saving Trust, Impetus Consulting, Architype, SE2, The Weald and Downland Open Air Museum, Vitra and The Natural Decorating Company. Prior to this Kate worked in the design industry in the areas of fashion design and interiors, and has a BA honours degree from Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design.


	Jessica Hodge BedZED Centre Manager Jess has an MA in Documentary Film from the London College of Printing and a BA in Dance and Literature from Middlesex University. Before working for BioRegional she worked in wine marketing for Oddbins. Prior to that Jess completed an internship at The Forster Company, a social change communications consultancy. Jess started at BioRegional as Sales and Marketing Officer and then moved to being Manager of The Laundry, BioRegional's award winning recycling company. Jess is now the BedZED Centre Manager and looks after the BedZED show home and exhibition, as well as BioRegional's programme of events, tours and CPDs.




	Zoe Bell Assistant and Researcher to the Director Zoe holds degrees in Environmental Management and Protected Landscapes Management. Previously to joining Bioregional she has worked for four years in Malawi, Central Africa, as a development consultant and as assistant coordinator of the Malawi Environmental Endowment Trust. She has also spent four years as an enforcement officer for the Environment Agency, dealing with many aspects of pollution control.




	Emily Stott Hemp Textiles Project Manager Emily studied Archaeology and Anthropology at Cambridge University, where she was Green officer for Downing college, promoting recycling, renewable energy and fair trade. Emily joined BioRegional in 2002 and is now working from York as Hemp Textiles project manager, working with universities and industrial partners to develop UK hemp textile production alongside completing a part-time MA in Sustainable Business.


	Rachel Fleming The Laundry Manager Rachel holds a degree in Psychology, in which she had the opportunity to study Environmental Psychology. Before joining Bioregional, Rachel worked as an environmental consultant specialising in waste, recycling and packaging.



	Harriet Simpson Laundry Project Officer Harriet has a degree in Anthropology. Before joining BioRegional she worked as an assistant at BBE, an environmental projects charity for Northwest London, and volunteered at Groundwork Camden and Islington.



	Andrew Tolfts Forestry Manager Andrew is a professional forester with an MSc in Rural Resources and Environmental Policy. He worked in Southern Africa and the South Pacific before returning to UK in 2000. While overseas he managed a large forestry plantation and charcoal project, coordinated a 5 country eco-forestry project to develop Forest Stewardship Council compatible forest management systems and set up businesses using rainforest products as well as conducting forest certification assessments. At BioRegional Andrew is setting up wood chip supply for the BedZED CHP and stimulating development of a local wood chip fuel market. He is also a member of the regional charcoal project team, focusing on timber supplies and wood processing.



	Bill McManus Managing Director and Sales Director, Regional Charcoal Company Bill has come from a track record of success in many markets within the Unilever Group worldwide, before establishing the ISS sales and marketing consultancy.




	Geoff Chamberlain Finance Director, Regional Charcoal Company Geoff financed and managed projects worldwide for the Rio Tinto group, before establishing his own consultancy in financing, business planning and new ventures.



	Sarah Mooney BioRegional Charcoal Company Manager After graduating in Countryside Management, Sarah volunteered for Sutton Ecology Centre. She then worked as a member of Sutton Council’s Environment Team for eight years, promoting sustainable transport and other sustainability issues. She left Sutton to explore new options and volunteered for CPRE and BioRegional before becoming Account Manager for BioRegional Charcoal Company in November 2003.



	Angela Roberts Receptionist and Administration Assistant Angela studied Media at college and has travelled to Asia, the Middle East and Europe. Seeing the ecological devastation that we cause she is actively trying to reduce her ecofootprint and support BioRegional in promoting local sustainable development.