Sue Longstone, Director of Operations (North)
Environment Agency
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Sue Longstone, Director of Operations (North)
Environment Agency
Sue is the Director of Operations (North) at the Environment Agency where she has a varied role leading delivery across Greater Manchester, Merseyside & Cheshire, Cumbria & Lancashire, Yorkshire and the North East. She is the Operations portfolio lead for Regulated Industry. Prior to this, Sue led the national delivery of environmental monitoring. With more than 30 years’ experience, Sue was recently seconded to DHSC to increase laboratory capacity to test for Covid and have led on developing capacity within the Environment Agency to test wastewater for Covid.
David Renwick, Regional Operations Director for the North
Natural England
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David Renwick, Regional Operations Director for the North
Natural England
He was previously Director, North at National Lottery Heritage Fund. David is a trained ecologist with a BSc in Environmental Management and MScs in Restoration Ecology and Public Management. His previous roles include Director of Conservation at the North York Moors National Park ,Biodiversity Officer and Sustainable Development Manager at East Riding of Yorkshire Council, where he helped set up the Biodiversity Partnership and manage the funding and delivery of a complete ecological survey of the area. David previously sat on the UK Biodiversity Strategy Programme Board.
More locally he also sat on the York, North Yorkshire and East Riding Local Enterprise Partnership’s European Funding Committee.
David is married with a five-year-old son and as a family they enjoy walking, wildlife watching and visiting galleries and museums.
Chris Woodley-Stewart, Director
National Landscapes Association
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Chris Woodley-Stewart, Director
National Landscapes Association
Chris has worked in conservation for over 30 years and has been Director of the North Pennines AONB Partnership since 2001. He’s previously been Conservation Officer in the Chilterns AONB, ran a countryside management project in Essex and been a Ranger in Cheshire. He is a trustee and Vice Chair of the National Association for AONBs and has roles in a range of regional, national and international groups and partnerships. Chris thinks that were this a football match, nature would be 5 nil down; but it’s only half time and if we come out fighting nature can make a comeback.
Tony Gates, Chief Executive, Northumberland National Park Authority
National Parks Authorities
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Tony Gates, Chief Executive, Northumberland National Park Authority
National Parks Authorities
Tony Gates is the Chief Executive of Northumberland National Park Authority; a post he has held since November 2005. Tony has worked in landscape and heritage management for over 19 years and is an experienced senior executive and non-executive director.
In 2019 Tony was appointed chair of Your Homes Newcastle. He is also a member of the Council of the North East Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Board of Northumberland Tourism and the Kielder Partnership.
Tony is Chair of the North East Historic Environment Forum, a forum that champions the historic places and monuments of the north east. He is also Deputy Chair of the North East Farming and Rural Advisory Network which represents rural areas of the North East with Ministers and key decision-makers.
Mike Innerdale, Regional Director – North of England
National Trust
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Mike Innerdale, Regional Director – North of England
National Trust
Mike Innerdale has worked for the National Trust for over 15 years. In his current role as Regional Director, he has overall responsibility for the operation, care and management of the trust’s places across the North of England, including over 1500 staff and 5000 volunteers, 96,000 hectares of countryside and 51 miles of coastline.
Mike has a personal passion for the natural environment and engaging people with our amazing landscapes of the North. His career has focused on land and visitor management in National Parks, with extensive experience of developing and working in partnerships to delivery bigger and better outcomes for people and nature. He started as a volunteer and then a series of Ranger and Woodland Management roles before becoming Northern Reserves Manager for the RSPB and then joining NT as General Manager for the Peaks and then in the Lake District.
Steve Trotter, Chief Executive, Cumbria Wildlife Trust
The Wildlife Trusts
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Steve Trotter, Chief Executive, Cumbria Wildlife Trust
The Wildlife Trusts
Stephen is a lifelong naturalist, passionate nature conservationist and advocate for better access to the natural world. With a degree in Botany (Ecology) from Imperial College and a post graduate Diploma in Management Studies and MSc in Countryside Management from Manchester Metropolitan University, he has worked in the conservation and land management sector for more than 30 years.
Stephen worked for the National Trust for 20 years. In 2006, Stephen joined the New Forest National Park Authority as Director of Conservation, Recreation and Sustainable Development. Here he helped to set up and establish the new National Park. In 2010, Stephen was appointed Chief Executive for Warwickshire Wildlife Trust and in 2014, he moved to become Director, England and Living Landscapes for the 37 Wildlife Trusts in England.
Outside work time, Stephen is a passionate naturalist and student of everything in the outdoors, loves walking and spends far too much time trying to get better at wildlife photography.
Dr Tom Burditt, CEO of the Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside
The Wildlife Trusts
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Dr Tom Burditt, CEO of the Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside
The Wildlife Trusts
Dr Tom Burditt (Tom) is the CEO of the Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside having previously worked for National Trust in the Lake District and Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust. He is also a founder director of the Greater Manchester Environment Fund (Trust), Chair of Morecambe Bay Partnership, a trustee of the grant-giving Halpin Trust and a scout leader in Lonsdale, where he lives with his family. His passion is for halting the tragic decline in local biodiversity, and ensuring that everyone, wherever they live, has access to daily contact with nature. Oh, and music, especially folk music.
Jim Wardill, Operations Director, Northern England
RSPB
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Jim Wardill, Operations Director, Northern England
RSPB
A lifelong naturalist, with an International Nature Conservation background, Jim leads the RSPB’s Northern England operation. His 21 years working for the UK’s largest conservation organisation have seen him manage a diverse range of work areas including environmental education, community engagement, membership recruitment, reserves operations and landscape scale conservation. A founding member of Nature North, Jim is passionate about partnership working as a way of delivering conservation at scale.
Dr Amina Aboobakar. Director of Strategic Development and Stewardship for The Rivers Trust, seconded from United Utilities
The Rivers Trust
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Dr Amina Aboobakar. Director of Strategic Development and Stewardship for The Rivers Trust, seconded from United Utilities
The Rivers Trust
Responsible for leading on the development of strategic opportunities for The Rivers Trust movement, driving capability and technical expertise growth across the movement, in order to achieve the best possible deals for freshwater, catchments, and people.
Alistair Crosby, Regional Director ‑ Northern England
Woodland Trust
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Alistair Crosby, Regional Director ‑ Northern England
Woodland Trust
Alistair studied Forestry at Newton Rigg and University of Central Lancs. Brief spells being a self-employed Forester, roles in the Forestry Commission and working around the world led to a progressive career with the Woodland Trust covering a variety of positions across England. Over 20 years’ experience in woodland management, woodland creation and ancient woodland restoration, as well as leading on the Trust’s three largest land acquisitions in England, focusing on multi-purpose native woodland creation at scale. He now leads the Trust’s operational team in northern England, working collaboratively and in partnership, and with a significant focus on delivering the Trust’s Northern Forest ambitions.
Ivor Crowther
National Lottery Heritage Fund
Liam McAleese, Director of Our Natural World
Esmeé Fairbairn Foundation
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Liam McAleese, Director of Our Natural World
Esmeé Fairbairn Foundation
Before joining Esmée, Liam held senior roles at the Lake District National Park Authority and was a Non-Executive Director of National Park Partnerships LLP. Liam started his career in a range of roles in DEFRA and BEIS before establishing a successful marine planning and environmental consultancy business and taking on a non-executive director role in the Gardline Marine Science Group of companies.
