Angela Style, Chair of Trustees
Angela is an experienced charity leader, working at both CEO and board level, with over 12 years’ experience of trusteeship including serving as Chair of Endometriosis UK for six years until 2020. With an MSc in Voluntary Sector Management from The Bayes Business School (formerly Cass) she now works as a consultant for their Centre for Charity Effectiveness, specialising in strategy and governance. She is passionate about nature and our environment, regularly volunteering in her local woodland in South East London.
Deepa Senapathi
I am an ecologist and conservation biologist, originally from India but based in Britain over the last two decades. My research predominantly focuses on the impacts of environmental change on biodiversity. I have worked in both tropical and temperate systems and assessed the effects of climate change and land-use change on avian populations and insect pollinator communities. I’ve also worked as a knowledge exchange fellow with different stakeholder communities including policy makers, non-government organisations, delivery agencies and land managers with a view towards enhancing land management for biodiversity conservation and improving ecosystem services. More recently, I have begun to explore ecological intensification within small holder communities to enhance biodiversity and improve livelihoods. I currently Head the Department of Sustainable Land Management with the University of Reading’s School of Agriculture, Policy and Environment. I am passionate about supporting and mentoring conservation biologists especially early career researchers from diverse backgrounds.
Claire Inglis
I have spent the last nine years volunteering and working in the conservation and forestry sector, with a particular focus on habitat creation, restoration and management. I previously worked as a Site Manager for the Woodland Trust in Kent, a diverse patch which included Victory Wood in the Blean complex - a fantastic mixed mosaic stronghold for a number of rare and scarce invertebrates, including the Brown-banded, Red-shanked carder and Shrill carder bumblebees. The site was recognised in 2022 as a Shrill carder bee Champion Site. I recently relocated to Dartmoor and now work as a Treescapes Advisor for Devon Wildlife Trust, encouraging and supporting landowners and farmers to work and manage land in harmony with nature. I still pursue a number of voluntary roles, and have been a registered BeeWalker since 2019. I am very driven to continue to raise awareness and understanding of the importance of bumblebees, ensuring this is reflected in policy and working practices, securing a future where their populations are thriving.
Zuleika Brett
Zuleika has worked in the charity sector for over 19 years, and specialises in fundraising to help enable charities to achieve their missions. Her experience includes time with a variety of organisations including the Edinburgh International Festival, Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh, and V&A Dundee. Her work has included raising funds through corporate sponsorship, Trusts, and individual giving. She currently heads up the philanthropic major gifts and Patron programmes for the National Trust for Scotland as their Major Gifts Manager.
Blake Gaffney
I have served as a Trustee since 2020, helping us navigate successfully through the pandemic and widen our reach. I have really enjoyed being able to use my financial skills to help the Trust in saving and increasing the awareness of our wonderful bumblebees. I have 16 years experience, 13 of those post qualifications, in accounting and finance with tenure across several different industries, including audit, agriculture, vocational education, legal, and consultancy. Originally from Australia, with an agricultural upbringing, I now reside in SE London with my family enjoying sustainable gardening, cooking and of course extending my passion for animals and bumblebees.
David is a Chartered Accountant by background, with over 20 years’ experience in advisory and senior leadership roles. He is currently Partner within a legal and professional services firm and Chief Financial Officer for a financial services technology business. He also acts in an advisory capacity for a number of early-stage growth businesses and is an experienced Charity Trustee. David lives in Wilmslow, Cheshire, with his wife and two children and the whole family have a love of wildlife.
Dr Hazel Jackson
Hazel is the Head of Conservation Outcomes & Evidence at the Woodland Trust, responsible for ensuring their activities are underpinned by the latest knowledge and science. This includes delivery of Citizen Science projects, research funding, provision of expert advice & conservation training, monitoring & evaluation, and the production of the State of the UKs Woods and Trees report. Hazel provides organisational strategic direction and development to ensure activities deliver quality high-impact conservation outcomes. An evolutionary geneticist and wildlife conservationist, Hazel continues to co-supervise research as an affiliate at the Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology. A former civil servant and academic, Hazel transitioned to charity sector leadership with the ambition to bridge the gap between evidence, policy and practice. Found regularly stomping round her local woodland, home to shrill carder bees, Hazel joined the Board to help secure the future for our wonderful bumblebees.
Sabah Zdanowska
Sabah is the Founder and MD of Ventures Consulting, a strategy, product design and communications consultancy. Sabah works with organisations to design and develop specialist software and data/information services. She specialises in strategy, open data, integrating innovative technologies into software products and what it means for their overall running of the organisation. Sabah has advised start-ups, established companies, NGOs, public sector and multilateral organisations such as the UN. Previous to that she worked in senior roles in industry research in the telecoms sector, including spending two years living and working in Silicon Valley. Sabah was previously a Non-Executive Director for the Electoral Reform Society. More recently she has been advising CEOs at technology start-ups. Her projects in the sustainability sector include clients such as Greenpeace, TraseFinance an organisation that is bringing transparency to the hundreds of billions of dollars that directly and indirectly finance tropical deforestation and the Open Contracting Partnership whose goals include putting sustainability at the forefront of public sector procurement.
Georgia Romeril
Georgia holds more than 15 years’ experience in the charity sector. Most recently she headed up the Marketing and Communications Team at national charity, Missing People, before moving to a digital marketing agency that specialises in delivering charity campaigns. With a particular focus on digital, and a recent Digital Marketing qualification with CIM, Georgia is able to offer support and advice on both strategy and implementation across the whole marketing mix. Georgia is a lover of nature and a problem solver, with a passion for making a positive impact and is delighted to bring her experience to support the work of the Trust.