The full conference programme will be available in March 2021
Keynote speakers and Panel Chairs
We are delighted to announce our keynote speakers and Panel Chairs for the conference:
Prof. Jaboury Ghazoul, Director of the Centre for sustainable forests and landscapes, University of Edinburgh
Jaboury Ghazoul is the Director of the Centre for Sustainable Forests and Landscapes at the University of Edinburgh, and Professor of Ecosystem Management at ETH Zurich, Switzerland. From 2015-2020 he was also holder of the Prince Bernhard Chair in International Nature Conservation at Utrecht University, the Netherlands. His research addresses ecological processes in the context of land use change, principally in tropical forested landscapes. He is author of four books and more than 180 journal articles. He was Editor-in-Chief of the journal Biotropica from 2006-2013, and President of the Association of Tropical Biology and Conservation in 2015.
Prof. Chris Quine, Chief Scientist, Forest Research
Chris Quine is Chief Scientist at Forest Research (FR) and a member of FR’s executive team. He has conducted applied research in temperate/boreal forest systems on topics such as wind risk, biodiversity, decision support, and ecosystem services. He has expertise in knowledge exchange and is committed to interdisciplinary research. He has recently contributed to the Tree Health and Plant Biosecurity Initiative, Defra’s ‘Future Proofing Plant Health’ programme and the Action Oak partnership and is sector lead for ‘forestry’ within the Scottish Government’s Plant Health Centre.
Chris’s first degree was in geography, followed by an MSc in forestry and its relation to land management, and after a period working in forest management he joined FR and undertook a part-time PhD in forest ecology at Edinburgh University. He was awarded an honorary professorship by Stirling University in September 2014 and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Foresters.
Geraint Richards, Head Forester at The Duchy Of Cornwall
Geraint graduated with an BSc in Forestry from Bangor, and following a spell with the Forestry Commission, was appointed to his current post as Head Forester at the Duchy of Cornwall in 1996. As Head Forester, he is responsible for the management of over 2000ha of trees, woodlands and forests across the Duchy’s extensive land-holding in the South-West of England and Herefordshire. Geraint is a trustee of Woodland Heritage and the British Horse-Loggers Charitable Trust, on the CLA’s Forestry and Woodland Committee, on the committees of the UK Squirrel Accord and the Plant Health and Biosecurity Alliance; he chairs Action Oak and until recently co-chaired Future Trees Trust and the National Tree Improvement Strategy and also the group focussing on developing forestry apprenticeships in England. Internationally, Geraint is working with forestry institutes in Australia, Canada and New Zealand and sits on the Board of Directors of the Canadian Institute of Forestry. In 2019 he was awarded the RFS Gold Medal for distinguished services to forestry. Geraint is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Foresters’ (FICFor).
Dr Liz Barron-Majerik MBE, Scotland Director, Lantra and Chair of the Forestry Skills Forum (England & Wales)
Dr Liz Barron-Majerik MBE, Scotland Director, Lantra and Chair of the Forestry Skills Forum (England & Wales). Prior to taking on the role of Lantra Scotland Director, Liz was the Programme Development Manager of Natural and Applied Science for Inverness College UHI, a role which included management of the Scottish School of Forestry and science and aquaculture provision. Liz has an academic background in plant science, and holds a degree in Botany and PhD in Agronomy. In 2011 she gained an MBE for her work engaging young people in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths), setting up and running the Inverness Science Festival and STEMinars. Liz also chairs the Forestry Skills Forum (England and Wales) which is dedicated to promoting education, skills, learning and development across the forestry sector. Members comprise the sector’s leading authorities, charities, companies, educational institutions and training providers.