About
Working towards thriving coasts, seas and coastal communities across the UK.
Recognised as a “30 under 30” global environmental leader by the NAAEE
Winner national Rising Star Awards 2021 – Charity and Not-for-Profit
Emily is a marine and coastal specialist at the forefront of driving positive change for our ocean and all of us that depend on it. She has a strong track-record in the development of pioneering projects, campaigns and digital communications that engage people with our ocean and its protection. To date, Emily has secured over £5m in funding for inclusive marine and coastal conservation projects in the UK. She currently leads the Local Government Association Coastal Special Interest Group and is a Trustee of the UK’s leading marine charity, Marine Conservation Society.
Emily is a credible ocean advocate, as comfortable speaking to a school group as to a TV crew or the Secretary of State for the Environment. She has appeared on national TV & radio and written for various magazines discussing the issues of the day. Watch her speak at the International Marine Conservation Congress here and on a national Sky News interview here. She is committed to recognising when to use her voice and when to pass the mic.
She shares her adventures on Marine Biology Life.
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Key Achievements & Recent Work
- 2021 Winner – Rising Star Awards – Charity and Not-for-Profit Category for her work for England’s coast and its communities.
- Recognised as one of “30 under 30” global environmental leaders in 2020 by the North American Association for Environment Education. Emily was selected for her work to enable a wider range of people to enjoy and take action to protect our coasts and seas.
n - Developed a £5m programme of marine conservation and education projects, the first of its kind in the UK (2016-2019)
Emily led the programme development process, securing match funding and writing the successful Stage 1 application, securing £250,000 in development funding. She was then appointed as an advisor to the Partnership Board and contributed significantly to the documentation for the full Stage 2 bid. This pioneering scheme was awarded £2.78m funding in March 2020, see here.
~~ - Developed a major new conservation project on the Dee Estuary (2018-2021)
Emily was commissioned to support project development, advise on community consultation and to write the (successful) Stage 1 funding bid. The project was awarded £101,400 development funding in late 2018. Emily was a professional advisor to the development team and a full application was submitted in May 2021. Read the Stage 1 announcement here, including a quote from Emily.
~ - Published new research on UK humpback whales with all data collected by volunteers. This research reported on the first ever photo-ID match of a UK humpback whale to their Arctic feeding grounds and suggests that British seas act as a migratory stopover/alternative destination for migrating humpback whales. Read Emily’s paper, published in Marine Biodiversity Records, here.
~ - Co-led research expeditions to Sicily and the Azores to collect samples for the study of population genetics of Bottlenose Dolphins and Yellowmouth Barracuda.
~ - Led a marine ecology field course in Indonesia (2019)
Emily delivered lectures and led surveys covering the ecology and conservation of coral reefs, mangroves, seagrasses and sea turtles.
~ - Emily presented her work at the 5th International Marine Conservation Congress (IMCC5) in Kuching, Sarawak (Borneo) and at the European Marine Science Educators Association (EMSEA) conference in Newcastle (England).
