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RSPB Council
16 October 2009
RSPB Council is the governing body of the RSPB. It is responsible for ensuring the Society conducts its affairs in accordance with its Constitution and with the law.
There are 18 Council members (trustees) including the President, Chairman, Honorary Treasurer and three country committee chairmen for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. They are elected by the membership at the AGM in October each year and serve for five years.
Council and its main sub-committees operate to a schedule of quarterly meetings.
Council members
Ms Kate Humble (President) – television presenter and wildlife enthusiast; has presented a variety of science and natural history programmes, the most recent being The Frankincense Trail and the highly popular Springwatch and Autumnwatch series.
Mr Ian Darling FRICS (Chairman) – chartered surveyor with long history of active involvement with conservation organisations, including British Trust for Ornithology, Scottish Ornithologists Club and British Waterways; currently chairman of Isle of May Bird Observatory Trust; former managing director of Bell Ingram Chartered Surveyors in Scotland and chairman of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, Scotland; currently a member of the Lands Tribunal for Scotland and until recently served on the Court of Edinburgh University.
Mr Alan Martin (Honorary Treasurer) – chartered management accountant; spent most of his business life working in finance and running a company that manufacturers bird rings for studying bird movements; serves on World Land Trust Council, secretary of Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest Trust, former treasurer and chairman of the British Trust for Ornithology. Chairs RSPB Finance & Audit Committee.
Mrs Pamela Pumphrey (Chairman, Committee for Scotland) – runs an upland stock farm in Scotland. Active RSPB Local Group member.
Professor Steve Ormerod (Chairman, Committee for Wales) – professor of ecology at the Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, and fellow of the Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management.
Dr Julian Greenwood (Chairman, Committee for Northern Ireland) – principal lecturer in science education at Stranmills University College, Belfast. Research interests in shorebirds and seabirds.
Mr James Alexander - businessman and strategist; keen naturalist, birdwatcher and strong advocate of greener lifestyles. Alongside his financial business interests, he is chief executive officer of Green Thing. Chairs RSPB Communications Committee.
Mr David Baldock – has worked in environmental policy all his life and is Executive Director of the Institute for European Environmental Policy.
Dr Andrew Brown – environmental consultant and former Chief Executive of English Nature. Chairs RSPB Conservation Committee.
Mr Paul Cooke – farmer and businessman with experience in estate management. Qualified chartered surveyor with business interests encompassing property development, farming, forestry and mining.
Mr Kevin Cox – actively involved in publishing since 1981; Chairman and former Chief Executive of Origin Publishing. Serves on Council of the World Land Trust.
Mr Huw Jones – media specialist and former chief executive of the Welsh language TV channel, S4C. Fellow of the Royal Television Society.
Mr Gilbert Little – telecom industry specialist with business interests in telecommunications and healthcare.
Professor David Mitchell – environmental scientist specialising in rivers and wetlands, meteorology and climate systems. Member of Dudley Environmental Network and RSPB’s Stourbridge Local Group.
Ms Carol Rawlings – communications professional, currently working for UNISON; active RSPB volunteer in London.
Ms Rosemary Radcliffe – economist and business adviser; former chief economist with PricewaterhouseCoopers; has served on various government advisory and review bodies; currently serves on the Delivery Group overseeing the implementation of the Government’s Sustainable Food and Farming Strategy.
Mr Patrick Stirling-Aird - solicitor with a lifetime's passion for the conservation of birds of prey; Secretary of the Scottish Raptor Study Groups; non-executive director of an environmental research charity.
Mr Graeme Wallace – accountant and economist, and formerly a Director of PricewaterhouseCoopers' consulting practice. Assists with capercaillie conservation in Scotland, and as a bird and wildlife guide at a charitable conservation based eco-lodge in Amazonian Brazil.