What did you work on or study before you joined the SWT team?

I previously worked in the Colne Valley Regional Park as a river officer tackling non-native invasive species, improving wetland habitats with volunteers, and running citizen science programs. Before that I studied Marine and Coastal Resource Management MSC at University of Portsmouth.

What’s your role and who will you be working most closely with?

My current role in the team is Wetland Officer. I will be working with Glen the wetlands manager on nature based solutions, river restoration and helping monitor surreys rivers.

Our rivers and wetlands are in a poor state.  What is the most urgent thing we need policymakers to do to save them?

I think one of the biggest things policymakers can do is hold water companies more accountable for their actions and the pollution they pump into rivers. Our rivers will never recover if they have large amounts of pollution pumped into them multiple times a year.

How can people at home help?

There are lots of things everyone can do at home: having 4-minute showers can save lots of water every year and creating a pond with a boggy area in your garden or outside space can help lots of species thrive.

Do you have a favourite wetland species or habitat, and why?

My favourite wetland species are grass snakes as they can often been swimming across ponds and lakes. It’s also thought that the British population could be its own separate species.