Executive Director

Mark joins The Glacier Trust as Executive Director following a career spent working across the environmental, education and charity sectors. Following nearly 10 years with the Environment Agency in a number of flooding-related roles, he moved into Education, working in a Bradford primary school as part of the Teach First programme, before teaching in a more rural setting in North Yorkshire. Mark was elected as Teach First President in 2017 and represented over 10,000 educators within the charity over a two-year period, working with school, universities, and organisations in the UK and overseas across a number of projects, as well as contributing to the strategic direction of the charity.

More recently, Mark has been working for the Yorkshire Dales National Park on the Tees-Swale: Naturally Connected programme, engaging schools, groups and the wider public in the landscape and cultural heritage of Swaledale, including working closely with farmers and landowners on regenerative farming practices.

Beyond the world of work, Mark has been a Mountain Rescue volunteer since 2008 across Calder Valley and Swaledale and is also a school governor at a local specialist school near his home in North Yorkshire.

Volunteer Climate Change Adaptation Adviser (UK)

After six incredible years leading the charity as Co-Director, Morgan is immersed in his new role as Head of Education and Youth Engagement at Global Action Plan. Morgan remains with TGT, volunteering as Climate Change Adaptation Adviser, dedicating half a day every week to continuing the work of TGT. He is also the author of ‘Great Adaptations - In the shadow of a climate crisis’ and continues as a thought leader for this important publication.

Morgan holds a BSc in Geography, an MSc in Environmental Science, Policy and Planning and a PhD in Environmental Education. He worked at Keep Britain Tidy for five years, spending two years as a Team Leader in Community Engagement and three years as Education Manager.

Previously, Morgan ran a small intercultural understanding charity, Global Footsteps and lectured on the politics of climate change at Brunel University.

Volunteer Project Liaison (Nepal)

Richard is a soil scientist, land resource, land use and watershed management specialist, with degrees in soil science and soil conservation, and 45 years’ experience on rural development projects in Africa and Asia. For the past 27 years, he has been based in the Himalayas, working on rural development projects in Nepal, Bhutan, India, Pakistan, China and Tibet. Based in Kathmandu since 2007, he completed a long term assignment on the Helvetas-Nepal Sustainable Soil Management Programme in December 2014, before a year on the British-Swiss-Finnish-Government of Nepal funded Multi Stakeholder Forestry Programme.

Living in Kathmandu, Richard now works part-time as Team Leader of the Mountain Hazelnuts project in Bhutan. His advice, enthusiasm and wide range of contacts were instrumental in setting up The Glacier Trust, and continue to be of enormous benefit to our work in Nepal.

Volunteer Ambassador

Levison Wood is a professional explorer, writer and photographer . He was born in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire.

After five years serving as an officer for the British Army in the Parachute Regiment, he left to pursue a career in adventure travel. With a friend he set up and worked as a guide for Secret Compass, an expedition company working in the world's wildest places.

A timely encounter with an actor and production company led to Levison's ambitious endeavour to walk the length of the Nile, which in 2014 was aired on Channel 4. Since then he has had three more critically-acclaimed documentary series, in which he has walked the length of the Himalayas, the Americas, and crossed the Caucasus. In early 2018 Levison completed his latest journey, a circumnavigation of the Arabian Peninsula, taking in thirteen Middle Eastern countries, which will be broadcast on TV in early 2019. Levison has written 5 best selling books about his ventures, the latest being Arabia, which was released in November 2018.

Levison is an elected fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and the Explorer’s Club. He currently serves in the British Army reserves as a major in the 77 Brigade.

Volunteer Ambassador

Sian joined TGT as an ambassador in 2017 and is helping to raise awareness of our work and the need to enable Climate Change adaptation in Nepal. Sian stars as Euros Holmes alongside Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman in the BBC's iconic Sherlock series. She played Natalie Brown in Moorside and recently co-starred in hit BBC series Doctor Foster. On stage Sian again starred alongside Cumberbatch as Ophelia in Shakespeare's Hamlet, gaining huge critical acclaim. Sian provides the voiceover for our documentary Coffee. Climate. Community.

You can follow Sian's career on IMDb, she has some very exciting new roles in the pipeline!

Trustee

Peter has had a 30 year career in the art world, first at Christie's and then as Managing Director of the Harlech Fine Art Group. He founded Berkeley Square Gallery in London and now owns Osborne Samuel, a well known London Gallery specialising in Modern British art and in art from emerging markets. Peter has held board positions at the Society of London Art Dealers for many years and also lectures on the art business and new markets.

Through the gallery and personally Peter supports several causes. For many years he was on the corporate advisory board of the British Red Cross. The gallery founded the Bombay Street Children Fund, and for years has supported the work of One World Action on working women's rights in India and elsewhere. The gallery also supports Tamwed, a small charity funding agricultural projects in Southern India. Peter's business experience makes him a valuable non executive board member.

Trustee

Jamie began with us as a Programme Development Manager and stepped up to the position of Co-Director when our founder Robin Garton sadly died. Stepping down form this position to pursue a career in web development and design, Jamie stayed on board as a trustee. He brings with him a wealth of experience and knowledge gained from his time as Co-Director, as well as an excellent background knowledge of Nepal and Climate Change gleaned from research he conducted at the University of Southampton.

Jamie has visited Nepal many times and has volunteered at orphanages in the Kathmandu Valley, trekked in the Himalayan mountains and helped established our projects in Solukhumbu and Nawalparasi. He feels a strong bond to the country and is totally dedicated to achieving the Trust's goals.

Trustee

Andy was the Head of International Partnerships of the UK based development and policy agency One World Action. He has worked with community based and peoples organisations in Asia, Africa and Central America over the last 25 years. Building on his degree in Development Studies, his career evolved from being a member of a joint UK-India research programme on the social and economic effects of the Green Revolution to working with grassroots and women's organisations across Asia, Africa and Latin America. He worked first with organisations in India and then with two UK based organisations, War on Want (1985-1990) and One World Action (1990 to 2011).

Currently Andy is establishing what is said to be the UK’s first not-for-profit tour company, Fresh Eyes – People to People Travel. This is encouraging thoughtful, socially responsible travel and linking solidarity and travel together. Andy's lifetime of experience in International Development is of enormous value to The Glacier Trust, and provides the basis of best practice for the funding support which the Trust offers.

Trustee

Craig is Professor of Sustainability Science within Geography and Environmental Science at the University of Southampton. Craig’s research, applied research and consultancy focus lies at the intersection between the environment and social implications of environmental, climate change and management for sustainable development. This socio-environmental research emphasises the coordination of spatial data handling and the management / policy / governance implications of climate change / environmental vulnerability of communities, land cover and earth observation in decision-making support systems.

Craig plays an important role in the development of our Higher Education programme enabling us to forge links between postgraduate students and researchers at University of Southampton (UK) and Tribhuvan University (Nepal).

Founder

After tragically losing Robin who died in a fall in the Scottish Highlands in 2015, we at TGT are dedicated to continuing Robin's work of combating the worst effects of climate change and improving the lives of some of the poorest people in Nepal.

Robin had a forty year career as an international art dealer, specialising in German Expressionism, with sales to over 150 museums and public collections. At 55 he began mountaineering, which led to an interest in glaciology, climate change and glacier hazards. To develop these interests further, he went to Southampton University, graduating with a Physical Geography degree in 2007, aged 61.

"Following my degree I found that the physical sciences quantifying the hazards produced by climate change, such as outbursts from rapidly melting glaciers, had little or no connection with those communities most at risk. Yet there are many areas where environmental science could do much to benefit the Himalayan communities that are so dramatically affected. So I became interested in trying to bridge these gaps between science and the community."

Robin set up The Glacier Trust in July 2008 from his home in Wiltshire from where he managed the organisation. His drive, enthusiasm and kindness is sorely missed.