Archives: Team Members

Tilly is a Farm Carbon and Soils Advisor for the FCT. Prior to this role, Tilly worked as a soil scientist, helping to support all elements of land development, management and regeneration by providing soil analysis and technical advice.

Her passion for soil was ignited and solidified during her masters degree at the University of Edinburgh and SRUC where she studied Soils and Sustainability. Here, she was able to research and study the impact of different land uses and farming systems on soil health and ecology, and the influence these practices have on the ability of soil to sequester carbon and regulate nitrous oxide emissions.

Location: South West

Stefan is based in Cornwall and supports a variety of projects at FCT, including work with Duchy of Cornwall tenant farmers and the Farm Net Zero project. Stefan grew up on a mixed tenanted family farm and studied Agriculture at the University of Reading. Here, a passion for soil health developed and became a central focus for his final year dissertation investigating the relationship between organic rotations and Soil Mesofauna populations. 

Aside from the family farm, Stefan has a diverse range of on farm experience, including livestock, arable and vegetable production. He has long been passionate about regenerative agricultural practices, recognising how they can promote better soil health to improve resilience and provide a range of mutually beneficial ecosystem services.

Location: South West

Read ‘A day in the life of Stefan Marks’ here.

Jemma works with FCT as a Farm Carbon and Soils Project Assistant. She has always enjoyed making and eating good food, with concern for sustainability and nutrition. She has also always been concerned about climate change and our environment, locally and globally. Having passed on a community project rescuing food which would otherwise have been wasted, she decided to ‘up the game’.

A distance learning Masters in Agroforestry and Global Food Security through Bangor Uni followed and Jemma is now committed to engaging farmers in carbon saving technologies, including increasing useful trees and hedges in farming systems.

In her spare time she works with a small Tanzanian NGO, supported by a small UK charity, ‘Friends of Empowering the Future’, providing education and support to smallholder and subsistence farmers in rural Tanzania where climate change is not well understood, but the consequences are already being suffered badly. Increasing knowledge, soil health and tree planting is an urgent priority. Watch out for the opportunity to join its ‘Farm Twinning’ programme, supporting others across the world who are also working for resilient livelihoods.

Location: South West

Lizzy oversees the updates to our farm carbon calculator. Lizzy previously worked analysing large data sets from biochemical analysis of crop plants and led on projects supporting research software development at the University of Sheffield. Having also worked in the charity sector helping constituents communicate climate change issues with their local and national decision-makers, Lizzy is interested in overcoming barriers to the adoption of more sustainable practices. Her training as a soil biologist has led to a passion for the need to protect and safeguard the potential of our agricultural soils.

Lizzy grew up on the border of Somerset and Devon in a rural farming community. She is now based in Sheffield where she recently completed her PhD researching the effects of mycorrhizal fungi on barley during drought. She has a masters degree in Plant and Microbial Biology (MRes) and a degree in Biology with a Modern Language (BSc Hons). In her spare time, Lizzy volunteers with Foodworks, a Sheffield-based charity who repurpose surplus food and also grow their own within the city using regenerative principles.

Location: Sheffield

Read ‘A day in the life of Lizzy Parker‘ here.

Izzy is our Data Scientist. She is passionate about getting useful insight from the valuable data we collect, using robust statistical techniques. 

Izzy previously worked in the Scottish Government’s Agricultural Analysis Unit, collecting and processing data for the June Agricultural Census and the Sheep and Goat Inventory. She was part of a programme designed to overhaul the data collection procedure, so as to reduce the burden on farmers and improve the quality of the data collected and its relevance towards climate change and other challenges facing farmers. Before that, she completed a Masters in Applied Statistics with the University of Strathclyde.

Izzy lives in Cumbria and is part of Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team, and spends all the spare time she can exploring hard-to-reach crags in the Lake District mountains.

Location: Cumbria

Read ‘A Day in the life of Izzy’ here.

James is our Calculator Development Officer, in charge of keeping the calculator updated, relevant and accessible to farmers. As a molecular biologist, James has extensive experience in biochemical data analysis and research which is used to further the development of the carbon calculator. His passion for agriculture and sustainable practices stems from his upbringing on a small farm and his PhD from the University of Sheffield, which focused on improving potato crop storage in partnership with the AHDB.

Location: Sheffield

Rob is based on the Devon/Cornwall border and is one of our Farm Carbon and Soils Advisors here at FCT. Rob came to us from a farm advisory role with the Devon Wildlife Trust. Here he primarily advised farmers on management changes to help improve water quality, as well as helping farmers to provide wider ecosystem services. Rob has an extensive background in livestock and arable farming in the UK, and further afield in Canada. He is passionate about regenerative systems, especially grazing systems and believes soil health should be at the core of any farm business.

Rob has also previously been the Southwest Regional facilitator for Pasture for Life, providing advice and support for its members in the region. Additionally he has a BSc in Environmental Biology from the University of Nottingham.

Location: South West

Read ‘A day in the life of Rob Purdew‘ here.

Jonathan runs Scilly Organics, growing fruit and veg that is sold locally on the Isles of Scilly. From 5 acres he runs a small box scheme, has a small roadside stall and supplies cafes and restaurants. Sustainable, resilient and low carbon food production is something he does on a daily basis! Jonathan also has a yurt on the farm that he lets out to visitors.

He wrote and co-developed what is now the Farm Carbon Calculator. Our online tool available to farmers and growers that allows them to accurately assess the carbon footprint of their farm businesses. He oversees strategic direction and development of the Calculator, which is currently going through a significant and exciting phase of development.

A founder member of Transition Scilly, Jonathan has been heavily involved with community initiatives to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, reduce individual and collective carbon footprints, and increase the resilience of the community. Enabling sustainabile living has been a part of his life for the past 20 years or more.

Jonathan is one of the original directors of Farm Carbon Toolkit.

Location: South West

Sam has been the General Manager since August 2020 and was a Non-Executive Director at FCT between 2018-2024. Sam was attracted to FCT because of its practical and positive approach – and the belief that farmer-to-farmer engagement is one of the best ways to support change in agriculture.

Sam previously worked with the sustainability non-profit Forum for the Future. His work there focused on supporting large organisations across the food and farming sector to grapple with the grand task of shifting our food and farming systems so that they support better livelihoods, healthier lifestyles and strengthened ecosystems. Sam is interested in how society can build greater resilience, while rapidly decarbonising and adapting to an increasingly challenging climate. 

In 2012-16, Sam managed Sutton Community Farm, a community-owned horticultural farm and VegBox scheme on the outskirts of London, that creates a warm, welcoming environment for people to join in. Before this, Sam spent four years at the sustainability charity Bioregional, where he developed his interest in carbon and ecological footprinting. Part of his role there helped organisations to understand and act on their footprints. 

In 2019, Sam was awarded a Nuffield Farming Scholarship which is focusing on the excitement and hope in the regenerative agriculture movement and whether it is offering a shared, transformative ambition for the food and farming sector.

To find out more, read Sam’s “Day in the Life” blog.

Location: Scotland