Written by Sufina Ahmad, Director
Published: 18 March 2021
John Ellerman Foundation is pleased to announce the appointment of Jonny Hughes as our new Trustee, with a specialist interest in environmental issues. Jonny is the WCMC Chief Executive Officer, at the UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), and chair elect of the Cambridge Conservation Initiative, a collaboration between the University of Cambridge and nine leading internationally focused nature conservation organisations.
Jonny is highly experienced and has worked in many different roles within the environmental sector. He has served as an elected Council member for the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), where he also chaired the Council’s policy and programme committee for four years. In addition, Jonny is non-executive director of Corrour Estate, a large upland estate in Scotland; chair of the Ecological Advisory Board of Ardtornish Estate, and trustee of the Postcode Trusts, which disburse funds from the People’s Postcode Lottery. Jonny is an honorary fellow of the University of Edinburgh, an Ambassador for the Scottish Wildlife Trust, and an honorary fellow of Scottish Environment Link.
John Ellerman Foundation has been a longstanding funder of environmental causes. Our aim is to contribute to a greater harmony between people and planet by supporting work that protects the seas and creates richer, more sustainable places on land. We offer multi-year core funding to support UK-registered charities delivering environmental work that is of national significance here in the UK and in the UK’s Overseas Territories. We look to partner with organisations that work collaboratively and sustainably to tackle causes as well as symptoms, and understand both the significance of habitats for human wellbeing, as well as the impact for people on nature. We support both practical and policy work.
Jonny is joined on the Board by eight other Trustees who are also highly experienced and passionate about our work. Foundation Chair, Hugh Raven, is also an expert in the environment sector and has provided us with environmental expertise and leadership since joining us as a Trustee in 2010. Of Jonny’s appointment, Hugh said, “There was a great deal of interest in the role from an exceptionally strong field. Jonny is an outstanding candidate and the Board of Trustees and staff are very much looking forward to welcoming him to the Foundation in March this year. Like many grantmakers, we are trying to respond to the global climate and nature crises we face, and Jonny will be vitally important in supporting our work on this.”