Lord Chris Smith presents Jonathon Porritt with SocEnv Honorary Fellowship
At the Society’s 4th Annual Reception on June 17th, Lord Chris Smith, Chairman of the Environment Agency, presented Jonathon Porritt with an Honorary Fellowship to the Society for the Environment. The Honorary Fellowship was in recognition of Jonathon’s outstanding service to sustainability and also his service to the Society.
Speaking at the event, Jonathon highlighted the strategic importance of Chartered Environmentalists; at a time when urgent action is needed to build on the foundations put in place by government to produce a more sustainable society. ‘We have a terrible record of leading the world on rhetoric and then failing to deliver in our own backyard;’ he continued ‘we are on a long journey to turn an economy from unsustainable economic growth, into genuinely sustainable economic development. I’m confident we are moving in the right direction, it’s just happening much too slowly’
Honorary Fellowship for Colin Challen MP
Chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Climate Change, Colin Challen MP, was also presented with an Honorary Fellowship at the event. It was his championing of the concept of Contraction & Convergence, as a framework within which to allocate emissions equitably per capita, which bought him to the attention of the Directors of the Society for the Environment. By awarding an Honorary Fellowship, SocEnv recognises the valuable contribution that Colin Challen has made to raising awareness of climate change concerns.
Honorary Fellowships for Founder Board Members
Also receiving their Honorary Fellowships at the Reception were founder board members of the Society for the Environment: Steve Martin, Robin Welcomme and Jon Prichard. All three were awarded Honorary Fellowships for their vital contribution to the early development of the Society for the Environment.
SocEnv Welcomes new Chairman, John Gregory
An exciting new chapter begins for the Society with the incoming Chairman, John Gregory, formerly Chair of the Registration Authority, Chair of the Management Committee and Vice Chair of SocEnv for the past 2 years. John has worked in fisheries in the UK and overseas for more than thirty years and is currently working for Environment Agency Wales in Cardiff.
Outgoing SocEnv Chairman, Tim Boldero of the Institution of Water Officers, welcomed John into the post saying ‘The Board elected John to succeed me as chairman and I know that he will relish the opportunity to continue the journey.’ Tim continued ‘The Society, in my view, is probably on the threshold of becoming something rather special as we continue to grow and develop an identity which has hardly seen the light of day thus far, but soon will.
Speaking after the Board meeting John said “SocEnv has a great opportunity to contribute to many environmental problems but none as important as championing efforts to adapt to the changing climate. We can engage with professionals of all disciplines on how we can use our expertise to seek solutions to the problems arising from our unsustainable use of natural resources. The Board can bring the expertise of CEnv’s to bear on these problems to influence public policy makers in responding to the public’s demands that we do more to meet these challenges in a rapidly changing environment. I’m looking forward to turning our attention to these issues whilst at the same time we develop the CEnv qualification into something valued by professionals and employers alike.”
John’s professional background is in fisheries science and he is a fellow and Vice-President of the Institute of Fisheries Management where he has been instrumental in developing its conferences, communications and CPD scheme.
