Conference Host & Chair
David Lee, David Lee Media & Events Ltd
David Lee has hosted 250-plus events over the last decade, from large policy conferences to intimate roundtable discussions. He reshaped his business quickly after the enforced changes of Covid-19 and has already hosted more than 20 online conferences and webinars. He worked for daily newspapers for 20 years, latterly as Senior Assistant Editor of The Scotsman, before establishing his own business in 2009. As Director of David Lee Media & Events Ltd, David is a writer, editor, communications consultant, event organiser and event host. He is increasingly focused on online event hosting and podcasts. David works for public and private sector clients UK-wide and has a specific interest in rural affairs and a detailed knowledge of forestry in particular. His other specialisms include legal affairs, data science, fintech and general public policy.
Our Keynote Speakers
The Rt. Hon Lord Deben
The Rt. Hon John Gummer, Lord Deben, set up and now runs Sancroft, a Corporate Responsibility consultancy working with blue-chip companies around the world on environmental, social and ethical issues. Lord Deben is Chairman of the Committee on Climate Change, Valpak Limited, and the Personal Investment Management & Financial Advisers Association. He was the longest serving Secretary of State for the Environment the UK has ever had (1993-97). His sixteen years of top-level ministerial experience also include Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries & Food, Minister for London, Employment Minister and Paymaster General in HM Treasury. He has consistently championed an identity between environmental concerns and business sense.
Professor Sir Dieter Helm
Sir Dieter Helm is Professor of Economic Policy at the University of Oxford and Fellow in Economics at New College, Oxford. He was Independent Chair of the Natural Capital Committee, providing advice to the government on the sustainable use of natural capital, until the end of the second term of the Committee in November 2020. In the New Year 2021 Honours List, Dieter was awarded a knighthood for services to the environment, energy and utilities policy. He has written many books, most recently Net Zero (September 2020, William Collins) in which he addresses the action we all need to take to tackle the climate emergency. His other books include: Green & Prosperous Land (2019, William Collins), Burn Out: The Endgame for Fossil Fuels (2017), The Carbon Crunch: Revised and Updated (2015) and Natural Capital: Valuing the Planet (2016), all published by Yale University Press. Dieter has provided extensive advice to UK and European governments, including The Cost of Energy Review for the UK government in October 2017 and for the European Commission in preparing the Energy Roadmap 2030. He served both as a special advisor to the European Commissioner for Energy and as Chairman of the Ad Hoc Advisory Group on the Roadmap. He also assisted the Polish government in its presidency of the European Union Council. Dieter is Chairman of Natural Capital Research, developing natural capital models and assessments for the better use of land, and Honorary Vice President of the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust.
Our lineup of speakers
Sarah-Jane Laing, Chief Executive, Scottish Land & Estates
Sarah-Jane was appointed as Chief Executive of Scottish Land & Estates (SLE) in December 2019, the first woman to hold this role in the organisation’s 110-year history. Her role involves overseeing the policy work of the organisation, directing all external and internal communications and leading on lobbying and representational work alongside senior management responsibilities relating to the organisation. Sarah-Jane represents SLE on a large number of external stakeholder groups, she is a member of the Scottish Government's Women in Agriculture Taskforce and the Climate Change Emergency Response Group as well as a recipient of the Farmers Club Windsor Leadership bursary.
Mark Tennant, Chairman, Scottish Land & Estates
In April 2020, Mark became SLE's Chairman. Mark’s career has ranged from tending refugees to investment banking. Until 2017 he ran Innes Estates, a 4500-acre low ground estate in Morayshire, the centre of which is Innes House, a 17th century Scottish Renaissance house where the family has run weddings and corporate events for over 20 years. He has now handed it over to his son. Mark became SLE’s Vice Chairman Policy in 2018. His main focus over the past year has been developing its work on a post-Brexit integrated land management approach which delivers increased productivity as well as helping meet climate change targets.
Graeme McNaughton, Barclays, Headline Sponsor
Graeme is a Chartered Banker with 37 years of experience and leads Barclays Landed Estates Team in Scotland. He works with clients and their trusted advisors to structure banking solutions that suit the family and the Estate as a whole for a totally bespoke solution.
Stephen Young, Head of Policy, Scottish Land & Estates
Stephen Young joined SLE in August 2019 from the Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society (SAOS), where he was project manager. In his new role, Stephen is responsible for managing SLE’s policy team at its Musselburgh HQ, as well as leading development of SLE’s policy positions and guiding the provision of member advice. Stephen studied Rural Business Management at Aberdeen University and went on to work in an assistant manager’s role at the Borders Machinery Ring, dealing with member requests and purchasing farm inputs on their behalf.
Dr Eleanor Harris, Galbraith
Dr Eleanor Harris joined Galbraith as Natural Capital and Carbon Leader in 2021, based in Edinburgh. Eleanor was previously Policy Researcher with Confor focusing on carbon and biodiversity in forestry and timber production. She continues to build on this unsurpassed expertise at Galbraith, developing commercial opportunities in relation to Natural Capital assessments, Biodiversity Net Gain, Peatland and Soil Carbon, Regenerative Agriculture and environmental land management throughout the UK.
Jo Pike, Scottish Wildlife Trust
Jo has wide-ranging experience in the NGO sector, including in communications, environmental policy, advocacy, strategy development and stakeholder engagement. She was Project Director for the World Forum on Natural Capital from its inception in 2013 to its culmination in 2017 and was on the Steering Group for the Scottish Conservation Finance Project. She is currently Deputy Chair of the Scottish Forum on Natural Capital.
Robert Scott-Dempster - Partner, Head of Land and Rural Business
Robert heads the market leading Land & Rural Business team at Gillespie Macandrew and is accredited by the Law Society of Scotland as a specialist in agricultural law. His expertise includes agriculture and landed estates, rural businesses, ownership structures, capital taxation and succession. Robert has acted in some of Scotland's most high profile transactions and has first-hand experience of dealing with community and crofting community purchases, acting for both private individuals and communities. Robert is Chairman of Scottish Land & Estates Legal Committee.
Ronan Carr, CFO & Director of Natural Capital
Ronan is Director of Natural Capital and CFO at BeZero Carbon and holds the CFA Certificate in ESG Investing. He focuses on BeZero's work with landowners, investors and corporates on the research, design, and financing of carbon and other natural capital assets. Prior to BeZero Ronan had 20 years experience in macro investment research, latterly at Bank of America as a Cross Asset and European Equity Strategist. At Morgan Stanley he was part of the consistently top ranked European Equity Strategy team and also spent time as the Emerging Europe, Middle East & Africa Strategist. Ronan has a degree in International Commerce & French from University College Dublin, where he also won the Dean's List Award. He speaks French and Italian, and is a CFA charterholder.
Andrew Bradford, Kincardine Estate
Andrew Bradford started farming in 1976 and managed Kincardine Estate from 1979 until this summer. In the late 1980s (sorry can’t remember when) he persuaded the then SLF, somewhat against its will, that the organisation needed to focus on housing issues as well as the more-obvious land-using activities. He has been involved in rural housing ever since. He chaired the Dee District Salmon Fishery Board 1996- 2001 and has participated in committees and boards too numerous to list. He was Hon. Col. of Aberdeen University OTC 2012-20 and has been Vestry Secretary for his local church for nearly 30 years. With his wife they started a hospitality business in 1985 and a food business in 2008.
Dr Moses Jenkins, Senior Technical Officer, Historic Environment Scotland
Dr Moses Jenkins has worked for Historic Environment Scotland for 16 years where he is Senior Technical Officer. He has written various guidance notes over this time most notably on the subjects of brick and energy efficiency. In 2009 he edited the book Building Scotland and in 2018 authored the book The Scottish Brick Industry. He gained his PhD through the study of Scottish traditional brickwork in 2017 and is a conservation accredited member of the CIOB. At present he is engaged in the development of standards and qualifications to improve knowledge of retrofit measures for traditionally constructed buildings.
Fenning Welstead, Partner, Goldcrest Land & Forestry Group
Fenning read Ecological Science at Edinburgh University. He started his working life with Tilhill in 1978 followed by 38 years with John Clegg & Co. Fenning is now a founding Partner of GOLDCREST Land & Forestry Group. Achieving a balance between commercial viability of land use and the sustaining of natural equilibriums is a lifelong interest. It seems that ecology is finally becoming mainstream as we appreciate our vulnerability.
Gordon Brown, Managing Director, TreeStory
With over 25 years of experience in the forestry industry, Gordon wanted to shake things up, creating a revitalised Scotland through redefining our relationship with woodlands and forests. That’s why he cofounded TreeStory. Gordon leads the TreeStory team and is the main point of contact for clients and landowners. He loves providing new woodland experiences to our partners, inspiring them to connect with the land. As a forestry consultant, he specialises in landscape-scale forest restructuring and reafforestation projects and in developing continuous cover forestry systems. He always strives to find new ways to encourage diversity and ecological integrity in his forestry practice.
Ronan Kilduff, Chief Executive Officer, Elgin Energy
Ronan co-founded Elgin Energy in 2009 and has developed the business into one of the leading solar development platforms in the UK and Ireland. Prior to founding Elgin Energy, Ronan initiated and promoted two German real estate investment funds of over 1,000 residential units and a large portfolio of commercial real estate.
Edward Tennant, Innes Estate
Edward currently owns and runs Innes Estates a 4500-acre mixed arable estate in Morayshire the centre of which is Innes House, where weddings and corporate events have been run for over 20 years. Prior to taking over the reins Edward worked in the city for 12 years in the sales sector, working for Swiss, British and American firms. Edward holds a degree in Agriculture from the Royal Agricultural College.
Niall Macalister Hall, Torrisdale Castle Estate
Niall Macalister Hall and his wife Emma live at Torrisdale Castle Estate on the Kintyre Peninsula. Niall is the 5th generation of his family to live at the castle, and 4th to own the estate. He is a graduate of Aberdeen University in Land Economy and worked for 13 years at Smiths Gore, and in the latter years was in charge of the Farms and Estates Agency department in Scotland. Niall and Emma moved back to Torrisdale in 2013, and he undertakes consultancy work for Galbraith on a regular basis. During the last 8 years the estate has diversified considerably, and in addition to the existing holiday cottage business, there is now a 100kW hydro scheme, gin distillery, cafe and biomass boiler.
Jason Fox, Operations Director, Appetite Me
After beginning a career in the leisure industry, cutting his teeth with Centre Parcs Holiday Resorts, Jason ventured to London working within the visitor attraction field of the V&A, Science and Natural History museum’s with Benugo. Relocating to Edinburgh in 2010, still with Benugo, Jason worked alongside the then Historic Scotland commercial team managing their hospitality department. Further commercial contracts within Scotland where won during his 8 year tenure. Jason is now Operations Director with the Family Business of Appetite Me, setting up and managing Farm Shops and Restaurants from Aberdeen to Cowbridge in Wales.
Dr Vicky West, Scottish Forestry Woodland Carbon Code Manager
Dr Vicky West, UK Woodland Carbon Code Manager, Scottish Forestry. Vicky has overseen the management and development of the Woodland Carbon Code programme across the UK, and is also an Executive Board member of the UK’s Peatland Code. She has worked around 20 years with Forestry Commission and more recently Scottish Forestry, in areas of forestry policy and climate change, after completing a PhD in modelling global climate change.
Dr Nick Atkinson, Chief Science Officer
Nick is Chief Science Officer at BeZero, where his focus is on enabling nature-based solutions through unlocking novel finance streams. He is developing novel carbon solutions, including coastal and marine ecosystems, and natural capital beyond carbon. A lifelong career in conservation has led Nick to work in government, academia and third sector institutions, including over a decade at the Woodland Trust, where he pioneered the organisation's research and evidence function. He was involved in the development of the Woodland Carbon Code, the UK's Forest Genetic Resources strategy, and the government's national response to ash dieback. Nick has a degree in zoology from Nottingham University and a PhD in population genetics from Edinburgh University.
Jeremy Leggett, Bunloit Estate
Jeremy is a social entrepreneur, writer and climate campaigner. He is founder and exec director of Bunloit Rewilding Ltd, a start-up sequestering carbon, growing biodiversity and accelerating the rural green new deal on Scottish estates (two at present). Before embarking on the Bunloit project in March 2020, he founded Solarcentury (1998-2020), one of the world’s most respected solar energy companies, winner of a Queen's Award for Enterprise in Innovation. He also founded SolarAid (2006-2020), an international charity set up with a levy on annual Solarcentury profits, winner of a BITC Unilever Global Development Award. An Entrepreneur of the Year at the New Energy Awards, he was the first Hillary Laureate for International Leadership in Climate Change, has won a Gothenburg Prize, and was the first non-Dutch winner of a Royal Dutch Honorary Sustainability Award. After taking a D.Phil in Earth Science at the University of Oxford, he taught at the Imperial College of Science and Technology (1978-1989). He was scientific director of the climate campaign at Greenpeace (1990-1996), and has been an occasional lecturer on courses in business and environment at the universities of Oxford, Cambridge, and St Gallen (Switzerland). He has written four books about the climate crisis, as he has experienced it on the front lines for three decades. www.jeremyleggett.net
Alex Brewster, Rotmell Farming
The Brewster family have been farming in Perthshire for over 40 years. Rotmell Farm is a carbon capture certified upland beef and sheep farm, spanning over 1000ha of good grazing and hill ground. Alex’s farm is home to 180 Aberdeen Angus breeding cows and a flock of 700 breeding ewes, made up of a composite Innovis breed. Along with the livestock, the farm also has 4,000 organic laying hens, providing a local doorstep delivery service. As a Nuffield Farming Scholar and post Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) focus farm, Alex is keen on developing the symbiotic linkage between soil health and the future of red meat in the 21st century, using rotational grazing and animal management. In 2020 the farm won Soil Farmer of the Year in recognition of their dedication to improving soil health and carbon sequestration. For Alex and his team, it is all about working from the microbes up.
Fiona Hyslop, MSP
Fiona Hyslop is the Member of Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Linlithgow Constituency. Fiona has served as the MSP for the Linlithgow constituency since 2011, having represented the Lothians Region from 1999 to 2011. Fiona was one of the longest serving members in the history of the Scottish Government having served from 2007 until standing down as Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Fair Work and Culture in May 2021. Fiona currently sits on the Economy and Fair Work Committee and is the Deputy Convener of the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee.
Liam McArthur MSP
Liam grew up in Orkney and attended Kirkwall Grammar School, before graduating from the University of Edinburgh with a degree in Politics. He was elected as Orkney’s MSP in 2007, following a period as a Special Advisor to the then Deputy First Minister, Jim Wallace. He has also worked as a researcher at Westminster and in the European Commission, before embarking on a career in consultancy. Since being elected, Liam has been a member of various Committees, including Finance, Rural Affairs & Environment, Education & Culture and now Justice. He is currently the Scottish Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Justice and Energy, and leads for the party on the environment in parliament.
Rachael Hamilton, MSP
Rachael Hamilton is the Scottish Conservative and Unionist MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire. She was reappointed the Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Islands, following the Scottish parliamentary election in May. Rachael previously held the role of Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Tourism and Small Business, Social Security and Older People and was Deputy Chief Whip. She is committed to encouraging more young people and women into politics and plays an active role in Women2Win Scotland as a mentor and coach. Rachael wants to see rural areas thrive, including full fibre broadband to all rural areas by 2027, better clarity on farm policy direction and new rural apprenticeships.
Colin Smyth, MSP
Colin Smyth MSP is a Scottish Labour Party politician who has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the South Scotland region since the 2016 Scottish Parliament election. He was general secretary of the Scottish Labour Party 2008−2012 and a local Councillor in Dumfries and Galloway between 2007-2017. Colin is Scottish Labour’s Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Economic Development and Rural Affairs and is a member of the Scottish Parliament’s Economy Committee.