The talented and committed team at Westcountry Rivers Trust has been having a positive impact for the region’s water environments for more than 26 years.
Our mix of professionals such as river scientists and farm advisors don’t tend to blow their own trumpets – but with two exciting awards bestowed on team members in September, we can’t let it go unnoticed.
Their fabulous accolades have been given in recognition of their contribution to our freshwater environments.
The first is our Fisheries Scientist, Grants Manager and Somerset and Dorset Team Leader Scott West.
Scott at work caring for eel populations in Somerset
On his Fellowship to the Institute of Fisheries Management (IFM), he said: “I’ve been an active member of the IFM all of my professional career and hold a number of positions within the organisation.
“Therefore, it is a great honour to be both nominated and accepted as a Fellow of the Institute in 2021.”
The award has been made due to Scott’s long-term commitment to sustainable fisheries management and his interest in supporting new professionals in the sector.
The second is our co-creation specialist Dr. Sarah Ward who received an Honorary Fellowship to the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM).
Sarah enjoying time by the river
Among other achievements, Sarah is a chartered environmentalist, founder of RainShare and co-founder of the WEM Pride network.
“I’m incredibly honoured and humbled to have been nominated for and accepted an Honorary Fellowship from CIWEM.
“Working in the water and environment sector for more than two decades (and being a CIWEM member for over half that time) means I’ve been fortunate to have met many inspiring and passionate people who have shared their time, knowledge, experience and perspectives with me.
“Through this Fellowship I can bring these together with my personal knowledge, experience and perspectives and give something back to CIWEM’s Diversity & Inclusion work, WEM Pride activities, articles for The Environment magazine and hopefully more through CIWEM’s policy work in the future.
“Like nature, people are diverse but in that lies our strength – we just need to learn to make visible the invisible and embrace everything and everyone to adapt and create change together.”
We are incredibly proud of both Scott and Sarah’s Fellowships; it’s great to have them on our side restoring, protecting, and building resilience in our Westcountry communities, rivers and waterbodies.
Congratulations.