Showcase Event

Charlotte Powell

Charlotte Powell is Head of Bioenergy and Carbon Removals at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, where she is leading £150m of Net Zero Innovation Portfolio investment into Biomass Feedstocks, Hydrogen BECCS and Greenhouse Removals. Prior to joining DESNZ, Charlotte was the European Leader for GE Water, delivering large-scale wastewater and anaerobic digestion solutions. She has over 30 years of experience in engineering and sustainability.

Ian Shield

Ian has 30 years plus experience in agronomy in temperate agriculture, largely UK based. As Head of Long-Term Experiments and Agronomy, he supports the agronomic research conducted by Rothamsted Research and assists colleagues in applying their research under field conditions. As Chair of the Farm and Field Experiments Committee Ian is responsible for the oversight of the use of the Rothamsted Farms as a platform for field experimentation, working closely with the Head of Farms and Field Trials Managers. 

Ian is responsible for the management of the Large-Scale Rotations Experiment (LSRE) contributing to the Institute Strategic Programmes and other projects. The complex experiment is investigating many aspects of what is being termed Regenerative or Conservation Agriculture such as effects of crop rotation, cultivation regime, organic amendments and cover crops on a wide range of metrics. Along with all Rothamsted Long-Term Experiments the LSRE provides a platform for specific, detailed, studies in field conditions that take many years to create and are therefore beyond the timescale of most research projects. 

The Rothamsted work on biomass crops is also managed by Ian. This includes the national scale demonstration of potential crop options within Biomass Connect and the Rothamsted Willow Breeding Programme. The Accelerating Willow Breeding and Deployment project is developing Genomic Selection as a tool for the willow breeder. 

Kerrie Farrar

Kerrie graduated in 1996 with a Plant Sciences degree from the University of Edinburgh. She obtained a PhD in Plant Molecular Biology from the University of Durham (2000) and spent three years (2000-2003) as a postdoc at Aberystwyth University.

Kerrie has worked at IBERS (previously IGER) since January 2004; as a postdoc (2004-2007), a BBSRC Institute Career Path Fellow (2007-2013), Research Group leader for Energy Crop Biology (2011-2016), Theme leader for Agricultural Sciences & the BioEconomy (2018-2022) and as Institute Strategic Program lead for Resilient Crops (2023-present).

She has been a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology (FRSB) since 2014. Research in her lab aims to understand plant genomics, plant development and plant-microbe interactions, with a focus on the energy grass Miscanthus. Miscanthus is a perennial C4 grass which grows to a height of several metres every year, even in temperate climates, providing an annual biomass crop for over 15 years. Increasing biomass yield, under a changing climate, is essential in order to sequester carbon and to replace petroleum-based energy, liquid transport fuels, and bulk chemicals.

Paul Carver

Paul has worked in perennial grass propagation, production and scale up for the last 25 years, in the EU, North and South America. He co-founded New Energy Farms in 2009.

New Energy Farms is an agtech company, operating in the area of regenerative agriculture, providing long term feedstock crops with a high Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) profile.

Kevin Lindegaard

Kevin Lindegaard has nearly 30 years of experience working in the field of energy crops and renewable energy. He spent 7 years working at Long Ashton Research Station as the plant breeder in charge of the European Willow Breeding Programme. He was responsible for breeding high-yielding and disease resistant willow varieties including: Resolution, Endurance and Endeavour.

Kevin has acted as a consultant for 20 years and has done hundreds of feasibility studies. He is currently using his consultancy skills to help build the Envirocrops web app – a decision support tool that will harness the digital tools we take for granted in modern life. He also is a key member of the Biomass Connect consortia. He also runs the Sustainable Fuel Register. He is a former director of the Wood Heat Association.

Timothy Volk

Dr. Timothy Volk, Department of Sustainable Resources Management, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY-ESF). Email: [email protected]

Tim Volk has over 30 years of experience working in the fields of forestry, agroforestry, short-rotation woody crops, bioenergy and phytoremediation in the Northeastern United States and Africa. He is currently a professor at SUNY-ESF in Syracuse, NY where he is responsible for projects focused on developing the wood based bioeconomy, implementing MMRV (monitoring measurement, reporting and verification) systems for carbon under different forest management practices, development of short rotation woody crop biomass systems as a feedstock for bioproducts and bioenergy, and the use of shrub willow as an alternative cover for an industrial waste site. He is also actively involved in research and development of sustainability assessments of bioenergy systems, life cycle assessments of willow biomass crops and woody biomass from forests, using willow in living snow fences and sound barriers, and harvesting systems for short rotation woody crops.

Steve Hunt

Steve Hunt is a visionary environmentalist bringing extensive knowledge and experience in sustainable agriculture, forestry, and environmental conservation. His dedication to innovation and his ownership of Europe’s largest independent tree research plantation make both Steve and his brother Matt the driving force behind this project.

Steve spearheads the development of cutting-edge solutions for sustainable agriculture and gardening practices. With a background in Horticulture and a fervent dedication to environmental stewardship.

Steve is always searching to promote plant health, soil fertility, and ecological balance. Through his expertise, Steve is committed to pioneering innovative approaches that not only benefit farmers and gardeners but also contribute to a greener and more sustainable future for generations to come.

His expertise has been instrumental in driving innovation through his involvement in the Biomass Connect project which underscores his commitment to advancing renewable energy and environmental initiatives on a national scale.

Steve is dedicated to working and networking with many Universities and commercial users to address biodiversity conservation.

Steve Smith

With a background in atmospheric physics and a career in UK climate policy, Steve’s interests lie at the intersection of climate science and decision-making. He is Executive Director Oxford Net Zero and CO2RE: two programmes both focussed on stabilising the climate both rapidly and sustainably.

Oxford Net Zero brings together experts from across the University to address the critical issue of how to reach global net zero emissions. It includes academics from disciplines including Anthropology, Biology, Earth Sciences, Geography, Law, Business and Governance.

CO2RE is a multi-disciplinary research hub focused on removing greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. Backed by seven UK universities, CO2RE works with demonstration-scale removal projects around the country. It conducts solutions-led research to develop and evaluate a balanced portfolio of scalable techniques.

Steve has published in major journals on a range of topics, including metrics for comparing emissions of different greenhouse gases, and the governance of carbon dioxide removal. He is also passionate about turning the latest science into usable tools, such as the Net Zero Tracker and the State of Carbon Dioxide Removal.

He joined the Smith School from the UK Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) where he co-led the Climate Science Team and played a role in the legislation of the UK’s net zero target. Before that he was Head of Science at the Committee on Climate Change. He has a PhD from Imperial College London and is a Fellow of the Royal Meteorological Society.

Alongside continuing to advise governments and businesses, Steve communicates climate change to children and wider audiences. He helped write Climate Crisis for Beginners by Usborne Books, and was a contributor to the Ladybird book on Climate Change.

John Hawkins

John is a third-generation tenant arable farmer in Mid Dorset. He grew up on the farm but then after a BSc in Maritime Studies was commissioned into the Royal Navy. Later he travelled extensively as a security consultant which gave him an insight into global problems issues and solutions before realising that there is no place like home.

In a period of agricultural change, his primary initial role on the farm was to look for ways to diversify the business to support the families involved. This led to planting a 5000 tree cherry orchard (agroforestry) and committing 10 years to adding value to his fruit. The organic knowledge and steep learning curve in horticulture then paved the way to take over as Managing Partner of the Business 6 years ago within the background of 10 years min till arable rotation. 4 years ago using support from Mid Tier CS and Wessex Water and other complementary systems he turned his whole farm into a giant experiment (a sort of shot in the dark pre-policy pre ELM’strial) to see if Regenerative Agriculture was a viable alternative to intensive production whilst still seeing if he could grow food and energy crops more sustainably.

Reed Canary Grass was a catalyst for this change and initially grown on contract. It has been trialled on farm for 7 years now. Current themes include using Soil Carbon increases to maximise Nitrogen efficiency on farm, especially with Perennial Crops. Everything is driven by a practical observation of Science and tested rigorously to compare it to previous arable rotations within the confines of a rented farm.

Jamie Rickerby

Jamie has always been interested in farm machinery – with his 140-year-old family business being the main Claas dealer in the north west. For the last 10 years Jamie has run Willow Energy and accumulated an enormous amount of experience as a planting and harvesting contractor of Short Rotation Coppice (SRC) willow. In this time the company has planted 779 hectares and harvested 5,500 hectares of SRC with a total biomass output of 225,000 tonnes.

SRC contracting is not an easy occupation. Most of the machinery was not designed for the UK’s maritime climate and Jamie has accumulated a wealth of knowledge on what works and what doesn’t. Jamie is currently leading the BEIS funded Net Zero Willow project, which aims to construct, test and develop to full commercial deployment three innovations that will enable the rapid scaling up of the UK biomass supply chain. The proposed machines will facilitate the efficient multiplication, planting and harvesting of SRC willow crops through include increased automation, reduced handling and lighter machinery that result in a lower environmental footprint.

Willow Energy works in partnership with the Iggesund paperboard mill for whom they provide contract planting, maintenance and harvesting services.  In the last five years WE has begun multiplying SRC willow varieties on license with Rothamsted Research.  

Jamie is passionate about agriculture and the countryside. With advancements in technology, there is a huge potential to make British agriculture more efficient and sustainable for future generations. With the advent of artificial intelligence technologies, farmers will be able to tend to individual plants rather than fields of crop. The ability to tend individual plants will increase productivity per hectare and free up land to be used for biodiversity and energy production through parental energy crops. Jamie is excited to have been funded through the BEIS Biomass feedstock innovation program to develop artificial intelligence technology which will help scale up the production planting and harvesting of SRC willow throughout the UK and beyond.

Alex McCash

Alex co-ordinates field trials of existing varieties and new hybrids to evaluate planting techniques and find ways to improve crop establishment and resulting yield. He has a degree in Plant Science from the University of Sheffield. Alex is passionate about sustainable agriculture and his practical knowledge is invaluable in reviewing our planting and rhizome quality protocol.

Pietro Alasia

Pietro Alasia is a fourth-generation entrepreneur from Italy. After completing his studies in agribusiness at the Minoprio Foundation, he dedicated himself to the family business, AL.WOOD. Originally starting as a small local nursery, the company has since specialised in poplar cultivation, focusing on both traditional poplar plantations for plywood production and biomass plantations. AL.WOOD has now expanded its market, commercialising its varieties across Europe and beyond. Currently, the company is also engaged in research on new hybrids to enhance the genetic improvement of poplar species.

Zoe Harris

Zoe’s core research interest are in how we use land to provide food and energy provisions whilst minimising environmental impacts? Zoe’s NERC Fellowship investigate the relationship between vertical farming and BECCS deployment. She is investigating if vertical farming is sustainable, and how this technology could support BECCS deployment through land sparing or potentially through supply of bioenergy crops. Zoe’s research interest include:

• Bioenergy
• Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage
• Land use change
• Eddy covariance
• Soil GHG emissions
• Vertical farming

Zoe is also interested in the role of gender in the energy sector and received a UKERC Networking fund grant to found the IVUGER network – Increasing Visibility of Underrepresented Groups in Energy Research. This project provided training and seed funding for women in energy research, and conducted research into the impact of job wording on the diversity of applicants. Zoe recently won a DecarboN8 seed fund to develop methodology, which assesses the role of diversity in problem solving, using transport in Bradford as a case study.

Enrique Cornejo

Enrique joined Offshore Energies UK in 2023 as Head of Energy Policy. His focus is to promote the development of energy and industrial policies harnessing the UK’s offshore energy resources. He also leads the CCUS and hydrogen pillars within the North Sea Transition Deal (NSTD).

Enrique has extensive experience working in energy and climate policy, having worked in various international and domestic roles in the UK government for over 12 years focusing on oil & gas, renewables, and climate policy development. His experience includes heading the Energy Team at the commercial section of the British Embassy in Mexico, delivering the oil & gas exports strategy for the Americas and Africa at the Department for International Trade, leading the technologies strand (CCUS, hydrogen, electrification) of the UK government’s Industrial Decarbonisation Strategy and leading the CCUS Supply Chains Team at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.

Erisa Senerdem

Erisa Senerdem is editor of the Argus Biomass Markets report at global price-reporting agency Argus Media: a weekly that publishes price assessments for the industrial wood pellets, chips, residential pellets and palm kernel shell (PKS) spot markets globally, in-depth market commentaries and analysis, and related data. She has been with Argus for over ten years and previously covered power, natural gas, coal and petroleum coke markets. Prior to Argus, Erisa worked as a researcher, university lecturer, journalist and a parliamentary consultant for EU legislation. She holds a Ph.D. in economics, with a special focus on the energy field.