New to the team

My name is Rebecca Clark, the new Cuthbert’s Managing Moors Officer at Durham Wildlife Trust. Managing Moors is a one-year project focused on the restoration and study of Cuthbert’s Moor. I will be recruiting volunteers for citizen science monitoring and habitat restoration work, and overseeing professional surveys that will provide an ecological baseline for the site to inform future management.

Hello! I am Caitlin Elwin and I am the new Volunteer Support Assistant. I have joined the Development Team to provide extra support with recruiting and supporting all of the wonderful people who volunteer for Durham Wildlife Trust. My work will focus on helping new volunteers through the recruitment process, matching potential volunteers to suitable roles, and providing support to our existing volunteers. I am based at Rainton Meadows but plan to get out to lots of events to meet as many new potential volunteers as possible. You can contact me by emailing celwin@durhamwt.co.uk

Hi, I am Ruby Merriman and I have joined the Trust as the new Conservation Volunteer Coordinator. This post is a new role that will develop and manage the more remote volunteering roles within the conservation team – for example reserve rangers and pony wardens – and oversee the conservation traineeship. I am very excited to be here, and have been thoroughly enjoying getting to know the existing team. I will be working hard to develop my role over the coming months so that it can deliver the biggest impact possible to support the Trust’s work. You can get in touch with me by emailing rmerriman@durhamwt.co.uk

Ian Findlay

We are sad to report that Ian Hamilton Findlay, former Durham Wildlife Trust Chair, died on 19th March at the age of 87.

Ian first joined Durham Wildlife Trust in 1977, when he was the Nature Conservancy Council’s officer for Upper Teesdale. His subsequent contribution, both to our knowledge of the natural history of Upper Teesdale, and to the work of the Trust, was outstanding. He was awarded an MBE in 1996 for his nature conservation work.

Ian served several terms as a Trustee between 1995 and 2017. This included a period as Chairman in the mid-2000s, when he played a key part in steering the organisation through difficult times. He also served on the Board of the Trust’s consultancy, Durham Wildlife Services, from 1998 until his death.

Hi there, I’m Blair Watson, the new Stronger Shores Marine Engagement Officer. I can’t wait to get stuck in, working for the Trust on behalf of the North Sea Wildlife Trusts. Stronger Shores is a great project that will inform how restoration of marine habitats and species is undertaken in the future. I’m excited to get started and play my part in restoring marine habitats along the north east coast, and engage people from all walks of life with the incredible marine environment, a real passion of mine, given that I grew up on the coastline, spending most of my days paddling about and exploring the nearby rockpools!

Formally trained as a botanist, the breadth of Ian’s knowledge and work on the ecology of Upper Teesdale was exceptional, ranging from monitoring breeding upland raptors, to daily weather recording for decades into his retirement. He was also generous and open in sharing that knowledge. This included recent contributions to the updated Natural History of Upper Teesdale, published in 2018. His insightful chapter on weather and climate is so pertinent in these changing times.

Ian is irreplaceable, and Upper Teesdale will seem incomplete without him. He was a true naturalist, interested in, and knowledgeable about, everything – one of the finest the Durham uplands have ever seen. He will be missed.

Peter Bell