Our people

Jo has chin length dark hair and is wearing a white top and hooped earrings. She is looking directly at the camera and smiling. Behind her is a brick wall.

Jo Kerr (she/her)

Chief Executive Officer

Jo has dedicated her career to social justice and impact.

Jo Kerr (she/her)

Chief Executive Officer

Jo is passionate about climate justice and centering the most marginalised. Her focuses include strategy, engagement, income generation, and people and culture. Prior to joining Sniffer/Verture in 2024, Jo was a director at Turn2us, working on financial insecurity. She is a fellow of the Intersticia Foundation and a trustee of 360Giving.

Jess Barrett (she/her)

Head of Communications

Jess is passionate about the power of communications to connect with people and inspire action.

Jess Barrett (she/her)

Head of Communications

Jess has over a decade of experience working in communication roles for charities, public bodies, and businesses, mostly recently in nature conservation. She is passionate about the power of communications to connect with people and inspire action, and how this can help bring positive change for communities and the environment.

Jonny Casey (he/him)

Head of Programmes & Partnerships

Jonny has over 10 years’ experience working in climate adaptation and resilience policies and initiatives.

Jonny Casey (he/him)

Head of Programmes & Partnerships

Jonny has supported communities, businesses, and governments to implement climate adaptation and resilience policies and initiatives in the UK and globally. He’s worked with rural communities through to international institutions, with particular expertise in the agriculture sector, creating innovative partnerships for locally-led adaptation.

Allan Middlemass (he/him)

Finance Manager

Allan is the Finance Manager at Verture.

Allan Middlemass (he/him)

Finance Manager

Allan brings strong experience in strategic financial planning, accounting and governance. He is passionate about developing effective processes and controls that enable colleagues to focus on delivering impact. He has worked across finance and operations in both private and third sectors.

Sophie Ogilvy (she/her)

Head of Income Generation

Sophie is Head of Income Generation at Verture.

Sophie Ogilvy (she/her)

Head of Income Generation

Sophie brings extensive experience supporting mission-led organisations to develop strategic, values-driven income and partnerships that strengthen impact and resilience. Sophie is passionate about income generation that actively advances equity, collaboration and systems change in support of flourishing futures for all in a changing climate.

Emilie Wadsworth (she/her)

Leadership Programme Manager

Emilie has worked in the environmental sector in Scotland for approaching 20 years.

Emilie Wadsworth (she/her)

Leadership Programme Manager

Emilie began her career in research climate change and then entering into ecology. She has a particular interest in blue-green infrastructure, nature-based solutions and biodiversity.

Bridesdale Kanu-Okoro (she/her)

Business Support Manager

Bridesdale specialises in implementing strategies to enhance operational efficiencies.

Bridesdale Kanu-Okoro (she/her)

Business Support Manager

For the past 19 years, Bridesdale has focused on developing and delivering operational strategies that enhance organisational efficiency and impact. She strengthens governance structures, promotes sustainable resource use, and drives operational excellence across organisations. Drawing on her expertise in strategic operations and project management, she leads digital transformation to streamline operations and enhance project delivery.

Ness Wright (she/her)

Regional Programme Manager / Project Lead

Ness specialises in collaboration, systems change and place-based adaptation.

Ness Wright (she/her)

Regional Programme Manager / Project Lead

Ness is a designer working to make the changes needed in response to the climate crisis real, by co-designing them with real people in real world contexts. She brings 15 years of experience in innovation and sustainability across the public, private and third sectors.

Mary Collacott (she/her)

Training Programme Manager

Mary is Training Programme Manager at Verture.

Mary Collacott (she/her)

Training Programme Manager

Mary is passionate about transformative learning for a climate resilient future. Mary is a facilitator, learning designer and researcher, with over 15 years’ experience as an educator specialising in sustainability, equity and climate justice. She has worked with organisations across Scotland and internationally to develop values-led, participatory approaches to translate learning into action.

A man with black hair wearing a blue jacket smiles at the camera. Behind him are yellow metal seats with people sitting on them and someone walking past.

Andrew Williams (he/him)

Local Programme Manager

Andrew works on the Creative Climate Futures project.

Andrew Williams (he/him)

Local Programme Manager

Andrew is a sustainability professional with experience working in marketing, communications, and project management around environmental and social justice issues. The Creative Climate Futures project he works on at Verture is building climate resilience across Glasgow. Andrew has a particular interest in how community climate action can allow under-represented groups to have their voices heard.

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Alex Cameron-Smith (she/her)

Project Lead

Alex has spent almost 20 years working with non-profits around the world.

Alex Cameron-Smith (she/her)

Project Lead

Alex specialises in collaborative project development, relationship building, people-centred engagement and third sector income generation. She is dedicated to leveraging systemic change and works on innovating Verture’s community projects to integrate climate justice at their core. Alex holds the Professional Certificate of Mediation from the University of St Andrew’s.

Eleanor is wearing a yellow jumper and maroon scarf. She is standing on a coastline of rocks next to the sea, and looking sideways at the camera.

Eleanor Pratt (she/her)

Project Lead

Eleanor has a background in environmental policy, regulation and accreditation.

Eleanor Pratt (she/her)

Project Lead

Eleanor is a natural collaborator and enjoys bringing organisations and people together to find solutions to environmental and social challenges. She loves working with a wide variety of people to help develop participative, creative processes which build trust, and find solutions which are owned by those involved in delivering them.

Linda McConaghie (she/her)

Project Lead

Linda is passionate about tacking environmental and social injustice.

Linda McConaghie (she/her)

Project Lead

Linda has worked in the environmental sector for over 25 years exclusively for charities and not-for-profit organisations.  She specialises in fostering partnership and community-led action, programme development and co-ordination and project delivery.  With an academic background in environmental management, she is interested in the use of nature-based solutions to tackle biodiversity loss and the impacts of climate change.

Emma Yule (she/her)

Project Lead

Emma is a Project Lead for Verture.

Emma Yule (she/her)

Project Lead

Dr Emma Yule is a climate adaptation researcher. Her work is focused on climate impacts and how organisations and communities can adapt and build resilience. Emma is co-chair of the ECCI Adaptation Community of Practice and of the SSN Adaptation sub-committee focused on how the public sector are adapting to climate change impacts. She is also a director at SCCAN, trustee at SCA and board vice chair of 2050 Climate Group. Emma enjoys running and is preparing for her first marathon this year.

Harper Loonsk (she/her)

Project Lead

Harper is the Project Lead for Highland Adapts.

Harper Loonsk (she/her)

Project Lead

Building on her academic background in ethnic studies, migration, and environmental sustainability, Harper is passionate about climate resilience and environmental justice. In addition to working in the environment sector, Harper also has experience in refugee and asylum law. She has particular interest in partnership building, climate data democratisation, and nature-based resilience.

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Kirsty Lewin (she/her)

Project Lead

Kirsty specialises in multi-partner programmes.

Kirsty Lewin (she/her)

Project Lead

Kirsty has worked in the environmental and sustainability sector for most of her career, starting in New Zealand before returning to the UK. She has experience in the public, private and voluntary sectors, and a particular interest in the relationship between local community aspirations and national policy. She has a strong understanding of community activities that are led and delivered by volunteers.

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Ruth Wolstenholme (she/her)

Project Lead

Ruth trained as a natural and social scientist and has a Masters degrees in both.

Ruth Wolstenholme (she/her)

Project Lead

Ruth is a passionate enthusiast for collaborative working, with a keen ear for a good idea. She stepped down as Managing Director in 2024 having been at the helm since the inception Verture (then Sniffer) in 1994. As well as building on a science and policy evidence base, Ruth is an advocate of weaving in local knowledge, climate justice and the role of creative practice in changemaking.

Emily Paton (she/her)

Communications Officer

Emily is Communications Officer at Verture.

Emily Paton (she/her)

Communications Officer

Emily supports Verture’s communications and engagement work, helping share stories of climate adaptation, community resilience and partnership-led change across Scotland. With a background working in local government, campaigning and community projects, further enhanced by a degree in Sociology, she’s particularly interested in how social systems shape people’s experiences of climate change and how communication can give a voice to those most affected. She’s passionate about clear values driven communication that inspires collaboration and action.

Izi Robe (she/her)

Project Support Officer

Izi is Project Support Officer at Verture

Izi Robe (she/her)

Project Support Officer

Izi supports Verture’s training across our projects. With a background in project coordination and training delivery across public, third and private sector she ensures that everyone we work with has what they need to learn and take action to become more climate resilient. She’s especially motivated by the potential of all people – when equipped with the right tools, support and space – to drive real lasting change in their communities.

Alison Macdonald (she/her)

Chair of the Board of Trustees

Alison Macdonald (she/her)

Chair of the Board of Trustees

Alison is a Chartered Banker and senior risk professional, with experience of Governance & Risk, Resilience and Strategic Transformation. As a Bank of Scotland Foundation Trustee, she shaped grant programmes to support charities address poverty and social exclusion, through multi-year, unrestricted funding.

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Sophie Beier (she/her)

Trustee

Sophie Beier (she/her)

Trustee

Sophie has over a decade of experience in knowledge exchange and impact, stakeholder and community engagement and fundraising in the third, public and private sector. She has worked in various countries, within various sectors and stakeholders. Sophie is passionate about transformational change. She now works for the NHS where she leads on the ACHSCP’s climate change programme and evaluates transformation projects.

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Anne Marte Bergseng (she/her)

Trustee

Anne Marte Bergseng (she/her)

Trustee

Anne Marte is a climate change adaptation specialist and knowledge exchange expert with experience in research management, stakeholder engagement and corporate communications. She sits on the Steering Group for the National Centre for Resilience and is a trustee for The Green Team and Climate for Culture Scotland. She works for ClimateXChange, managing a programme of research to inform Scottish Government climate action.

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Richard Dryburgh (he/him)

Trustee

Richard Dryburgh (he/him)

Trustee

Richard is a civil servant who currently works for the Scottish Government on education and skills reform. Previously he was on the board of the 2050 Climate Group, helping to establish them as a formal charity before taking over as Chair for two years. In this time he oversaw the Young Leaders Development Programme and the launch of the Malawi Climate Leaders Project. He has experience in stakeholder engagement, governance and public policy.

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Rachel Freeman (she/her)

Trustee

Rachel Freeman (she/her)

Trustee

Rachel has 18 years of experience in agile tech SaaS environments with a focus on soft AI. She is interested in conservation, culture and environmental projects; her University of Edinburgh MLitt thesis focused on the Making of Place. She currently serves as a trustee for The Edinburgh and Lothian Green Space Trust and as a NED for Prop Tech sustainable start-up Grand Bequest. She is a special advisor with the ESG Foundation.

Cornell Hanxomphou (he/him)

Trustee

Cornell Hanxomphou (he/him)

Trustee

Cornell is an environmental and climate justice specialist with experience in the public, private and third sectors. He has a background in environmental and climate science and has worked previously in policy and as an environmental consultant. He is experienced in community development and currently works for the Environmental Rights Centre for Scotland, leading the rights awareness and outreach programme.

Catriona Patterson (she/her)

Trustee

Catriona Patterson (she/her)

Trustee

Catriona is passionate about the role of collaboration, innovation and creativity in addressing social challenges. She has a background in policy and practice with a particular focus on climate adaptation, community engagement and systems change. As a Fund Manager at Inspiring Scotland, she has led national programmes supporting local resilience, creativity and nature restoration. She is especially interested in how philanthropy can advance climate justice and long‑term, inclusive transformation.

Patrick Kirkham (he/him)

Trustee

Patrick Kirkham (he/him)

Trustee

Patrick is a civil servant. In the Scottish Government he is currently Head of Land Reform and previously led the team responsible for carbon pricing and emissions trading. Prior to moving to Edinburgh he worked for the New Zealand Treasury, covering a range of climate change policies across emissions reduction and adaptation. Earlier in his career he held several roles at HM Treasury in London.

Jane Hopton (she/her)

Trustee

Jane Hopton (she/her)

Trustee

Jane is a former NHS Programme Director and General Manager and Academic Researcher.  She has a wide range of operational service management  and strategic planning experience across the NHS.  Most recently she lead on environmental sustainability in NHS Lothian and was a member of NHS Scotland Climate Emergency and Sustainability Board.  Earlier in her academic career her focus was on health inequalities,  public health and primary care. She is an Honorary member of the Faculty of Public Health and an Honorary Fellow of the University of Edinburgh. 

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