The Team

THE TEAM

Ambassadors

judy ling wong cbe

Judy was director of Black Environment Network (BEN) and is a pioneer of multicultural participation in built and natural environment policy and was a founding trustee of Greater London National Park City.

Caroline lucas mp

Former MP for Brighton Pavilion, former leader and co-leader, Caroline Lucas is a shining example of what women in power can do for the environment. She has supported Wen for 10 years.

MARIA ADEBOWALE-SCHWARTE

Maria is a city and urban place strategist. She advocates for inclusive and collaborative placemaking that creates thriving neighbourhoods and better lives.

PENNEY POYZER

Penney runs Foodshare, fresh food banks in Nottingham, an award winning project that sets up educational food growing spaces. Prior to this Penney found fame as presenter of BBC’s eco living series “No waste like home”.

Trustees

monique johnson, chair

Monique oversees Social Purpose transformation for the University of Arts London (UAL), Europe’s largest higher education institute dedicated to the study of fashion, art, design and the performing arts. Social Purpose at UAL is concerned with empowering creative communities, building an inclusive society, stabilising the climate whilst regenerating our environment and ensuring more equitable prosperity and well-being.

MOMTAZ AJID

Momtaz is the founder of a Leaders in Community (LiC), a youth charity based in Tower Hamlets. She has 15 years’ experience of working in the charity sector, empowering young people in leadership and governance. Momtaz has a Masters in Communication and Society from Goldsmiths University.

ANUPAM PARASHAR

Anupam sits in the Environmental and Social Risk team at Macquarie Group Ltd where he provides expert advice on environmental and social risks and developing and implementing environmental and social risk policies. Outside of work, Anupam participates in local community-led sports organisations and enjoys hiking and camping.

Tallulah Staple

Tallulah is Chief Operating Officer for Dialogue Earth, an international NGO reporting on environmental issues. She has a BA in International Development and Economics from SOAS. Previous roles have seen her working closely with communities, schools and charities across London and especially Tower Hamlets.

CHARLOTTE MILLER

Charlotte oversees the commissioning of women’s health and sexual health research for the Department of Health and Social Care. Previously, she worked for charities both internationally and domestically supporting survivors of domestic and sexual violence, leading a team who created accessible online sex education and establishing a cycling advocacy group in Boston, USA.

staff

Kate Metcalf, Co-Director

Kate has over 20 years’ experience developing community and international networks within international development and environmental organisations with a focus on gender and social justice. Kate leads Wen’s Feminist Green New Deal project aiming to ensure that women, racialised and marginalised groups are central to the green economy.

ZARINA AHMAD, INTERIM HEAD OF PROGRAMMES & WEN ADVISER

Zarina is an expert in equalities and climate change, increasing participation of under-represented groups in environmentalism. She was named as one of the top 30 influential women contributing to the environment and sustainability by BBC Woman’s Hour.

Helen Lynn, Health adviser & ENVIRONMENSTRUAL AND GREEN BABY CAMPAIGN MANAGER

Helen has spent her career building feminist health campaigns including founding the Alliance for Cancer Prevention and From Pink to Prevention. She has worked at national, European and International levels on issues linking gender, health and the environment.

Roshini Thamotheram, CLIMATE SISTERS PROGRAMME MANAGER

Roshini Thamotheram is a feminist researcher, educator, facilitator, and organiser. She holds an MA in Race and Social Justice and works with the Climate Sisters programme at Wen.

Shaheda Aziz, Limborough DELIVERY MANAGER

Shaheda trained as an Early Years Teacher, then later as a community gardener at a local city urban farm. Happiest when working with nature, growing food, centered around well-being and positive living.

ZULFA LATIF, limborough outreach & comms officer

Zulfa lives in Tower Hamlets and as well as working at Limborough Community Hub, she works for Stitches in Time, a local arts and education charity. She is very creative and loves sewing and crafting. Zulfa is passionate about building women’s confidence, while helping them to learn new skills.

Julie yip - Green and Grow Coordinator, Wen

Julie yip, local food coordinator

Julie studied Visual Communication at the Royal College of Art before training in teaching and horticulture. Julie has worked as a coordinator of a refugee supper community project, a gardener greening urban spaces for better mental health and a food-growing educator in several community gardens, working widely from schools to sheltered living for the elderly.

ZOE MILES, LOCAL FOOD PARTNERSHIP MANAGER & food co-op strategy & development lead

Zoe (they/them) is working with three amazing food co-ops in Towers Hamlets to create deep and long-lasting change in our food system. They are a facilitator, grower, and union organiser, and love getting together with people to create strange and wonderful art projects.

ELLE MCALL, JUST FACT PROGRAMME MANAGER

Elle is passionate about inclusive climate action, and believes in the unique power of food to bring people together. She has worked in the charity sector 7 years, managing a wide range of environmental projects.

han smith, JUST FACT MOBILISER

Han values the power of community organising and has previously worked at universities, environment charities and both youth and student led campaign networks. Han is currently learning about food growing infrastructure in London suburbs.

HUSSINA RAJA, JUST FACT MOBILISER

Hussina has a background in social justice as well as working as a multidisciplinary artist. She is passionate about working with local community groups and young people. She especially enjoys bringing people together over food.

BETH MOBEY, JUST FACT PROGRAMME MANAGER

Before joining the Just FACT team, Bethan worked with people in East London to redesign and push for policies that improve housing, energy, and community spaces using Participatory Action Research. Having started out as a community grower, she is happy to be back amongst the mud, mushrooms, and compost heaps. Bethan is excited about the potential of the Just FACT programme to help Tower Hamlets achieve a just climate transition.

SAJNA MIAH, FOOD RESEARCHER

Sajna is a researcher on our Food Stories Tower Hamlets project. She has 25 years’ experience working with different communities in Tower Hamlets, including 10 years working for Tower Hamlet’s Women’s Aid as a Bangladeshi Women’s Domestic Violence outreach worker. Alongside Wen, she volunteers at a food bank that run by East End Homes.

SHAZNA HASSAIN, FOOD RESEARCHER

Shazna is a researcher on our Food Stories Tower Hamlets project. She has 26 years’ experience of the Tower Hamlets community in various organisations in paid and voluntary positions. In addition to Wen, she works in a local school during lunchtimes and volunteers for a community cycling group. She grows her own cultural vegetables and loves researching food cultures with communities.

Bernadette Kennedy, Soil Sisters Therapeutic Gardener

Bernadette combines her background working in mental health and homelessness services with her passion for gardening to reclaim and transform neglected spaces into community gardens.

Alice Walker - from Real Nappies for London (RNfL)

alice walker, rnfl Coordinator

Alice joined Real Nappies for London in October 2010. She is keen to help more boroughs reduce single-use nappy waste and is happy to discuss bespoke incentives and rewards including helping parents promote real nappies in their boroughs.

Heidi Ringshaw, head of Communications AND engagement

Heidi’s experience encompasses marketing, social media and event planning. She’s also worked in garden design and horticulture.

NNENNA ONWUKA, COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR

Nnenna has a background in advocating for girls’ education and feminist climate justice, as well as researching the impact of deforestation on human rights. She holds an MSc in Human Rights.

REBECCA EVANS-MERRITT, HEAD OF ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Rebecca has a Fine Arts background and has worked in Production and Education. She loves living in Tower Hamlets and enjoying all the pockets of green amongst the city.

maripaz DE SAN MIGUEL, OPERATIONS MANAGER

Maripaz has a background in Environmental Science and has worked in this field for 14 years, 12 of those years in the charity sector. Maripaz loves nature and walking.

LILY HARRISON, OPERATIONS ASSISTANT

Lily has experience working with the Green Party and at a welfare rights and debt advice charity. Alongside working, she is studying on the MSc Environment, Development and Politics course at the University of Birmingham. In her free time, she loves long walks in nature.

Faysal Ahmed, IT Coordinator

Faysal studied Engineering with specialisation in Computer Network at Brunel University before joining Wen in 2008.

Brian Dexter, Finance Coordinator

Brian has 20+ years working in financial leadership while also volunteering tirelessly in his east London community for grassroots responses to poverty and distress. He has three grown up children.

LINDA TAI, Joint Green Baby Project Manager and Engagement Officer

Linda worked in the health and community sectors for a number of years. She is interested in sustainable communities and co-founded Sunny Jar Eco Hub CIC.