Roger Catchpole

Dr. Roger Catchpole is an independent, not for profit, ecological consultant and environmental facilitator with a lifelong interest in bridging the gaps between science, policy and practice.  He believes that protected area networks are crucial to rebuilding biodiversity in the wider environment and that Eurosite is a key ‘community of practice’ through which common experience and critical insights can be shared. He has decided to join the Eurosite as an individual in order to be able to work collaboratively to achieve greater opportunities and benefits for nature across Europe.  He also wishes to maintain the links he has built over the years with individuals and organisations involved in European nature conservation.

Roger is an international expert with over 20 years experience in ecology and conservation. His experience spans the monitoring, management and protection of Natura2000 sites as well as the conservation of biodiversity in the wider environment.  Roger is a botanist and entomologist by training but has since specialised in landscape ecology.  Among other things, he has utilised geospatial modelling techniques to define the first national ecological network in the UK, undertaken a national climate vulnerability assessment and developed a habitat potential toolkit that prioritised land parcels suitable for habitat creation at a landscape scale.  He has provided expert advice to the UK Government and the Council of Europe as a member of the PEEN expert committee.

Roger’s ecological knowledge is firmly grounded in his practical experience in land management having come from a farming background and from his involvement in the management of deer populations.  He has also previously been responsible for the management of a wide range of protected area qualifying features when he worked for the state nature conservation body, English Nature/Natural England.  He has been involved in projects across a range of different scales from individual farms up to the whole of the EU27 where he has led multi-national workshops for the Atlantic and Alpine themes of New Biogeographical Process.  He has also contributed to initiatives in Turkey, Montenegro, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Kosovo and Serbia that have helped to built capacity in biodiversity conservation amongst municipal authorities.

He is comfortable operating in a multi-national setting and understands the importance of cultural identity. He has effective communication and facilitation skills that allows him to engage credibly with a wide range of stakeholders whether they are government ministers, academics or land managers.

Contact

Dr. Roger Catchpole
Web: www.linkedin.com/in/roger-catchpole-3a7a1721