Meet the Team

Michael’s desire to have an impact on the climate crisis was the driving force behind the creation of 9Trees. With over 10 years experience in habitat conservation and a desire to create woodland habitat to balance his own carbon footprint 9Trees CIC was formed and Landowners, individual sponsors and Businesses were approached. Read more about our founder.

Jo lives in Lancashire and works in stormwater management. She has had a long career in all aspects of pollution control and environment protection, but she recognises the risks of climate change and she enjoys supporting 9Trees so that she can contribute to the creation of new broadleaved woodlands that provide safe habitats for many birds and woodland creatures. Find out more at Jo's LinkedIn page.

As well as the obvious ecological advantages of planting, Neil is passionate about the lesser known, less acknowledged intangible benefits of trees (for example, socio-cultural, psychosocial, or place theory values). He completed a master's in Forestry at the University of Bangor, Wales, in 2021. As a researcher at 9Trees, Neil wishes to contribute towards their goals in any small way possible, to find solutions towards the climate crisis through trees.

Lisa works for Cardiff University and originally studied a BSc in Environmental Biology, passionate about the environment, biodiversity and nature, followed with an MSc in Equine Science and works as an independent Equine Nutritionist. Lisa thrives on being busy and loves working for 9trees, helping to reduce carbon footprints and promote biodiversity.

Bobo is a web developer and content creator who is passionate about using her skills to make a positive impact on the environment. She believes that technology could be used to promote sustainability and help create a better world. She wants to apply her skills to help 9Trees promote environmental sustainability and make their website more effective and user-friendly.

Deep has always believed that data has the power to tell stories that matter, and the environment is one of the most important stories of our time. At 9Trees, Deep started by helping with digital analytics and have since been getting stuck into whatever is most useful, whether that is crunching numbers, building reports or just making sense of the data behind our woodland work.

Adrian is driven by a passion for positive change and a deep commitment to fighting climate change. With a background spanning software engineering and data, alongside a lifelong love of travel and hiking in nature, he brings a varied skill set to his work. At 9Trees, Adrian hopes to help the organisation scale its impact and plant even more trees.

Ash Kent studied Environmental Science and has worked in ecology, woodland management and habitat management for 10 years. He co-founded 9Trees to take action now against climate change and to put a wide range of practical skills and knowledge to positive use.

Yzzy started as a volunteer for 9Trees helping with admin and has shown her worth by raising through the ranks to Director. Alongside her leadership skills from her time running a soup kitchen for the homeless, and her knowledge and skill set from her time working as a HR professional she has helped propel 9Trees to become a more robust and streamlined organisation.

Michele Kaye moved from Kaurna Land, South Australia to the UK just over 20 years ago, bringing her aboricultral and horticultural foundations with her. Passionate about tackling the climate crisis through community and relationship building, systems re-thinking and grassroots action, Michele brings a unique blend of operational excellence and environmental advocacy to 9Trees.

Lily is passionate about sustainability and making a difference to the environment through policy change. She completed a degree in Biology with Cardiff University in 2019 and is currently working for them as a Student Engagement Officer. Combining this interest in the environment and working with various stakeholders, she is the Events Coordinator for 9Trees, hoping to expand the existing offering of events to include ecological training days and more.

Living in the beautiful Elan Valley, Joel has always been inspired by the countryside, ecology and wildlife of mid-Wales. After studying Environmental Science at Portsmouth University, he has worked in forestry for the past 14 years. At 9Trees, Joel is instrumental in getting the trees planted, harnessing his past experience to both help draw up the tree planting plans and act as a key link between the landowner and contractors.

Matthew is passionate about protecting the natural world and helping in the fight against the climate and biodiversity crises. He’s currently an integrated master’s student at Cardiff University, studying ecology and conservation-based topics. He has a particular passion for amphibian and reptiles, as well as conserving and studying them and other wildlife. He aims to use his skills and experience to help create spaces for nature and do his part in the fight against climate change.

Khadidja is a master's student in environmental management at the University of the West of England in Bristol. She is passionate about regenerative agriculture and food sovereignty and hopes to contribute to the transition to a more sustainable and just society. She assists with landowner coordination and organisation at 9Trees.

Tristian is an aspiring conservation storyteller based in Falmouth, Cornwall. He is passionate about communicating our urgent need to protect the natural world, through writing, videography, and photography. At 9Trees, he helps edit the website so that it is kept up-to-date and engaging. Outside of this, he is making environmental films, one of which you can watch here.

Nele studied garden and landscape architecture. Currently she works in private care and is creating an online course about how to be at peace within. She loves trees and sees nature as being essential for our wellbeing and for everything we are able to do and make. She wants to make a positive contribution to the amazing planet we live on. At 9Trees, she supports the role of the Kickstarter Ambassador.

Akshay is a writer and storyteller who completed his Masters in Creative Writing from Birkbeck, University of London. Alongside his writing, he is passionate about creating a sustainable future and joined 9Trees as the Marketing Executive to fulfil that dream. When he isn’t writing or working, you will find him taking long walks in parks, clicking pictures of the trees and the skies.

Hannah is a Creative Marketing Consultant who studied Journalism, Media & Cultural Criticism at Cardiff University. With a background in the creative and cultural industries, she is driven by her passion for making the world a more colourful place, both in nature and our community cultures. At 9Trees, Hannah is utilising her expertise to develop effective marketing and communications strategies that promote the company's commitment to sustainability and environmental responsibility.

Ralph is an international student at Cardiff Metropolitan University School of Business. He is passionate about Agroforestry, environmental education, and nature-based solutions to environmental issues. With a strong interest and experience in forest development, Ralph joined 9Trees to support the restoration of lands across the United Kingdom, aiming to contribute to climate amelioration for the benefit of the planet and to align with the United Nations sustainable development goals. As an ambassador, Ralph aims to intensify the campaign for forest restoration and promote the vision of 9Trees both within the UK and globally.

Sophie comes from a creative background as an actress, and graduated with a degree in World Performance at the University of Essex. She loves to be surrounded by nature,  and is very passionate about doing what she can to make the world a brighter place, having previously volunteered for different causes, and is very excited to be helping contribute to the work 9Trees do. She will be focusing on using the skills she learnt to promote herself as an actress, to help us run our social media accounts and create content to connect 9Trees to like-minded people that believe in our mission, and want to help support us.

Eirini is an avid hiker who is dedicated to raising awareness about the impact of climate change on the natural world and encouraging companies to play a role in its preservation and protection. With previous experience as a recruiter and a Master's degree in Environmental Sustainability from The University of Edinburgh, she now serves as a business development manager, expanding the network of supporters and driving the growth of tree planting initiatives to maximise their positive impact.

Bhavana is a master's student in environmental management, and is deeply passionate about Sustainability. She's thrilled to find an organisation with goals aligned to her own, promoting a greener and more sustainable future. Working with like-minded individuals, Bhavana contributes to initiatives that raise awareness, promote conservation, and inspire positive change at 9Trees CIC. She's grateful for the opportunity to be part of their remarkable work, creating a better, greener world for future generations.

Tina has always had an affinity towards the environment and felt great stewardship in regards to its sustainability. Resulting in her acquiring a bachelors in Ecology and Conservation at Brighton University in 2023. At 9Trees, Tina works as a Landowner Survey Assistant, writing desk-based assessments on various proposed sites to determine their compatibility with our planting. She also assists with landowner liaison and coordination.

Tara is a Master’s student in Anthropology, Environment and Development at UCL with an interest in urban sustainability practices. She believes businesses should play a more active role in natural resource conservation and is enthusiastic to promote this through 9Trees. Tara is one of our volunteer ambassadors, promoting our mission to local venues and public figures who share our values.

Jess lives in Bristol and is currently heading up the Grants team at 9Trees. Her passions and experience lies within sustainability and community development, in the charity and private sectors. She is always up for chatting with other organisations who may want to partner with us to provide great social and sustainable outcomes. Just reach out.