The Team
Brigid Barry – Project Manager
Brigid is co-founders and has been the manager for the Farming for Nature project since its inception in 2018. Prior to this initiative, she was the manager of the landscape charity Burrenbeo Trust for 9 years, biodiversity officer for Clare County Council and a project officer on numerous conservation projects abroad for the previous 10 years. Brigid comes from a suckler and tillage farm in Co. Cork. Listen here to a podcast on how she got involved in conservation and the background to Farming For Nature. She can be contacted on [email protected]
Sarah Coonan – Network and Communications Officer
Sarah is the Network and Outreach Officer for the Farming For Nature project since February 2024. Growing up in rural Tipperary, Sarah is a Psychology graduate with a keen interest in nature, farming and growing food. In the past, she has worked as a relief milker on conventional and organic dairy farms, volunteered at a horticultural therapy project in Romania, studied Sustainable Horticulture in Kinsale, and worked on the North Tipperary Online Farmers Market as a digital media manager. Sarah is currently undertaking a Masters in Sustainability and Behaviour Change at the Centre for Alternative Technology. She can be contacted at [email protected]
Lydia Lishman – Programmes and Development Officer
Lydia is our Programmes and Development Officer, supporting Farming For Nature’s fundraising, impact and strategy. Previously, she worked for the Sustainable Food Trust, as part of the Global Farm Metric and managed Agricology, a sustainable food and farming platform run by the Organic Research Centre in the UK. She has an MSc in Carbon Management and a keen interest in sustainable food, having trained at Ballymaloe, worked for Daylesford and the BBC Good Food Shows. Lydia can be contacted on [email protected]
Sheila Santos – Creative Content Officer
Sheila is an SEO Specialist with a strong background in social media, advertising, and content creation, gained through her last experience as a Project Manager in a marketing agency in Spain. Originally from Honduras, she has spent half her life immersed in Spanish culture. At Farming for Nature, she leads digital strategy, content creation, and social media management, ensuring a compelling and consistent online presence.
With a deep love for ecology and sustainability, Sheila is passionate about using her expertise to amplify FFN’s mission and connect with wider audiences.
Sheila can be contacted at [email protected]
Dr Brendan Dunford – Creative Director (Voluntary)
Brendan has worked on inputting, guiding and advising Farming For Nature on a voluntary basis since its inception. He is heavily involved in all aspects of the organisation. From a farming background in Co. Waterford, Brendan has spent the past 25 years living and working in the Burren region where he led the award-winning BurrenLIFE Project and its successor, the pioneering ‘Burren Programme’ between 2010-2022. Brendan is founding member the Burrenbeo Trust, a landscape-based charity which delivers an extensive range of place-based learning and community stewardship initiatives nationally, including Farming For Nature, Heritage Keepers and The Hare’s Corner. Brendan is a former board member of the Heritage Council, the EPA Advisory Committee and the European Forum on Nature Conservation and Pastoralism. He is an Ashoka Fellow for Ireland and was awarded an honorary doctorate by NUI Galway in 2018 for his work in championing farmland biodiversity. He is a regular contributor to the Irish Farmers Journal covering ‘sustainability’ themes. All queries for Brendan can be directed through [email protected]
John Lambe – Accounts
John Lambe manages the accounting and finance functions for Farming For Nature. He works 3 days a week at our umbrella charity Burrenbeo Trust and dedicates one of these days to the management of FFN’s accounts. As part of this he prepares our annual accounts for the auditors as required by the Charities Regulator and advises FFN on all things around budgets, funding etc. John is a chartered accountant with decades of experience in accounting. He lives in Ballyvaughan, Co. Clare. Any queries for John can be directed to [email protected] Executive Committee
This is a voluntary committee that meet on a quarterly basis to discuss the progress and plans of the organisation. Is composed of FFN staff (above), volunteers, funders and farming ambassadors with experience in policy, research and practice.
Ailbhe Gerrard
Ailbhe Gerrard is a Farming For Nature Ambassador. She runs a 30 hectare farm on the banks of Lough Derg in Co.Tipperary. Ailbhe is a certified organic farmer, and an educator with a deep interest in farming as a holistic, regenerative activity. Ailbhe shares her passion of farming with others with regular open days and demonstration days. Agricultural research and practice is an ongoing interest for Ailbhe. She has an MSc in Organic Farming from Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC) and an MSc. in Environment and Sustainable Development from University College London. Ailbhe’s farming responsibilities now include managing: an organically certified sheep enterprise; a native woodland and a broadleaf plantation, beehives producing honey for farm diversification, tillage crops, vegetable crops, GLAS agri-environment measures.
Áine Bird
Áine is the manager of Burrenbeo Trust, Farming For Nature’s umbrella organisation. From a farming background in Co. Meath, she is currently undertaking her PhD at University of Galway investigating community stewardship and place-based learning. Áine oversees Farming for Nature’s governance and financial administration. Joined FFN ExCo in 2023.
Andrew Bergin
Andrew farms 320 acres of arable land in Co. Kildare. Andrew is an active member of BASE Ireland. He is a participant in DANU EIP project investigating the benefits of conversion to biological farming. He sits on the steering group of the Protecting Farmland Pollinators EIP. Andrew has been a Farming For Nature Ambassador since 2020. Joined FFN ExCo in 2023.
Dr Barry O’Donoghue
Barry coordinates various work programmes for National Park and Wildlife Service including those relating to agriculture. Barry manages Farming For Nature’s funding streams from NPWS. He has been a judge on the Ambassador Awards since 2019. Joined ExCo in 2023.
Clive Bright
Clive has been a Farming For Nature Ambassador since 2019. He raises 100% pasture-fed organic livestock on his 120-acre farm in south Co. Sligo. As well as managing the farm and his direct meat sales business; Rare Ruminare, Clive is PR and Development Officer with the Organic Trust, on the steering group of National Organic Training Skillnet (NOTS) and a founding director of the Irish Agroforestry Forum. Clive is a Farming For Nature Ambassador Awards judge since 2021 and a mentor on The Horse’s Mouth programme since 2022. Joined Farming For Nature ExCo in 2023.
Dr Derek McLoughlin
Derek McLoughlin lives in his native Westport, Co. Mayo. He is an ecologist by training and has led research on a broad range of ecological topics from plants and their habitats to mammals and birds. He has a particular interest in how we interact with nature and the land, its people and their stories. This interest has guided his work in agriculture towards the use of results-based payment schemes as a tool to realise agriculture and environmental policy that works for farmers, the public, and nature. He worked with the European Forum on Nature Conservation and Pastoralism on the EU RBAPS project in Ireland and Spain, the Pearl Mussel Project European Innovation Partnership (EIP), and is currently Project Manager of the Wild Atlantic Nature LIFE IP in the northwest of Ireland. (On panel since 2021)
Dr Emma Hart
Emma is a conservation ecologist with over ten years of international experience in the design and management of science-based conservation initiatives. Alarmed by the rate of decline of Ireland’s biodiversity, she founded habitats.ie, a consultancy service in biodiversity conservation, education and research in 2022. Emma also runs a 50-acre organic farm and biodiversity reserve where, in partnership with state bodies, NGOs and third level institutes, she tests and develops methods in nature restoration and regenerative agriculture on Irish farmland. She has a PhD in conservation ecology and an MSc in psychology and draws from both fields in her conservation work. Emma is a member of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) specialist group. She is also a passionate adventurer, spending six years leading wilderness expeditions in sub-Saharan Africa, often on horseback. Emma has been reviewing and creating science-based content for FFN since 2022 and joined FFN’s ExCo in 2023.
Dr James Moran
James is a Senior Lecturer in Biology and Ecology at in The Department of Natural Resources and the Environment at the Atlantic Technological University, teaching on agriculture and environmental science related programmes. His research and outreach work concentrates on sustainable agricultural systems with a particular focus on improving agri-environment policy and practice. He is particularly interested in the potential of a HNV farmland network where innovative local communities can work in partnership to realise a sustainable future for their area. He is a Director of the National Biodiversity Data Centre; member of the National Biodiversity Forum; member of the Expert Advisory Group of the Citizens’ Assembly on biodiversity loss; and board member of European Results Based Payments Network. James is from a farming background in Co.Mayo. James has been advising FFN since its inception. Joined ExCo in 2023.
