Maddy Longhurst – UAC Coordinator (2020 – present). Maddy has always followed her instincts to work on initiatives and ideas that lie in the fertile margins and serve future generations. This has involved the protection of land and soils, community-led thermal imaging of cold homes, Ecosystem Restoration Design, creating regenerative Tiny House Settlements, Sociocracy and Gleaning training for communities. She currently also works with Consrtiuctivist helping to deliver the Regenerative Design Lab, and as a director of Tiny House Community Bristol.
Maddy worked on Phase 1 of UAC in 2019 and is currently coordinating it with Jeremy. She has studied Ecosystem Restoration Design with Gaia Education, did a degree in Town and Country Planning, is a Community Organiser (level 3), believes in the healing power of nature for all types of human dis-ease, and finds her joy in the sea, the sky, sit-spots, fires, singing, brambling, unexplainable community wisdom, her daughter Martha, Rilke and Ursula K Le Guin.
Jeremy Iles, UAC founder. “Doing something useful” has involved a long environmental career – cycle campaigner Friends of the Earth (1983), Director of the London Wildlife Trust 1984-90), Country Manager in Bangladesh and Eritrea VSO (1991-93), National Cycle Network Regional Manager (1994-2000). As CEO of the Federation of City Farms and Community Gardens (2000-16) he developed many impactful collaborations, notably The Allotments Regeneration Initiative, the £57m Local Food Consortium, Community Land Advisory Service, and the Growing Together partnership. Jeremy started exploring opportunities for upscaling urban agriculture in 2017, which led to the emergence of the Urban Agriculture Consortium in 2019. He is also part of The Oral History of Environment Movement project with Royal Holloway, University of London, which launched in autumn 2022. https://www.royalholloway.ac.uk/research-and-teaching/departments-and-schools/geography/oral-history-of-the-environmental-movement-project/
Bristol-based Jeremy has an allotment, sings with The Island Folk, and plays guitar & mandola with the All@Sea ceilidh band. Jeremy is a qualified Yachtmaster and dinghy instructor.
UAC’s amazing associates come together to add value to our work and enable communities and groups across the UK to progress their aspirations. We’re currently working with:
Our east midlands / eastern region community enablers team, started January 2024: Bethan McIlroy, (Nottingham), Bex Derry (Nottinghamshire/Lincolnshire), Laura Stratford (Lincolnshire), Lauren Kendrick (Peterborough), & Sabine Virani (Norwich)
Our Core Oversight (Steering) Group – Andy Goldring (Permaculture Association), Suzy Russel (Community Supported Agriculture Network), Nick Weir (Open Food Network), Alison Sheffield (Social Farms and Gardens), Gary Mitchell (Social Farms and Gardens Cymru), Elizabeth Westaway, (independent).
Our additional research partners: Chiara Tornaghi (Centre for Agroecology Water & Resilience at Coventry Uni), Rebecca (Bee) Laughton at the Landworkers Alliance, Jade Bashford (Real Farming Trust) and Gareth Roberts (Regather, Sheffield).
Our thanks also go to: Dan Evans (Urban Cultivate / Cranfield), Janie Bickersteth (Good Food Oxford), Anna Clayton, Ellen Pearce and Rachel Marshall (LESS, Lancaster), Joolz Thompson (iFarm), Miriam Turley, Patricia Wallace and Conor O’Kane (SF&G Northern Ireland) and many more…