Staff Profile
Background
Introduction
As Impact Funding Manager within the BDE-Enterprise Services, I manage the EPSRC Impact Accelerator Account and the SAgE Faculty HEIF Business Engagement Fund. I assist academics and early career researchers wishing to accelerate impact from their research and facilitate knowledge exchange with public and private businesses, the government and the third sector. I also provide administrative support for the Intensive Industrial Innovation Programme (IIIP) PhD studentships within the SAgE and FMS Faculties, which assist regional SMEs to develop their research ideas in collaboration with the university.
Background
I have a passion for renewable energy in general with particular focus on solutions for small island states (SIS) and rural communities. I worked for 15 years within the power sector in the Caribbean prior to completing my PhD at Newcastle University in 2018. I collaborated with multidisciplinary teams in the public, private and government sectors to generate impact by:
Developing a National Energy Policy
Pioneering the first wind assessment of Antigua and Barbuda
Preparing a business case for additional power generation and evaluating bids for a utility-scale Solar PV installation.
I completed my PhD in Anaerobic Digestion (AD) where I investigated the correlation between agricultural waste feedstock composition and AD microbial community dynamics. Subsequently I worked as a Research Associate at Newcastle University where I investigated the thermodynamic properties of microbial electrolysis cells (MECs) and mentored both MSc and PhD students within the Environment Department within the School of Engineering.
Qualifications
- Prince2® Practitioner Project Management
- PhD (Anaerobic Digestion) Newcastle University (2018)
- MSc (Renewable Energy) - Distinction Newcastle University (2009)
- MBA (General Management) - Distinction Newcastle University (2000)
- BSc (Electrical and Computer Engineering) 2:2 University of the West Indies (1995)
Other Interests
- Chairman and Trustee of the Acorn Project Charity (UK Registered Charity 1076753): currently focusing on a three-year plan to provide tuition fees for a young Clinical Officer in Kenya to extend his medical qualifications.