Green Blue welcomes new member and celebrates team member success

by RYA on 3 Oct 2014 It’s been an exciting month for The Green Blue as they welcome Kate Fortnam to the team as Environmental Outreach Officer and celebrate the success of Sustainability Officer Dan Reading as he gains ‘Chartered Environmentalist’ status.

Kate, who has a degree in Environmental Science from the University of Leeds, joins the team to focus on creating and delivering new, more interactive ways to inspire boaters to understand the link between boating and the environment, and to motivate them to take on board different ways of making their boating more sustainable.

Kate will also be looking at how The Green Blue can integrate its key messages into existing programmes run by the RYA and BMF, for example instructor conferences or marina open days, as well as developing The Green Blue’s highly successful practical ‘have a go’ events at future boat shows. 'Kate comes with a unique mix of skills and experience and a genuine passion for sailing and the environment that will be a great asset to The Green Blue' commented The Green Blue Project Manager Jane Swan.

'She understands our target audiences, the need to find the right tone of voice and appropriate material to make our information and calls to action really easy to understand and follow yet compelling. It’s so important for projects like The Green Blue to harness new ideas and energy and I’m excited by the impact that Kate will bring in this new post.

'With our tenth birthday just round the corner (2015) it’s more important than ever that we find new ways to keep our work topical and innovative', Jane added.

When asked how she felt about her appointment Kate commented: 'I’m thrilled to be joining The Green Blue. I grew up with a love of sailing mainly in Lyme Regis along with a love for the natural environment. To combine the two with the opportunity to use my teaching and outreach experience is a great fit.

'I’m looking forward to the challenge ahead and the chance to create some new and innovative ways for The Green Blue to build on its excellent work to date.'

When not working for The Green Blue Kate’s passion lies predominantly in dinghy and yacht racing mostly in her home town of Lyme Regis and occasionally around the Ionian Islands in Greece. She can usually be found sailing an Albacore, Laser 1 or a Hunter Medina.

As well as the great new addition to the team The Green Blue are delighted to announce that Dan Reading, the team’s Sustainability Officer has been awarded Chartered Environmentalist status from the Society for the Environment; formally recognising the environmental improvement work he has carried out at The Green Blue.

As a full member of the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment Dan will be able to keep himself and The Green Blue team up to date with emerging legislation, and environmental best practice.

'I am extremely pleased to have obtained chartered status as not only does this demonstrate the quality of work that we have delivered but also acts to reassure potential people we partner with that we work to a recognised high standard', commented Dan.

To obtain his chartered status Dan had to demonstrate that he had achieved four years’ experience and a master’s level of knowledge in the field, as well as pass a peer interview panel and a written paper.

'In his six years with The Green Blue, Dan has had a tremendous impact, from guiding the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy to be the first sailing venue in the world to achieve the ISO20121 standard to working with all the major marina groups on a whole range of environmental issues and just recently presenting at the ICOMIA World Marina Conference. Not only has his work made a difference to the environment – for example diverting millions of litres of waste from landfill to recycling – but it has also resulted in significant cost savings for some of these businesses. It is a huge achievement for Dan to receive the accolade of chartered environmentalist status and well deserved; of course it also reflects well on The Green Blue and the quality of advice and level of professionalism that the project can offer to the recreational boating sector', commented Project Manager Jane Swan.

As The Green Blue continues to evolve to take advantage of new opportunities it’s important that the team is equipped with the right blend of experience, skills and knowledge to respond. Kate’s appointment and Dan’s new Chartered Status give the team a welcome boost of creativity, strength and credibility moving into 2015. Plans are in place to increase their strong portfolio of partnerships and use these as a platform to raise the profile of The Green Blue and persuade even more boaters and boating businesses to do their very best to reduce their impact on the environment.