Michael Russell Wheldon Rands (born 2 August 1956) is a British conservation biologist. He is the Master of Darwin College, Cambridge at the University of Cambridge[1] and a fellow at the Cambridge Judge Business School.[2] He was previously the executive director of the Cambridge Conservation Initiative.[3] Prior to this he was chief executive of BirdLife International.
Mike Rands | |
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| Born | Michael Russell Wheldon Rands 2 August 1956 |
| Nationality | British |
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| Website | www |
Early life and education edit
Rands was born on 2 August 1956.[4] He was educated at Dartington Hall School, the University of East Anglia and the University of Oxford. He gained his doctorate in ecology at the Edward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology, Department of Zoology and Wolfson College, Oxford.
Career edit
After his DPhil, Rands carried out post-doctoral research with the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust, conducting field experiments that helped establish the Conservation headland as a method for increasing wildlife populations in agricultural ecosystems, a practice that became enshrined in UK and EU legislation and policy.[5] In 1986 he joined the International Council for Bird Preservation as programme director where he played a leading role in creating BirdLife International. He became director of strategic planning and policy at BirdLife International in 1994 before becoming its chief executive from 1996 to 2009.[4]
In 2009 he became the founding director of the Cambridge Conservation Initiative (CCI). He led the creation of the Cambridge Conservation Campus, endorsed by Sir David Attenborough, within the flagship David Attenborough Building, which opened in 2013.[6] In 2018, under his leadership, CCI launched the Endangered Landscapes Programme, a collaboration with the Arcadia Fund to restore European landscapes for life.[7][8]
In October 2019, it was announced that he had been elected as Master of Darwin College, Cambridge: he took up the post on 1 October 2020.[9] He is also a Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge [10] and Trustee of the Cambridge Commonwealth, European & International Trust.[11] In 2021, the University of East Anglia announced that he would receive an Honorary Doctorate in Science in July 2022.[12]
References edit
- ^ "Mike Rands at Darwin College, Cambridge". Retrieved 7 October 2020.
- ^ "Honorary appointments at Cambridge Judge Business School". Retrieved 7 October 2020.
- ^ "Cambridge Conservation Initiative". Retrieved 24 April 2019.
- ^ a b "Rands, Dr Michael Russell Wheldon, (born 2 Aug. 1956), Executive Director, Cambridge Conservation Initiative, since 2009". Who's Who 2020. Oxford University Press. 1 December 2019. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U31881. ISBN 978-0-19-954088-4.
- ^ "English Nature report on wildlife gain from agri-environment schemes 2001". Retrieved 24 April 2019.
- ^ "Sir David Attenborough opens the Cambridge Conservation Campus in April 2013". Retrieved 24 April 2019.
- ^ "Endangered Landscapes Programme". Retrieved 24 April 2019.
- ^ "Mike Rands introduces the launch of the Endangered Landscapes Programme in October 2018". Retrieved 24 April 2019.
- ^ "Election of the next Master of Darwin College". Retrieved 11 January 2020.
- ^ "Deputy Vice-Chancellors appointed". Retrieved 17 November 2021.
- ^ "Cambridge Trust Trustees". Retrieved 7 October 2020.
- ^ "UEA honorary graduates 2022". Retrieved 17 November 2021.