GSGSSI Personnel

Laura Sinclair Willis – Chief Executive

Laura began her overseas career as cabin crew for an international airline in 2001, and then worked across the public, private and charitable sectors around the world prior to joining GSGSSI in 2021. She is accountable to His Majesty’s Commissioner for the effective management, good governance and operation of this UK Overseas Territory.

Laura has overall responsibility for people and finance, and an annual operational budget of c.£8m. to deliver our strategic ambition: “Environmental recovery and resilience through world-leading evidence-based sustainable management”.

Laura’s responsibilities include:

• Planning, managing and co-ordinating the delivery of Protect, Sustain, Inspire, our 5-year values-driven approach to stewardship.
• Ensuring the development of appropriate relevant policies and legislation, undertaking business planning and annual reporting;
• Overseeing and directing operations to ensure the proper management, good governance and appropriate use of resources;
• Ensuring the Territory meets its international obligations.
• Developing, managing and maintaining strategic relationships with Government’s partners and stakeholders to help maintain the sovereignty and security of the Territory;
• Enhancing the profile and outreach of Government.

Laura lives in the Falkland Islands with her husband and 3 children. When not at work, you can usually find her sat at a sewing machine producing clothing for herself and her family.

Mairi Macleod – Director of Operations

Mairi has worked in operations and logistics in several sectors globally, starting her career as a site engineer in the Highlands of Scotland before travelling overseas to work on contracts in both humanitarian, logistics and operations roles. Her impressive track record includes time spent with Medicin Sans Frontier, MdM, ALE and White Desert, switching between both sectors and climates over the years. She has worked in operations in the UK health sector since the pandemic and joins GSGSSI from a short sabbatical as an ERU Air Operations delegate with the British Red Cross in Egypt.  She previously worked on South Georgia with the British Antarctic Survey at King Edward Point, and again several years later as a volunteer with the South Georgia Heritage Trust.

Mairi has family ties to South Georgia, as her Father was a radio officer for Salvesens in the late 19650’s.  She is looking forward to exploring the Falklands and revisiting South Georgia.

Jamie Oliver – Visitor Manager

Jamie is originally from Wales in the UK and spent the first 20 years of his career working in education. He began as a geography teacher and progressed to head of department, then deputy headteacher with a variety of responsibilities. With a lifelong passion for nature and wildlife, Jamie took the decision to change career, joining Cardiff University to study for an MSc in Global Ecology and Conservation. The course included modules on field skills, assessing biodiversity and ecosystems, conservation biology, science communication, and field research – which included placements in Vietnam and Borneo. For his research project Jamie focussed on seabird ecology in the Falkland Islands and assessed the impact of climate variation and fisheries intake on gentoo penguin population dynamics.

Jamie’s responsibilities include:

• Delivery of the Government’s visitor management and permitting processes;
• Integrating visitor management requirements into the full range of Government operations;
• Integrating Government policies on immigration, permitting and protection into the visitor journey;
• Ensuring visitors are informed about, and adhere to SGSSI’s strict biosecurity requirements;

Outside of work, Jamie enjoys spending time outdoors, especially in coastal areas where he can indulge his passion for sea kayaking. He also enjoys cycling and playing squash. Having previously lived and worked in the Falklands, he is delighted to be back!

Bernice Hewitt – Operations Manager

Bernice is a Falkland Islander who joins GSGSSI having spent numerous years working in operations and logistics within the Falkland Islands fishing and maritime industry. With a background managing a large fleet of vessels working in the South Atlantic, she brings significant experience of complex operations in remote environments.

Her passion and interest in South Georgia was sparked at a young age when she first was captivated by the stories from her godparents who worked there, these early tales ignited a lifelong curiosity and dream to get involved with the vital work of preserving the islands for many years to come.

Jo Campbell – Office Manager

Jo joined the Government in February 2022 having previously worked in administration in the third sector and private sector in Scotland and Australia.

Jo’s key responsibilities include:

• Processing incoming and raising outgoing invoices
• Ordering office and other supplies for both Falklands and South Georgia-based staff
• Line Managing the Postal Officers on South Georgia
• Purchasing stock for the SG Post Office, and co-ordinating delivery to FI and SG
• Booking travel and accommodation for government staff and contractors

Dr Mark Belchier – Director of Fisheries and Environment

Mark joined GSGSSI in July 2018 on secondment from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) where he has worked on South Georgia marine and fisheries science projects since 2000.

Mark establish the Government’s applied fisheries research laboratory at King Edward Point (KEP), as well as developing and managing the KEP research programme.

Mark holds a PhD in marine fisheries ecology and has extensive fisheries research experience. He has been the lead scientist on nine research surveys of fish resources at South Georgia.

Mark has represented the UK as part of the UK Delegation to CCAMLR and has chaired many international conservation and fisheries treaty meetings.

Mark’s key responsibilities include:

• Sustainable management of the terrestrial and marine environments of SGSSI including one of the world’s largest Marine Protected Areas.
• Development and management (including licencing) of its associated fisheries to the highest international standards of sustainability.
• Development and delivery of the Government’s science and research strategies.

Mark divides his time between Cambridgeshire and Stanley and loves rugby, cycling, walking Keats the dog and playing guitar badly.

John Clorley – Director of Strategy and Policy

John joined the Government in March 2021 on secondment from the Department of Environment Food and Rural Affairs in the UK. Whilst with DEFRA he was responsible for the environmental aspects of negotiations for the new UN Treaty for Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction, environmental regulations for Deep Sea Mining and the marine targets for the Post 2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. He was vice-chair of the OSPAR Commission for the protection of the Northeast Atlantic, having previously been chair of the Biodiversity Committee.

John’s key responsibilities include:

• Developing implementation plans for the Government’s 5-year values framework “Protect, Sustain, Inspire”;
• Planning and target-setting for Government activity;
• Generation, management and review of the Government’s internal and external policies;
• Researching, drafting, and implementing new legislation and the modification and repeal of historic legislation;
• Developing and overseeing external and internal consultation exercises;

John has previously worked on reforming fisheries management in MPAs, Parliamentary legislation and de-regulation, non-native species and Government statistics. His first “real” job was as a supermarket manager, a very long time ago.

Sue Gregory – Senior Marine and Fisheries Manager

Sue first visited South Georgia in 2009 as a fisheries ecologist with the British Antarctic Survey at King Edward Point, and she remained with BAS for the next 8 years including overwintering at King Edward Point and spending considerable time on commercial fishing vessels as a scientific observer and conducting research surveys. She joined GSGSSI in 2017.

Sue is responsible for the day-to-day operation of South Georgia’s fisheries and Marine Protected Area, working with the Director of Fisheries and Environment to manage the fisheries sustainably and to the highest international standards in compliance with the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR).

Sue’s key responsibilities include:

• Day-to-day management of South Georgia’s fisheries, including the fishery observer programme and catch verification contract
• Marine Stewardship Council certification and surveillance audits
• Coordination of GSGSSI engagement with Darwin Plus grant proposals and support of scientific research and monitoring to deliver fisheries and MPA objective
• Policy lead for Human Lives at Sea to raise welfare standards for seafarers
• Providing training on fisheries management, licensing and CCAMLR requirements to Government staff and external partners
• Baking cakes for the team, although she struggles to keep up with demand.

Jennifer Black – Head of Environment

Jen joined the Government in 2012 as the Environment Officer.

Jen has been involved in a huge range of projects about or actually on South Georgia including non-native species management, wildlife surveys and policy development. Jen was instrumental to the success of the reindeer eradication programme and supporting the subsequent rodent eradication.

In her current as Environment Manager, Jen has responsibility for:

• Managing compliance with environmental legislation and co-ordinating the Regulated Activity Permit System
• Delivery of the newly designated “Terrestrial Protected Area” including development of the management plan and legislation
• Supporting the science programmes that secure external funding
• the much-envied role of co-ordinating the design and approval of all the Territory’s stamps and coins.

Jen is now mainly based in the UK where she enjoys all things outdoors. She travels south as often as she can.

Andrew Dawson – General Counsel

Andrew is the Government’s General Counsel and something of a geek when it comes to the laws of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. He put together the www.laws.gov.gs website having hunted down and identified all our local laws from 1775 onwards. He described the exercise as “legal archaeology”.

Andrew likes to tell the world how marvellous our laws are, and why everyone should look to contract pursuant to them and use our courts. Nothing gives him greater pleasure than researching and applying the Territory’s domestic legislation.

Andrew has a not-so-secret love of trains and was delighted to discover that outside the museum in Grytviken is a tramway wagon similar to those used by Zorin Industries in the James Bond film A View to a Kill. Andrew’s other James Bond claim to fame is that he got married in the church opposite the pub where Daniel Craig grew up.

Paul Shafi – Website Development and Technical Support

Paul has been developing commercial software since back in his school days. A Glasgow University graduate, he has worked in various software development roles picking up a BAFTA nomination along the journey.

His South Georgia involvement started when he joined the Centre for Remote Environment at Dundee University over 20 years ago.

Responsible for:

• Website development and maintenance
• Technical support

• .gs domains