Trustees
Dr Liam Herringshaw – Founder Trustee
Co-director, Yorkshire Fossil Festival
Liam is a freelance Earth Science public engagement professional, working with schools, museums, universities, and learned societies, and leading guided fossil tours and geology walks in York and on the Yorkshire Coast. He co-founded the Yorkshire Fossil Festival in 2014, and has co-directed the festival since 2020.
Liam has a PhD in palaeontology, with research interests in the evolution of life in the sea, and is a former lecturer at the University of Hull, having worked in universities in England, Scotland, and Canada. He is a committee member for the Rotunda Geology Group in Scarborough and the Yorkshire Philosophical Society Geology Group in York and can be found online as @fossiliam.
Steve Cousins – Founder Trustee
Director of Let’s Circus and Co-Director of the Yorkshire Fossil Festival
Steve has a 25-year career in public engagement spanning science, the creative industries and youth leadership. He is an advocate for creating transformative participatory activities. His commitment to developing Earth Science engagement is demonstrated through live public events delivered in non-traditional ways.
Dr Peter King – Founder Trustee
Earth Science Educator – Online Teacher
Pete is an online Earth Science teacher with a PhD in Philosophy and an MSc in Petroleum Geophysics. He has several years’ experience working internationally in the oil industry.
He also has many years’ experience as the CEO of the CIO Performers Without Borders (PWB). Peter was responsible for transitioning PWB from a charity to a CIO and successfully managed its finances, marketing, governance, child safeguarding and MEARL (PWB Impact Reports).
Sally Hollingworth – Trustee
(Job title)
Sally is an amateur palaeontologist and community builder. She is known for organising palaeontology digs for students to provide professional experience in fossil excavation. One of her discoveries rewrote the history books when it demonstrated that Neanderthals cohabited in the UK during the Ice Age 214,000 years ago.
She also featured in a BBC documentary with Sir David Attenborough about her role in the remarkable mammoth discovery at Cerney Wick in the Cotswolds. She has organised and supported over 100 early-career and citizen scientists, contributing significantly to the professional scientific community.
Dr Fiona Gill – Trustee
Professor of Earth Science, School of Earth, Environment and Sustainability, University of Leeds
Fiona is Vice-President of the Palaeontological Association (PalAss) and a Lecturer in the School of Earth and Environment at the University of Leeds. She specialises in the chemistry of fossils and their modern equivalents and is particularly interested in cold seeps, coprolites and plants.Fiona's research spans palaeontology, geochemistry and inclusion in geoscience.
She brings to ESO UK both her 20 years of academic experience and a passion for public engagement and educational outreach. Fiona has a track record of working with artists to explore creative approaches to Earth Science communication. As Outreach Officer and later Vice President of the Palaeontological Association Fiona was closely involved in the Yorkshire Fossil Festival for 10 years and is keen to continue sharing her love for rocks, fossils and Earth history as widely as possible.
Rose Want – Trustee
Public Engagement manager for British Geological Survey, based at the Natural History Museum
Rose is an enthusiastic Earth Scientist and MSc Science Communication graduate, currently working in public engagement for the British Geological Survey, based at the Natural History Museum. She has a passion for the natural world, which she hopes to share with others to both educate and inspire.
Holly Turner – Trustee and Designated Safeguarding Lead
Science and Computer Science Teacher
Holly is a qualified teacher, Science Lead and computer scientist who has always used her enthusiasm for the world around us to plan whole curricula based on the natural environment.
She has used her educational roles to promote women in STEM, organising and taking part in activities that encourage young girls to feel excited and confident in a subject that is not always equally promoted to them.
Her experience in the education sector and the technological world allows her to bring the history of our world to life in a variety of engaging ways.