Annual General Meeting

If you are one of our growing number of BSBI members, the AGM is your chance to have your say and participate in how the society is governed.

The 2023 AGM was held online on 16th November and was preceded by talks, which were recorded and are now available to watch again on our YouTube channel.

An invitation to attend the 2023 BSBI Annual General Meeting (AGM) was published on this page and was also included inside the September 2023 issue of BSBI News. A joining link was sent to members who registered to attend, or they could write to the Company Secretary at the address below to register to attend and receive supporting papers.

The agenda included the election of Trustees, Honorary Members, and a President-elect. Any member interested in becoming a BSBI Trustee can find more information on How to Become a Trustee on the BSBI website or by writing to the address below. Below you can see biographies of individuals proposed for election, all of which were voted in unanimously.

Minutes of the 2023 BSBI AGM (draft).

Agenda for the 2023 AGM (revised version uploaded 19th October 2023).

The 2023 AGM was preceded by two introductory talks: Mike Crewe, well known to readers of BSBI News for his informative 'Beginner's Corner' articles, gave a talk on the subject of ‘Urban Botany - Are you StreetWise?and then BSBI Chief Executive Julia Hanmer provided a summary of BSBI's activities and successes over the past year. Both talks were recorded: click on the links to watch the videos.

Nomination for Trustee (re-election): Dr Mary Dean

Mary began her career in Information Technology, working for a large Insurance company. In 1999 she changed career to follow her love of plants and wildlife, undertaking a PhD at Edge Hill University, studying sedges. Before retirement she continued her sedge research and taught biology and botany in the Higher Education sector to students up to masters’ level. She was a BSBI Council member 2011-2020 and has been England Field Meetings Secretary and member of the Committee for England since 2020. In October 2022 Mary was appointed joint County Recorder for East Ross. She lives on north Merseyside and is an active member of several local and national wildlife organisations, including Liverpool Botanical Society and Butterfly Conservation. She is keen to support the continuing success of BSBI.

Nomination for Trustee (currently co-opted): Dr Maria Long

Maria is an ecologist based in Ireland. She works in the National Parks and Wildlife Service, in the Conservation Planning team, and also covers the grassland remit. Before that, she worked for seven years as the Ireland Officer for BSBI. She has worked in academia, the private sector, and for many years, as a self-employed ecologist, so she hopes that her breadth of experience will help in the role of Trustee with BSBI. Maria is passionate about communication and inclusion, and makes that a cornerstone of much of her work. She’s also keen to see that the vast amounts of data collected and curated by the BSBI are used effectively to further nature conservation, and to guide decisions and policies. Maria was co-opted to the Board of Trustees in March 2023 and has acted as Trustee Representative to the Committee for Ireland since then.

Nomination for Trustee: Trevor Dines

In the mid 1990s Trevor Dines was employed for 6 years by BSBI to help co-ordinate recording activity and editing of the 2000 New Atlas. Following this Trevor worked for Plantlife for 20 years championing the conservation of wildflower meadows, verges and initiating the No Mow May idea. He presented the Wild Things series on Channel 4 in 2013 and has done many other TV and radio appearances to champion wild plants. He regularly writes articles in newspapers and magazines and has authored books about wildflowers. His current project is a book about urban botany. He runs a botanical consultancy offering site survey and management advice for threatened species and wildflower meadow creation. Trevor has lived in north Wales for 35 years and currently runs a smallholding in the Conwy valley.

Nomination for President Elect:  Prof. Paul Ashton

Paul Ashton is Professor of Botany with teaching and research responsibilities at Edge Hill University in Lancashire. His research interests include Carex taxonomy, meadow community change and landscape connectivity. A BSBI member since 1987, serving on Training & Education committee (now Skills &Training) from 2004-2017 and on the Publications committee from 2007 until its demise. He was editor of the BSBI Grasses Handbook and previously sat on Council. As President he would continue to popularise botany (Paul considers his greatest achievement might be running a Field Botany module with 50+ students annually) and promoting the wider understanding of research.

Mary Dean

Maria Long

Trevor Dines

Paul Ashton

Nomination for Award of Honorary Member: Dr John Faulkner

BSBI member since 1967.

VCR for Co. Armagh since 1991, joint author of Natural History of Ulster (2011)

Committee for Ireland 2005- ; Irish Field Meetings Secretary: 2006-2014; Chair: 2014-

BSBI President: 2015-2017

BSBI Trustee: 2017-2022

Nomination for Award of Honorary Member: Robert Northridge MBE

BSBI member since 1982.

VCR for Co. Fermanagh since 1993, joint author of The Flora of County Fermanagh (2012)

Committee for Ireland 2011- ; NI Rep. to Records Committee; Chair CfI 2016-18, 2023-

Chair of S&D: 2019- (member of committee / NI Rep. since 2011; Chair of sub-committees

The BSBI Annual General Meeting 2022 took place at 7.15pm on Thursday 17th November as an electronic meeting. It was attended by 81 people; here are the draft minutes of the BSBI AGM 2022.

The 2022 AGM was preceded by introductory talks; Mick Crawley gave a talk about the flora of London and BSBI Chief Executive Julia Hanmer provided a summary of BSBI's activities and successes over the past year.