Join a committee

If so, we would like to offer you the chance to help us deliver our strategic plan by taking up a voluntary leadership role. Joining a committee will give you the ability to work directly with our paid staff, and a wider team of ecologists.

Join a BES committee – a volunteer role with a difference

Would you like to help shape the strategic development of the BES and enhance your skills and professional development?  We are recruiting for people to join our Personnel and Publications Committees this March.

We welcome applications from all career stages and across areas of ecology.

Are you ready to shape the future of ecology? Apply now!

Find out what it’s like to be on a committee

As a committee member you will help make a major contribution to the Society and our diverse ecological community. In return, you are given access to unique opportunities to network, and influence the development of ecological research and activity.

We would not be able to operate without the significant amount of time dedicated to us by committees, and would like to say thank you to all members involved.

Please email us if you are interested in joining a committee at hello@britishecologicalsociety.org

Board of Trustees

The Board of Trustees helps run our Society, and gets involved in all our activities. Our members are nominated and elected annually by the membership at the Society’s Annual General Meeting, which is held in association with the Annual Meeting every December. If you are interested in joining our Board, please check our ‘Vacancies’ page for any opportunities.
If you would like to know more about being a Board member you are very welcome to contact our Executive Director, Hazel Norman.
Chair: Bridget Emmett, President

Education, Training & Careers Committee

This Committee is responsible for curriculum development at all levels of formal education including educational development projects, development and publication of teaching materials and production of careers advice.
Chair: Zenobia Lewis

Finance Committee

This develops policy options within finance and internal affairs as well as monitoring income/expenditure and overseeing the management of our investment portfolio.
Chair: Markus Eichhorn

Grants Committee

This Committee is responsible for all our grants and undertakes periodic reviews of the schemes and their administration.
Chair: Mark Emmerson

Events Committee

This Committee is responsible for all the Society’s academic meetings. It administers the Annual Meeting, runs the Annual Symposium and Special Symposium from programme development to publication, assesses proposals for future meetings, co-ordinates the activities of the Special Interest Groups, and oversees workshop sponsorship, commemorative events fund and financial support for meetings run by associated organisations.
Chair: Laura Graham

Member Services Committee

Primary responsibility is the maintenance and development of services to members. It is also responsible for the retention and acquisition of new members.
Chair: Tim Coulson

Personnel Committee

This is responsible for setting the employment policy of the Society, terms and conditions of its staff, considering staffing levels and overseeing contracts of employment.
Chair: Rob Brooker

Policy Committee

The Policy Committee guides our work supporting members to build their skills, develop their careers and enhance the policy impact of their work; communicating the value of ecological knowledge to policymakers; and promoting evidence-informed solutions.
Chair: Rick Stafford

Publications Committee

Its remit is to manage the strategic direction of the Society’s portfolio of publications, including its 6 ecology journals, its partnership in the open access journal Ecology and Evolution and its Ecological Reviews book series. It seeks to ensure that work of the highest scientific standards is published, in order to maintain the reputation and profitability of the portfolio.
Chair: Rob Freckleton