… and news about the COAST team
Andrew Telford is leaving Arran and COAST to go travelling at the end of the month. He is heading for the Far East, across land! Andrew has done a fantastic job over the last two years delivering COAST’s schools outreach programme, summer events, in-house IT, accounting and general admin functions. It has been a very busy couple of years during which COAST marked 5 years of the No Take Zone in 2013 and the designation of the South Arran Marine Protected Area in July 2014. Andy has been an enthusiastic and vital member of the COAST team and we would like to wish him eventful but safe travels. We will miss him and look forward to his posts from far flung places.
On the up side, we are delighted to announce that Manuela de los Rios will be our new Communications and Administration Officer. She started with us this week. Manuela grew up in the UK and Spain and has moved to Arran with her partner and three primary-aged children from sun-baked Cadiz (and, yes, they do know about the unpredictable weather!). She has MScs in coastal zone management and environmental education and has previously worked for CoastNet as their Communications Coordinator and with the University of Cadiz, as a guest lecturer and coastal officer. She has also set up and run a number of community-based initiatives and will play a crucial role in delivering the potential of the South Arran Marine Protected Area for the community on Arran. COAST would like to thank everyone who has suggested or offered accommodation options to Manuela and her family as well as everyone who has helped to get her three children enrolled at school at very short notice.
We are also very pleased to announce that Sheridan Waldon will be providing bookkeeping services to COAST. Sheridan has previously worked for Arran Homes and the Citizen’s Advice Bureau and will be a real asset to the extended COAST team.
Finally, Jenny Stark will be with us from mid-October until Christmas as a short term volunteer. Jenny is just completing an MSc at York University and has been conducting baseline Seasearch dive surveys with COAST’s Chair Howard Wood this summer.
