Hannah Woodall

Saltmarsh Restoration Engagement and Science Officer

About me

My first fascinations with the natural world were at an early age, from discovering and dissecting buzzard pellets, finding slow worms in the garden and watching busy hummingbird hawk-moths. This grew into a wider enthusiasm for the natural world, where I’m always keen to learn more.

I am incredibly proud to work within the conservation sector and excited to see how the sector can help wider society understand and feel a part of nature, including recognising its extensive and positive benefits.

Before working at WWT I worked within the RSPB Cymru policy and advocacy team, where I worked collaboratively with a wide range of organisations and stakeholders to ensure farming and food policies delivered for nature, climate and people. Beforehand, I worked within the Animal and Plant Health Agency wildlife disease research team, where I managed a volunteer citizen science project and also held roles within the laboratory and field.

My role

I sit within the WWT’s Waterscapes programme, seeking to conserve and enhance wetlands, including Saltmarsh, at the landscape scale.

WWT have an ambitious goal of restoring 22,000 hectares of saltmarsh in the UK. Saltmarshes are one of our most effective ways to tackle climate change as they act as giant carbon sinks. They are crucial for biodiversity too, as they host rare plants and birds and are important nurseries for fish. They’re also a very special place for people.

I’m responsible for the production, delivery and monitoring of our Saltmarsh Restoration community engagement programmes. Within this, I ensure that local stakeholders can inform project design and have a forum to relay comments, concerns, ideas and solutions. I also assist with the delivery of social science research.

Within our programme for Saltmarsh Restoration I will be working with my excellent colleagues from across the organisation to help deliver these exciting projects.

Experience and interests

• Collaborative work and stakeholder engagement
• Experience of citizen science recruitment
• Policy and advocacy
• Experience in bird (CBC, BBS and B&S) and mammal surveys
• Laboratory (include immunology and histology)