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Judges

Explore the 2024 Wainwright
prize judging panels

The judging panels for our three categories bring together industry expertise, experience from some of the UK’s largest nature charities, authors, activists, booksellers, and scientific researchers. The Nature Writing Prize judging panel is chaired by Biologist and Natural History Museum Podcaster, Dr Khalil Thirlaway; Joycelyn Longdon, PhD student at Cambridge University and Founder of Climate in Colour is the Chair of Judges for Writing on Conservation; and Roisin Taylor, Co-Director at UK Youth for Nature, chairs the Prize for Children’s Writing on Nature and Conservation.

Nature Writing

Judging Chair

Dr Khalil Thirlaway

Khalil is a science communicator, storyteller and co-host of the Natural History Museum’s Wild Crimes and Our Broken Planet podcasts who specialises in finding creative ways to connect with audiences. His work explores the intersections between science, nature, society and politics.

The Panel

Nature Writing

Katrina Clarke

Bookseller at Mr B’s Emporium, Bath
Nature Writing

Karen Brazier

Co-owner of FOLDE Bookshop
Nature Writing

Ash Bhardwaj

Travel Writer, Filmmaker and Storyteller
Nature Writing

Soraya Abdel-Hadi

Writer, Coach, and Founder of All the Elements
Nature Writing

Lee Schofield

Naturalist and Nature Writer

Writing on Conservation

Judging Chair

Joycelyn Longdon

Joycelyn is an award-winning environmental justice researcher and educator, currently completing a PhD at Cambridge University working with bioacoustics – essentially Shazam for nature – and local forest communities in Ghana for biodiversity conservation. She is also the founder of ClimateInColour, an online education platform and community for the climate curious, making climate conversations more accessible, diverse and hopeful. Joycelyn has worked with a wide range of organisations including Greenpeace, Meta, Samsung, The UN, Channel 4 and Oxford University. She is a TEDx Alumni and was 2022’s winner of the Emerging Designer London Design Medal. Most recently she was featured in British Vogue’s December 2023 ‘Forces for Change’ Issue and has been listed as one of Pique Action and Harvard Chan C-CHANGE’s 2024 Climate Creators to Watch.

The Panel

Writing on Conservation

Alex Try

RSPB Director of Strategic Communications
Writing on Conservation

Tristram Stuart

Author and Activist
Writing on Conservation

Fatima Ibrahim

Co-Executive Director of Green New Deal
Writing on Conservation

Craig Bennett

CEO UK Wildlife Trusts
Writing on Conservation

Mark Funnell

Communications & Campaigns Director National Trust

Children's Writing on Nature and Global Conservation

Judging Chair

Roisin Taylor

Roisin Taylor is co-director for UK Youth for Nature, a nature friendly flower farmer and Nuffield farming scholar from the north-east of England. Roisin grew up in the countryside on a steady diet of children’s books like Brambley Hedge, Beatrix Potter and Where’s Ted? She is looking forward to getting back to her roots and delving into judging for the Children’s category of the Wainwright prize!

The Panel

Children's Writing on Nature and Global Conservation

Frann Preston Gannon

Children’s Illustrator and Author
Children's Writing on Nature and Global Conservation

Konnie Huq

Blue Peter Presenter and Children’s Author
Children's Writing on Nature and Global Conservation

Dan Green

Editor of The Week Junior
Children's Writing on Nature and Global Conservation

Uju Asika

Children’s Author and Consultant
Children's Writing on Nature and Global Conservation

Joanna Adeyinka-Burford

CBeebies Presenter