I am an internationally renowned academic and practitioner in the field of social & environmental innovation & entrepreneurship, whose 25 year career experience has been dedicated to helping people, communities,  and organisations make decisions in complex and confusing situations. I am also adept at getting decisions made when I'm not in charge.  I have worked in environmental decision-making, in policy and law and in community development, for governments, major companies and community associations. Now, working at the University of Northampton, my focus is on the nitty-gritty theory and practice of community organising and social innovation. I have taught Entrepreneurship, International Development and Social & Community Development students how to make decisions in and with communities, but also coach and undertake paid and pro-bono consulting work for third-sector organisations, most recently co-founding Intensive Engagement, a social change organisation working on neighbourhood policing.
I am also Changemaker Campus leader at the University of Northampton who have adopted my skill set as a major institutional strategy. I have led on high profile co-curriculum challenges, summer schools and international conferences on social innovation. My PhD thesis "Locally Identified Solutions and Practices: a critical realist investigation into the processes of social innovation in the context of neighbourhood policing" was defended in July 2020 and awarded in July 2020. I was made Associate Professor of Social Innovation in June 2022.