The Uganda Carbon Bureau Team

Bill’s African experience started with posts in Zambia, Swaziland, Cameroon and South Sudan before he moved to Uganda some 18 years ago. He led the technical team in the Ministry of Water, Lands & Environment that undertook the internationally acclaimed reform of Uganda’s forest sector. He then worked as an EU-funded adviser at both the Private Sector Foundation Uganda, and the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA). Back in 2001 he initiated the Bushenyi Plan Vivo carbon finance scheme in western Uganda with CARE Uganda as the first voluntary carbon market project for smallholder tree farmers in Uganda. Wanting to do more to offer carbon finance services more widely, Bill established the Bureau in 2006.

Georg Zenk is an expert in CDM renewable energy project development. With a natural science background he has an extensive record of environmental consultancy. Before he joined the Bureau he validated CDM projects for one of the leading German validation companies (Tuv Sud). He worked with UCB for over 3 years supported by the German development organisation GTZ|CIM and his work was spread across all the Bureau’s energy-related projects including renewables, fuel switch and improved cookstoves. He now supports the Bureau’s work as an independent consultant.

At UCB Ruth is responsible for all aspects of the office’s administration and financial management for our various companies and keeps close records of our donor-supported activities, our Ignition Fund (that provides de-risked funding to ICSEA PoA applicants) and generally keeps the wheels turning.

Jenny worked with Bill to establish the Bureau in 2006. She led our Going Neutral programme and forestry work. In 2009 she left to study a PhD at the University of Aberdeen, researching impacts of land use change on soil carbon and carbon dioxide emissions in Indonesian peatlands. In 2013 she returned to Uganda as a postdoctoral researcher under the ALTER research project as a collaboration with University of Aberdeen and CAFEA, studying land use change dynamics in Uganda’s peat wetlands. She is now working on a new project, MOYA, studying methane emissions from wetlands in Uganda, again with Aberdeen through a partnership with CAFEA. She provides pro-bono support to CAFEA’s research programme, as well as working for the University of Aberdeen. She involves many young students and graduates in her work, offering research training and research project supervision for MSc students. You can read more about her Uganda based wetland work on her blog here: https://drfarmerjen.wordpress.com/uganda-wetlands/

Charlie joined the Bureau after completing an MSc at the University of Edinburgh where he studied Ecological Economics, specialising in forest carbon and payments for ecosystem services. Although originally trained as a physicist, he has previously worked with the World Agroforestry Centre in Sumatra. His academic research has examined risks to ecosystems and GHG emissions from mangrove land use, and interests include a landscape approach to ecosystems service provision and land management.

Ruth is a qualified lawyer with a varied career in legal and management roles that make her a valuable asset providing in-house legal advisory services to all our activities. She has updated the legal templates that were drafted by our earlier legal consultants, Baker & McKenzie and Perspectives.