With a doctorate in sustainable urban design, Barbara has been working on sustainability and climate change for many decades. From 2000 until 2010, she headed up the UK’s renewable energy programme and supported Sir David King in his role as Government Chief Scientific Advisor as his lead on global science and technology policy. Since 2008 Barbara has helped start up community energy businesses locally, including West Oxfordshire Renewables with Osney Lock Hydro. In 2010, Oxford City Council asked Barbara to explore growing community-led energy through social enterprise. This became Low Carbon Hub which was launched in December 2011, with Barbara its first employee in 2013. She was awarded an MBE in the 2015 New Year’s Honours List, for her pioneering contribution to the establishment of the community energy sector. In the past 10 years, Barbara has led Low Carbon Hub to a position where it owns a portfolio of renewable energy projects worth £20m, including 38 solar rooftops, the 440kW Sandford Hydro plant, and the 19.2MW Ray Valley Solar Park – with 1,770 investors contributing over £10 million, as well as over 40 local community shareholder groups. Much of that investment is being delivered back to Oxfordshire communities as community benefit, including domestic and business energy efficiency programmes. Barbara also leads on developing the relationships with many partner organisations that are fundamental to continuing success, including Project Local Energy Oxfordshire (LEO), an Innovate UK- funded £40 million project trialling local energy solutions to accelerate the transition to a zero carbon energy system. 125%