Robert grew up on a farm in Northern Ireland. He started driving a tractor at the age of eight and has travelled extensively, working on different farming systems in New Zealand, India, South Korea, Colombia and Turkey. These experiences led him to study an MSc in Organic Farming and Food Production Systems at Newcastle University, during which time he was also employed on Newcastle University’s research farms.
Since graduating with a distinction he has worked for over five years as a Farm Manager across the UK. During this time he has applied for multiple successful grants, certification schemes and has gained working knowledge of the challenges currently faced by different farming systems in the UK.
He has designed and delivered large scale farm infrastructure projects and has experience of facilitating Farm Cluster groups so that farmers can work together to improve their quality of life, food production and our environment. He is passionate about agriculture and looks forward to working with farmers in the catchment to improve ecosystem services.