Shortlists for new Awards are revealed
13 February 2020
The shortlists for three new awards to be presented at the Confor 2020 dinner have been announced - after judges whittled down an excellent group of entries in each category.
Laura Charles of Forestry England, Huw Lloyd of Lockhart Garrett and Andrew MacQueen, Tilhill Forestry, are the three shortlisted entries in the Future Leader Award, sponsored by James Jones & Sons Ltd.
The three finalists in the Innovation and Research Award are Tom Barnes of Vastern Timber, Jonathan Ritchie of James Jones & Sons and present and former staff of the Northern Research Station. This award is sponsored jointly by Forestry Commission and Forestry and Land Scotland.
Vying to be the first winner of the Changing Attitudes Award, sponsored by Scottish Woodlands Ltd, are Andy Baker of Tilhill Forestry, Mima Lets of Tree Sparks and Cheryl Lundberg, Lockhart Garrett.
Stuart Goodall, CEO of Confor, said: "We have been really pleased to see both the number and quality of nominations for these inaugural awards - 25 nominations in total. With so many high-quality people being nominated, it’s been a real challenge for the judging panels to shortlist just three candidates in each category. All those shortlisted should feel very proud and I thank everyone who has taken the time to nominate someone for an award.
"I am very much looking forward to seeing the winners being recognised at our biggest-ever dinner, with well over 150 guests expected . It's extremely important to highlight the excellence in our growing industry by honouring great communicators and innovators, and future leaders."
The long-standing Dedicated Service to Forestry Award will also be presented at the dinner at The Sheraton Grand Hotel in Edinburgh on Tuesday, 25 February along with two special awards.
Fergus Ewing MSP, Scottish Government Cabinet Secretary for the Rural Economy, is guest of honour at the dinner, alongside Sir Harry Studholme, who is stepping down as chair of Forestry Commission.
The evening starts with a drinks reception at 7:15pm, with dinner from 8pm, followed by the presentation of the awards. A few extra tables have been made available at the venue as the original capacity was sold out – please follow this link to book.
