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We are excited to announce that Dr Noëlle Kümpel will be stepping into the role of Chair for the Darwin Expert Committee.

The Darwin Expert Committee (DEC) is the advisory panel for the Darwin Initiative which consists of a range of independent biodiversity experts. They advise the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) on the development of the fund, reviewing applications and making technical recommendations.

“After a year on the Darwin Expert Committee under the brilliant leadership of Prof. Dame E.J. Milner-Gulland, I am now incredibly excited to be stepping into her shoes and working with the team as Chair,” shares Noëlle.

Noëlle brings over 25 years of experience in conservation research, policy, and project and programme management to the role. In addition to five years in the field in Africa and Asia, and doctoral and postdoctoral research on the sustainability of wild meat hunting, her expertise spans topics as varied as protected and conserved areas, human rights, and corporate sector engagement.

Noëlle standing in front of Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania while on an official field visit during a UNESCO African World Heritage meeting.

In her role as Chair, Noëlle will act as champion for the Darwin Initiative alongside Defra and other government ministers, representing the fund and its interests at the most senior levels across all sectors. She will provide strategic advice to Defra on the Darwin Initiative’s aims, priorities and further development. Noëlle will lead all DEC meetings, overseeing the process for technical assessment of applications and making recommendations of projects to fund. She will also support and advise DEC members where needed and assist with the recruitment and retention of members.

“Having developed and led Darwin Initiative projects myself, on integrating wildlife into timber certification in Ghana and Cameroon and coordinating a multistakeholder, range-wide okapi conservation strategy in Democratic Republic of Congo, it is now a privilege to enable the work of others to benefit from this greatly respected, world-renowned fund,” explains Noëlle.

Currently, Noëlle sits as Senior Policy Advisor at BirdLife International, supporting equitable, carbon-neutral, nature-positive targets, policy and implementation through international conventions such as the CBD, CITES, CMS, Ramsar, World Heritage and UNFCCC, and other policy mechanisms.

Noëlle chairing a panel on nature-based solutions at the World Climate Summit at UNFCCC COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan.

In addition to her time on the Darwin Expert Committee, Noëlle has also sat on the Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund Advisory Group (another Biodiversity Challenge Fund) and chaired the UK Bushmeat Working Group (supported by Defra) and IUCN Species Survival Commission Giraffe and Okapi Specialist Group.

Noëlle says, “With a background in science and managing field-based projects and programmes, but now specialising in policy advocacy and advice through international conventions and other policy processes, I hope to help the Darwin Initiative bridge the gap between global targets and national/local-scale implementation, and ensure that our grantees actively support governments to deliver their critically important global goals for nature, climate and people.”

The team at the Biodiversity Challenge Funds would like to extend our congratulations to Noëlle on this appointment!

For the latest updates on the Darwin Initiative, read more here.

Noëlle speaking on a panel on synergies at the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands COP13 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Noëlle with David Attenborough at a Cambridge Conservation Initiative event in Cambridge, UK.