Savita Willmott, Chief Executive of The Natural History Consortium

The Natural History Consortium is a charity dedicated to engaging people with the natural world through collaborative action. With its 13 partner organisations, the charity delivers The Festival of Nature, running since 2003, and partnering with Bristol Old Vic this year as Culture & Sustainability Partners. Savita is Chief Executive of the organisation, acting as both a creative lead, developing and designing new programmes, as well as leading operational oversight for the charity and its major events. She has led the festival since 2007 and grown it from a single site event in Bristol to a major cultural event spanning across the West of England, attracting over 30,000 visitors each year and inspiring similar events in Manchester and Oxford. It now sees more than 100 organisations collaborating in the festival delivery each year – and the festival remains free for visitors.