Andy Atkins to take helm at Friends of the Earth

Governance | Gemma Ware | 18 Mar 2008

Andy Atkins, director of relief and development at Tearfund, is to succeed Tony Juniper as executive director of Friends of the Earth.

Atkins (pictured), who sits alongside Juniper on the board of Stop Climate Chaos, was one of the charity campaigners who conceived 2005’s Make Poverty History campaign and sat on its co-ordination team.

He will work alongside Juniper from the end of June before taking the reins at Friends of the Earth later in the summer.

Atkins spent 11 years at Tearfund and was appointed the charity’s first advocacy director in 2000, when he spearheaded a move that saw Tearfund lead the way among UK development charities to identify climate change as a poverty issue.

Atkins, 47, has made a career of human rights advocacy and religious campaigning. Three years as general secretary of the Chile Committee of Human Rights during the Pinochet dictatorship was followed by a stint in fundraising and awareness at Cafod. He then spent seven years as Latin American desk officer at the Catholic Institute for International Relations before joining Tearfund in 1997.

He said he had long admired Friends of the Earth and was delighted to lead it at a time when the need to combat climate change had never been greater.

“Change is possible, but it will require far-sighted proposals alongside principled protest. This means not just identifying problems, but working with others to drive positive change. Friends of the Earth, with its campaigning track record, its tens of thousands of committed supporters and unique international network, is ideally placed to do this,” he said.

Juniper announced in October that he would be standing down after 18 years at Friends of the Earth (six as its director) in order to take on new challenges. He said Atkins would be a fantastic leader for the organisation, which boasts over 100,000 supporters.

Directory: Friends of the Earth
Who's Who: Gemma Ware

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