Meet the team!
We are Amiee, Jess & Rachel!
A big part of the CircleUp project is having household visits with one of the material efficiency advisors, who will be delivering the project and guiding you through the different elements and challenges.
We will also be getting to know you and talking about your own interests and goals for what you’d like to get out of the project.
Here is a little bit more about us...
Amiee
I have lived in Oxfordshire for 3.5 years now, and spent much of that time working with university students to get more inclusion, representation and diversity in the admissions system, and support students in their transition away from school into university.
I have also spent much time exploring and enjoying the green, natural spaces around the county (and country) and decided to pivot my work, still working with people but this time getting more people connected with the environment and sustainability, via the circular economy and CircleUp.
In my free time, many of my hobbies are circular (some without even meaning to be) from sewing and knitting my own clothes from deadstock (leftover) fabric, growing rhubarb, raspberries, courgettes and more at my allotment, coming up with new recipes to avoid food waste, working with the community farm in my area to raise local pig breeds. You will also often find me swimming, paddleboarding or playing tag rugby.
Jess
Kia ora / Hello, I am originally from Essex but have been living in New Zealand for the last 10 years. I have a working background in finance as a management accountant for many different large scale industry organisations. However, in 2021 I decided to go and study the world’s first Bachelor of Climate change. I learnt so much about how our climate is changing, what that means for us all and what we can do about it. I have also been a tutor and love to talk to people, discussing new ideas and connecting people who are doing similar things. Encouraging people to live in a more circular way is something that has tangible impact and I can’t wait to see the impact of this project.
I am a big lover of nature in all the ways from all the different moss found on a hike, to getting in the water wherever possible and even to watching storms. I am my happiest self-watching the sun rise out of the ocean with a nice coffee 😊 I also love to read, journal and grow my own food as well as live a low consumption lifestyle, exploring new experiences over owning things and stuff.
Rachel
Hi, I’m Rachel, I’m a Oxfordian (a life long resident) and I’ve been in the waste team at Oxfordshire County Council for a number of years and I really enjoy providing the services to residents and finding ways to communicate our messages through campaigns and delivering projects like Circle Up.
There wasn’t essential criteria for the position that you needed to enjoy cold water swimming, but I do too! I adore dogs and I’m one of those people who will acknowledge the dog before the human. I really like walking and I’m currently completing the Thames Path in stages, from source to the Thames barrier, it’s approximately 184 miles, and we have 100 left to go.
I like mending and repairing things, mainly to reduce how much I need to buy/keeping things in use, with the benefit of saving money - my skills include sewing and mending holes in the seams of clothes, upskilling myself on how to repair my bike and using glue to repair household items! I like to learn and will give things a go, YouTube and a search engine are useful tools...
