Members of the Mountaineering Scotland board work on a voluntary basis to support the Mountaineering Scotland staff and CEO. They are required to stand for election annually at the Annual General Meeting. Each director may serve for a four year term of office, plus an additional two years if agreed.
The composition of the board following the 2023 AGM is:
Elected as President in 2023
I am London born but have spent most of my adult life in Plymouth and Aviemore. I grew up walking on the South Downs, Dartmoor and Exmoor and following a move to Devon in 1987, spent a great deal of time exploring Dartmoor on foot and on horseback.
Before my retirement I was a Clinical Nurse Manager in the NHS, I also hold a Masters Degree in Management. I have been a member of The Munro Society since 2005, holding the posts of Secretary and President. I am also a Trustee of the Mill Cottage Fund (SCIO).
I fell in love with the mountains during a trip to Scotland in 1998 and I had no idea then, how hillwalking would shape my life over the next 25 years. My appreciation for the hills blossomed in my mid 30s and I discovered a passion for the mountains which has since taken me to some extremely remote and challenging places. Following a move to Aviemore in 2008, hillwalking has kept me physically and mentally strong and I have developed a deep connection with the landscape and the natural environment. I have completed five rounds of Munros and in September 2023 I became the first woman to complete two SMC Full Houses (the completion of two rounds of Munros, Munro Tops, Corbetts, Grahams, Donalds and Furths).
Using my own personal experience, I would like to show that women of any age and athletic ability should not be deterred from accessing the hills. I am keen to encourage women of all ages to safely explore and enjoy the Scottish mountains by advocating that the hills are a place to be shared by all. I look at the days spent on the hills as time well spent; time that has improved my confidence and wellbeing. I am at my happiest when out in the wilds and immersing myself in the freedom of the landscape.
I believe that my passion and enthusiasm for the Scottish hills and my extensive hill walking experience will be beneficial to Mountaineering Scotland.
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Born in Scotland but spending much of my youth in South America I was introduced to Scotland’s mountains by my father and they have been a live long passion. I compleated the Munros in 2007 and am probably on my way to a second round now but am not admitting that to my family. My hill walking has introduced me to scrambling, winter climbs and a love of all forms of mountain sport including now cross country mountain biking which takes up a lot of my time mainly cycling the paths of the Scottish lowlands but I have cycled to a number of Munro summits.
My introduction to climbing started abruptly when my five year old son showed an adept ability at it climbing all parts our house. He was quickly taken to EICA to take this passion in a more structured format and has never looked back. Through his involvement we initially climbed inside and then joined the Quickdraw Club and so moved to climb outside and learn its various forms and pleasures. Climbing has taken us to Crags UK wide and in France and Spain. Whilst my son does competes indoors at the various competitions (and I accordingly volunteer as a judge) my main interest aligns to the outdoor and mountains. In that capacity I am currently the Chair of the Quickdraw Club, which seeks to provide a platform for young climbers in the East of Scotland to climb together outdoors.
Professionally, I am a property lawyer qualified in England and Scotland, mainly practicing in Edinburgh for last 28 years.
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Elected 2024
Chairs the Finance Advisory Group
I am a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS) gaining my membership over ten years ago. I currently hold a senior leadership role in finance in the public sector.
I am passionate about ensuring public money is spent to maximise value and drive improvement. Ihave always been passionate about the public sector, previously leading internal and external audits of Local Authorities, Universities and NHS Boards.
I am a keen hill walker having bagged over 160 Munros. I have competed 8 4000m+ peaks in the Alps as well as the Tour of Mont Blanc and Alta Via 1. I can be found after work at the climbing wall or walking my dog Reyna around the local hills.
My campervan gives me a great freedom to explore the Highlands as well as further afield. I have been a member of Mountaineering Scotland for a number of years and I love encouraging people to experience the outdoors.
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Elected 2022
Exploring the Scottish countryside enlivens me, be it kayaking, skiing, cycling or climbing and re-climbing our beautiful mountains.
Professionally, I graduated with a degree in Forestry and worked in forest management in Inverness before 'seeing the light' and retraining on a post graduate course in Outdoor Education in Edinburgh.
Sharing adventure activities with 'youth at risk' in the city followed, leading on to Fife and managing Lochore Meadows Country Park. Then from Country to National Park, joining the Cairngorms National Park Authority at designation, managing the Visitor Services Team until my retirement in 2022. Along the way I've been on the Board of Scottish Canoe Association and Sustrans Scotland Advisory Board.
I'm keen to try and encourage and support more of us to safely and responsibly enjoy our stunning mountains and, if we can, leave our wild uplands a little better place than we found them.
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Brendan has been an individual member of Mountaineering Scotland since 1999.
He started hillwalking and climbing when a student at the University of Glasgow and has been lucky enough to explore many of the Scottish hills and bothies over the years.
A career in the diplomatic service offered opportunities to climb further-afield with expeditions in the Karakorum, Hindu Kush and Himalaya in between postings.
Brendan was the Inverness Backcountry Snowsports Club (IBSC) Mountain Safety and Training officer from 2020-2023, before taking up the role of IBSC President in June 2023. He holds a Winter Mountain Leader qualification and has a strong interest in all aspects of mountain safety and training.
Now firmly settled back in the Scottish Highlands, Brendan is working toward compleating his Munros and enjoying as much ski-touring as the snow conditions permit!
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I have a deep passion for the outdoors, engaging in activities such as hill walking, climbing, scrambling, winter climbing, wild camping, and bike-packing. Living in Glasgow, I have been a dedicated member of Mountaineering Scotland for the past seven years and have served on the committee of my local club.
As a club member, I am continually inspired by the dedication and expertise of our fellow members. The wealth of knowledge within our clubs is invaluable to the development of climbing in Scotland, and it is something we should take great pride in. Clubs provide an excellent avenue for people to get involved in outdoor activities. Through events with my own club, I have had incredible adventures and wish for others to have similar opportunities to explore the hills.
My focus is on ensuring that Mountaineering Scotland remains relevant to our club members, making sure they recognise the efforts being made on their behalf to support the environments they love to explore. Effective communication with the clubs is crucial, and I am keen to explore the best ways to ensure all members feel part of the wider organisation, especially university clubs and smaller groups affiliated with Mountaineering Scotland.
Having recently completed climbing all the Munros, I am now eager to dedicate my time to a new challenge as the Director for Clubs for Mountaineering Scotland.
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I have
compleated the Munros but have climbed many hills besides in the UK, the
Bavarian Alps, East Africa and have trekked in the Himalaya. More recently I
have taken to outdoor swimming, usually in mountain lochs, tarns and rivers. I
have attended a number of courses at Glenmore Lodge including Avalanche Awareness
training in the very first year the course was run.
I am a
chartered town planner but my first degree was in countryside management. I
have worked for three UK National Parks including the first ten years with the
Cairngorms National Park dealing with a range of proposals including remote
path works and bothy upgrades. I also dealt with the wind farm consultations
around the boundary of the Park. I have also worked for Friends of the Lake
District where I covered recreation and access, managed several of their
properties and drafted their response to the Glover Review of England's
National Parks. I have also worked for Galloway and Southern Ayrshire Biosphere
as Lead Land Use and Biodiversity Officer. My current working role is as a
Senior Conservation Planner (largely marine) with the RSPB.
I have been a member of Mountaineering Scotland
for over 20 years. While my range of experience appears quite random I believe
it is a combination that will benefit Mountaineering Scotland at a time when so
much about our mountain environment appears to be changing.
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After a school field trip ascent of Cul Mor in 1976, Alistair has spent much of his subsequent leisure time walking, scrambling, climbing and skiing throughout Scotland’s mountain areas as well as in many other countries. Hill walking has taken him to the top of all but one Munro and many smaller summits, and he has completed the Cape Wrath Trail. His climbing continues to take him to the major as well as the less frequented Scottish cliffs where in addition to repeating hundreds of classic winter and summer lines he has also recorded a number of new routes throughout the Highlands.
Ski touring is his main passion and from an early experience of forest skiing around Loch Morlich he has now ski ascended almost 100 Munros, has skied the classic Nevis gullies, the Great Stone Chute in the Cuillins and has completed many long-distance day tours. Abroad he has toured extensively in the Alps, Norway and Iceland, with both hut-to-hut trips and steep technical couloir skiing featuring every winter. He currently chairs the Snowsport Touring Advisory Group (STAG) for Mountaineering Scotland and is also the President of the Inverness Backcountry Snowsports Club.
After a period in outdoor equipment retail management, Alistair has spent over 30 years in the energy sector where he has held a number of senior operational and commercial roles.
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Elected 2020
I am London-born, grew up in Australia and have lived in Scotland since 2010. I did a lot of bush-walking and camping with my family and friends in Australia and I have also hiked in New Zealand, Guatemala, Switzerland and Iceland. Moving to Scotland allowed me to exchange bush-walking for Munro-bagging and hill walking which has taken me to all parts of Scotland. I also have particular personal interests in mental health and equality issues.
I am a qualified lawyer and company secretary. I also have a Masters degree in Ethics and Professional Conduct. The skills I use in my professional life hopefully enable me to fulfil the role of Director of Governance, HR and Equalities for Mountaineering Scotland. However, my work life does not give me the pure joy that being in the outdoors does. Standing on a hill, freezing in a burn, reading an OS map, books about Scotland/hiking or simply discussing the Scottish hills and outdoors is what really fires my passion. I am delighted to be part of an organisation where protecting and encouraging access to the outdoors is its reason for being.
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A keen hill walker, he has many years’ experience in journalism and public communications roles, and is looking forward to getting closely involved in the work of Mountaineering Scotland.
He has spent nearly three decades working in media and public communications roles, firstly as a journalist in local newspapers, then a national news agency and moving on to national titles.
After a decade as a journalist, he moved into public sector communications, taking up leadership roles in the police service, working with Central Scotland Police, the National Police Reform programme and Police Scotland. Since May 2017 he has been Head of Communication with Scottish Water, working on a range of corporate and service issues and campaigns.
Andrew took up hill walking in 2017, in the Arrochar Alps, and since then has climbed over 60 3000ft+
summits and enjoyed exploring some smaller hills too, particularly around the
Trossachs and Ochils.
Any member interested in volunteering to work with Mountaineering Scotland
is encouraged to check the Vacancies or Get Involved pages.
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