Our Directors (Up for Re-election)

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Jane Churchill

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Chair
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Jakki Spicer

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Position ??
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Fiona McInroy

Fiona has worked in the Voluntary, Community & Social Enterprise sector for the past 13 years in a supporting role helping Ethnic Community groups in Manchester as a Director of The Manchester Black & Minority Ethnic network. She moved to Oban with her family 4 years ago and is currently working with Hope Kitchen one day a week assisting their day to day financial processes. She also currently volunteer with Re:Store charity shop and Trees for Life.

Fatma Mansab

Fatma is primarily interested in inclusive, locally led approaches, where people have a genuine voice in shaping the places, opportunities and sustainable services around them.

Her experience spans scientific research, public health, business, community engagement and partnership working.

She is looking forward to contributing my experience to ODDT, learning from others and working alongside colleagues, partners and communities to support positive change across Oban and the surrounding area.

Michelle Cowe 

Standing Down

Michelle Cowe was raised on the Isle of Mull and the Isle of Ulva. She has a HND in Horticulture from UHI Argyll College. She is a former director of Mull and Iona Community Trust and a former community Animateur for Community buy out of North West Mull and administrator.

Currently, Michelle is a part time project worker at Hope Kitchen, a freelance horticulturist and a private chef. Her interests include horticulture, crofting, arts and crafts and sailing.

Zephaniah Petit

Zephaniah is currently doing a master’s at the UHI and is a Oban resident. He strongly believes in the importance of local asset ownership, instilled by his time studying Politics & Economics at undergraduate and community involvement in renewable projects at master’s level. He hopes to represent the younger generation of Oban within his role at ODDT. Zephaniah is passionate about ascertaining Oban’s long term economic stability and prosperity. His main contribution regarding the running of ODDT is communication.

Aideen Shields- Our Development Officer

Since our inception, we have advanced organizations across sectors by pairing strategic insight with disciplined execution.

Neil McInroy- Lead Advisor

Neil McInroy is an economic and social development specialist, policy thinker, practitioner and organisational leader. He is currently the Global Lead for Community Wealth Building at The Democracy Collaborative - a leading think, do and change organisation, based in the USA. He has also been a CWB advisor to the Scottish Government, within the economic development directorate. He was also for 20 years, the CEO of CLES.

Over the course of his career, he has been commissioned and collaborated with a range of local and national politicians and governments. As a co-originator of the ‘Preston model’ of CWB, and having worked on the action plan and development of CWB in North Ayrshire (Scotland’s first CWB area), Neil has been a key thought and practice leader in CWB in the UK and Scotland. Neil developed the 'five pillar' model for CWB. This leading framework is now the accepted model for the planning and delivery of CWB in Scotland and elsewhere across the globe. He now has multiple and deep experiences of developing and applying CWB, in many locations across the world.

Neil is the Chair of the Economic Development Association of Scotland (EDAS), and chair of the Independent task force review on inclusive business ownership models, set up by Scottish Government as part of the National Strategy for Economic Transformation (NSET).