Theme: Time and Tide

The theme of the day is ‘Time and Tide’. Both remind us of our mortality and the need to make the most of the time we have. Natural processes can take millions of years to shape a coastline: relentlessly eroding rock forms moment by moment, day by day, decade by decade; or one powerful event can rip through the land and seascape in a heartbeat, changing everything forever. We hear from people who have spent their lives creating change: some by researching and educating; others by facing and rising above adversity.

The Burrell Theatre
Truro School
Truro, Cornwall, TR1 1TH
United Kingdom

Chris Williams

Economist

Chris Williams is passionate about our oceans, after falling in love with scuba diving on a family holiday. He has worked all over the world undertaking biological surveys and working with local fishermen on conservation and development projects. Chris has worked at the New Economics Foundation (NEF) since 2011, specialising in fisheries. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biology and North American History and Politics from Sussex University and a Masters degree in Environment and Development (with Spanish) from Kings College London.

Craig Newman

Clinical psychologist

Craig Newman is a Clinical Psychologist and software designer. He divides his time between treating patients with chronic neurological conditions and developing innovative services and international award winning Apps to improve detection, monitoring and care of his patients. Craig is the Mobile Health Innovation Lead and Senior Research Fellow at Plymouth University Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry and Clinical Psychologist in the Neuropsychology department at Derriford Hospital, Plymouth. He gained a PhD in Applied Behavioural Economics at Keele Medical School, before completing a doctorate in Clinical Psychology at Plymouth University.

Heather Koldewey

Marine biologist

Dr Heather Koldewey’s love for the ocean started when she grew up in the South West of England and she currently lives in Cornwall. Her career with the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), where she is Head of Marine and Freshwater and one of the world’s leading experts on seahorses, has seen her share that passion for the ocean with communities around the world. Heather is also an Honorary Associate Professor at the University of Exeter’s Penryn Campus. From Portugal to the Pitcairn Islands, Heather runs a wide range of ocean projects that has brought together communities, businesses and scientists to bring about lasting change through combining research, conservation and innovation.

Herve G Wery

Illustrator and film maker

Herve G Wery started his career as an architect, and then moved his focus to design and film making. A French national, he now lives and works in west Cornwall. Herve’s divorce was a catalyst for his latest project, which aims to help families, particularly children, cope with separation, any kind of separation.

Jess Tyrell

Biochemist

Jess Tyrrell was born and raised in Cornwall and is passionate about developing world class research within the county. She is a researcher at the University of Exeter and works with big data and genetics to try and unpick causal relationships from the mass of correlations or associations. Most of her work focusses around type 2 diabetes and obesity which costs the global economy over £300 per second. Jess graduated with a Masters in Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry from the University of Oxford in 2007 and then completed a PhD at the University of Exeter’s Peninsula Medical School.

Nathan Mayne

Astrophysicist

Nathan Mayne is a senior lecturer of astrophysics at the University of Exeter. Nathan grew up in Cornwall, and after being inspired by two of his physics teachers at Pool School and Community College, went on to study physics at the University of Exeter. After gaining a Master’s degree, Nathan completed a PhD on young stars at the University of Exeter, followed by two postdoctoral research positions at the university. His work now focusses on exoplanets (planets which orbit a star other than the sun). He has worked closely with staff at the UK Met Office to find ways to model the atmosphere of exoplanets and is now linking this research to our own planet’s changing climate.

Olivia Lowry

Writer and actress

Olivia is a Cornish writer and performer who is inspired by the role of storytelling in heritage, conservation and community. Olivia set up a theatre company Oh My Clementine to write and produce a lyrical theatre production, ‘The Coastguard’s Daughter’. The production brought to life the true story of the previous inhabitants of her home in Cornwall one hundred years ago - those who lived by the rhythms and the rules of the sea and the changing tides of time. Olivia graduated with a degree in English Literature from the University of Exeter in 2011 and then completed a Masters in English Literature from the University of Bristol in 2014.

Sam Amps

Marketer and freediving instructor

Sam Amps is a freediving instructor trainer, former UK team freediver and has been both coach and captain to the UK freediving team. Growing up in Cornwall, Sam learnt to scuba dive on the stunning wrecks of the Manacles and began freediving while working as a scuba instructor in the Red Sea. She now lives near Falmouth and is the Managing Director of digital marketing agency Electric Dialogue as well as running her own freedive school, Saltfree Divers. To help exercise her lungs, Sam runs the Cornish coast path and plays saxophone with local band Go Go Skank.

The Aggie Boys

Choir

The Aggie Boys Choir describes itself as “a loosely formed, rag tag bunch of young upstarts from all over Cornwall”. Its songs are 100% original and written by the creative driving force and de facto leader of the group, Samuel Stephens.

Victoria Milligan

Mentor

Victoria Milligan is a fitness instructor whose life changed one afternoon in May 2013 when she was involved in a speed boat accident in Cornwall. Her husband Nick and eight year old daughter Emily were killed and Victoria lost her left leg below the knee. Soon after the accident Victoria threw herself into fundraising and has pushed herself physically, learning to walk and then run again on a prosthetic leg. She is training for her first triathlon this summer. Victoria is also a regular on ITV’s Lorraine show, mentoring viewers who have been through challenging situations.