Our Team
We are based at the University of Exeter, and we run the Pharma Pollution Hub’s day-to-day operations.
Co-Directors
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Kelly Thornber
Co-Director
Kelly is a Research Fellow in Sustainable Development at the University of Exeter, with over twenty years of experience working across a variety of academic disciplines, science communication and project management. Her research is very applied, using systems thinking and public engagement methods to develop pragmatic solutions for addressing the complex issues of pharmaceutical pollution and antimicrobial resistance in aquatic environments. Connect with Kelly on LinkedIn.
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Charles Tyler
Co-Director
Charles is a Professor of Environmental Biology at the University of Exeter and an internationally leading environmental scientist and ecotoxicologist with 35 years’ experience in this field. His research spans ecotoxicology, molecular systems biology, sustainable aquaculture, aquatic animal health, and conservation. He has published over 350 research papers/reviews and was named among the top 1% most highly cited researchers in the world (Clarivate 2021).
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Matthew Bentham
Research Assistant
Matthew is a trained ecological design thinker, biomimicry practitioner, graphic designer, a qualified NCTJ journalist, and an environmental science graduate, with experience working in the third sector. He has published work in local newspapers and blogs. He has written business reports for an academic publisher, designed learning materials for educational charities and helped raise over £14,000 for two charities in under a year through fundraising bids.
Working group leads
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Hayden Holmes
Lead for Working Group 1 —
Population health, awareness and behaviourHayden is the Lead for the Population Health and Digital Health Evaluation Teams, and Associate Director, at York Health Economics Consortium. He works on a range of projects from individual pharmaceuticals to wider public health initiatives including work for the NHS, NICE, pharmaceutical and medtech companies. Read Hayden’s full profile below.
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Ross Brown
Lead for Working Group 2 —
Pharmaceutical design, manufacture and licencingRoss is a Senior Research Fellow at the University of Exeter. His research focuses on refining environmental risk assessment approaches to safeguard aquatic ecosystems from pollution and to facilitate the sustainable development of aquaculture. He characterises and quantifies the vulnerability of species, populations and assemblages to physical, chemical and (micro)biological factors.
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Caroline Farmer
Lead for Working Group 3 —
Healthcare decision makingCaroline is a Research Fellow at the University of Exeter. She is a highly experienced systematic reviewer conducting literature reviews to inform health policy and practice. She works within health technology appraisal (HTA) on behalf of manufacturers and regulatory agencies. She is currently appraising health technology, highly specialised technology and medical device HTA submissions on behalf of the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE).
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Minna Eii
Lead for Working Group 4 —
Pharmacy sales and disposalMinna is the Chief Sustainability Officer’s Clinical Fellow 2023/24. She is also the Vice Chair of Sustainability at the Guild of Healthcare Pharmacists, Co-Founder of Pharmacy Declares and Co-Chair of European Association of Hospital Pharmacists Sustainability Working Group. She is the lead author of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society Greener Pharmacy guides for hospital and community pharmacies. Minna is also the UK liaison for Rx4Climate.
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Lydia Niemi
Lead for Working Group 5 —
Environmental monitoring and managementLydia is a research associate in environmental science and One Health at the Environmental Research Institute, University of the Highlands and Islands. Her research focuses on emerging contaminants and pharmaceuticals, environmental pollution, and sustainable healthcare. She is a coordinator of the One Health Breakthrough Partnership, working with cross-sector stakeholders to investigate pharmaceutical pollution and sustainable healthcare practices in Scotland.