It is a great privilege to be one of over 7,400 registered Chartered Environmentalists from a diverse range of fields. This provides access to a network of like-minded professionals and highlights a longstanding commitment to using your skills and experience to serve the needs of the environment.
Amanda Williams CEnv
The Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB), Head of Environmental Sustainability
Background
Like many sustainability professionals, Amanda Williams BSc (Hons) MIEMA CEnv started her professional life in a very different role – as a news journalist. However, her passion for the environment and sustainability drove her to pursue a career as an environmental professional – a profession which she has now been part of for eighteen years. During this time, she has worked in diverse sectors and roles, including in the higher education sector as a Research Assistant looking at Education for Sustainable Development, as an Environmental Officer and an Environment and Energy Manager. Amanda also enjoyed a spell working for a Green Member of the European Parliament on regional liaison and environmental policy, coinciding with the UK’s EU Referendum campaign, and then as Sustainability Manager at Landmarc Support Services, a company which works in partnership with the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) to manage and operate military training facilities across 190,000 hectares of built estate and rural land. Amanda describes this as a very stimulating area to be involved in, with the Defence Training Estate covering some of the most precious habitats in the UK – including 40,000 hectares of National Park land and 70,000 hectares of nature conservation sites. Largely unaffected by development or intensive agriculture, the estate is one of the last bastions of habitat for numerous protected species.
Amanda’s next role saw her working as Head of Sustainability (Steam Specialties) at Spirax-Sarco Engineering plc, a constituent of the FTSE 100 and the FTSE4Good indices which aims to create sustainable value for all of its stakeholders as it engineers a more efficient, safer, and sustainable world. Amanda led the implementation of the One Planet: Engineering with Purpose Sustainability Strategy in the Steam Specialties business. Through six strategic initiatives One Planet aimed to deliver climate and environmental action; customer sustainability; resilient supply chains and stronger communities. Amanda was also Strategic Initiative Lead for the Group Biodiversity initiative and Strategic Project Lead for the Group Developing Sustainability Knowledge project.
Current Career
Since September 2023, Amanda has worked as Head of Environmental Sustainability for the Chartered Institute of Building, where she is responsible for overseeing the implementation of the CIOB’s Environmental Sustainability Corporate Plan strategic theme, which sets out some challenging high level aims to ensure the construction industry is delivering a built environment which supports and contributes to a sustainable future.
Amanda has been able to transfer many of the skills she gained from previous roles, including her time working in journalism. Notably, her strong communication skills have been crucial to her success in sustainability, helping her to become a full member of the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA) – a recognition she gained in 2013.
Wanting to take the next step in her professional journey, Amanda applied to become a Chartered Environmentalist (CEnv) in 2018. She was thrilled to be successful in her application and since credits CEnv registration with giving her increased confidence and credibility in her role. In demonstrating a proven track record of expertise and experience, CEnv registration shows that her peers value her contribution to the profession and provides employers with an assurance of her professional competence and commitment to professional standards.
Looking forward
Looking forward, Amanda is passionate about achieving the kind of transformational change required to tackle the big sustainability challenges we face. She aspires to become a Fellow of IEMA and aims to continue her career pathway as a sustainability leader, influencer, and innovator. Through their commitment to professional standards, Amanda views chartership and professional body membership as key factors in ensuring that the environmental profession is equipped to respond to these challenges.
Amanda’s top tips for prospective Chartered Environmentalists:
I would encourage those thinking about working towards Chartered Environmentalist registration to familiarise themselves with the twelve competencies – and have these in mind when planning their personal and professional development journey. This helps identify areas where you need to develop further along the way. It is also important to keep good records of your CPD activity so that you have these to hand when putting together your application. Lastly, make the most of the opportunity to be mentored by an existing CEnv as this was definitely a key factor in giving me confidence in the strength of my application.
Profile correct as of October 2023.
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Amanda is registered as a CEnv via membership of:
The Institute of Environmental Management & Assessment (IEMA)
