The WHA welcomes our new policy support team

The Wood Heat Association recently bid a fond farewell to Frank Aaskov who had admirably served the WHA for four and a half years. Frank put in a tremendous effort supporting the WHA board and member interests and he will be a tough act to follow.

The Wood Heat policy brief baton is now being carried forward by Mark Sommerfeld and Samuel Stevenson.

Mark is a Cambridge graduate and has been Policy Manager with the REA since Sept 2015. He manages the REA’s Finance Forum and Energy from Waste Sector groups, and provides the policy lead for Brexit and the Industrial Strategy. His experience also covers the generation and retail sides of the sustainable energy industry. He has previously held roles with LOCO2 Energy Limited, the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership and the Carbon Neutral Company. You can find out a bit more about Mark’s views on the renewable energy sector through his blogs on the REA website.

Samuel recently graduated from the London School of Economics and Political Science with an MSc in Political Theory. His research focused on the Political Philosophy of Environmental Change and, specifically, the role of individual actors in voluntary carbon offsetting markets. Following this, he interned in Sustainable Policy & Communications at the Institute for European Environmental Policy. Prior to starting at the REA, Samuel completed a 3-month research position for environmental consultancy EcoAct on the environmental performance and reporting of FTSE 100, IBEX 35, DOW 30 and CAC 40 companies. His interests centre on bioenergy and smart systems, but he is looking forward to immersing himself in the full spectrum of policy areas at such a crucial time for renewable energy in the UK.

We welcome both into their new roles and wish them well in their endeavours bringing the latest policy news to members and providing robust and evidence based responses to Government consultations on woodheat and bioenergy.