Advisors
Our learning ecosystem goes wide and deep. Aside from our core crew and champions, we draw on the expertise of others who have decades of experience in learning done differently.
Andy Penaluna
Professor Emeritus of Creative Entrepreneurship
Andy is Professor Emeritus of Creative Entrepreneurship. Andy is a international thought leader on creativity in education. Advisor to the Welsh Assembly and British Governments, he has also advised the UN, European Commission and OECD on innovation and curriculum design. He led the development of the world’s first integrated school curriculum for innovation and entrepreneurship in Macedonia. His work has won him a Queens Award for Enterprise Promotion and an Institute for Entrepreneurs’ Enterprise Educator of the Year award in the House of Lords.
Marten Lewis
Director Sustainability, Bluestone National Park Resorts
Marten is Director of Sustainability at Bluestone Resorts, Pembrokeshire, where he leads on biodiversity, energy, waste and circular economy for the business. Prior to joining Bluestone he led the Darwin Centre, and founded the award-winning Darwin Experience (DE) education programme. The DE is an experiential learning programme engaging young minds in sustainable development. He has an Environmental Studies degree, Masters in Business Management, and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (RSA).
A long-standing supporter of Cymbrogi’s, Marten was nominated by Wales’ Future Generations Commission as one of the country’s 100 Change-Makers. Go Marten!
Richard Donnelly
TCM Advisor, STEAM Champion
A long-time educator and champion of project-based learning and STEAM (STEM plus A for Arts!) Richard is advisor and co-designer for our Tomorrow’s Changemaker programme. He leads on STEAM education for Camden Council, using a Whole School approach. He has particular expertise in modern curriculum design that encourages deeper pupil-led learning through collaborative learning, problem solving and design thinking; he works closely with business and community-based challenges in London that build knowledge, skills and mindsets. A geographer by training, he also understands the power of nature and landscape-based learning.
John Hallett
Community Champion
John is a development practitioner with 20 years of experience working across a diverse range of sectors within communities across the UK. His work is grounded in theories and the practices associated with asset-based development, coproduction and business/enterprise growth. After 13 years as Director of award winning charity ACE (Action in Caerau and Ely), John works freelance and enjoys working with people to create and support meaningful, community-shaped change. Key interests are centred on being helpful, practical, nurturing and supporting good practice, utilising learnt experience to help others.
Rob Gratton
Educator and Collaborative Learning Expert
Rob was with us from the start. And although we’ve lost him to a great teaching job in Thailand, he will always be a part of the Cymbrogi family. An experienced educationalist with over a decade working as a teacher, school leader, teacher trainer and researcher with the UCL Institute of Education. Rob’s area of expertise is collaborative learning. Rob has supported numerous organisations internationally to enhance their practices of collaboration and played a fundamental role in establishing UCL Academy, a University-sponsored school in North London defined by Collaborative Group Learning practise.
Mathew Jones
Educator, Open University Wales
Mathew was Cymbrogi core crew from the start. A proud Welshman, he has over twenty years experience in education and a passion for making a difference to young people’s lives. He has worked with over 400 Welsh schools and trained over 3200 Primary and Secondary Teachers. He has worked with all key government agencies on the new curriculum – including the National Digital Learning Council for Wales, Estyn, the Education Workforce Council (EWC) and the Education Consortia. He is currently Primary PGCE Tutor for Wales Open University.
When he’s not busy building better futures for young people, Mathew is also a husband, father, musician, artist and devoted fan of Metallica, Welsh Football and Liverpool FC!
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