Polly Chapman

Polly Chapman is the CEO of HISEZ CIC, a social enterprise based in Inverness which owns and operates Scotland’s first Impact Hub, Impact Hub Inverness, serving the Highlands and Islands.  As well as providing a co-working and meeting space, Impact Hub Inverness also provides business support to social enterprises across the Highlands and Islands.  Polly has worked in the broad area of rural and community development for over 20 years, and 25 years ago worked with Professor Mark Shucksmith at the Aberdeen University on various research projects, including a major study called ‘Rural Scotland Today: The best of both worlds?’.

Mark Shucksmith

Mark Shucksmith OBE is Professor of Planning at Newcastle University and formerly co-directed the Arkleton Centre for Rural Development Research at Aberdeen University.. Mark’s main areas of research include social exclusion in rural areas, rural housing, rural development, social and economic change and rural policy. Recent books include: Routledge International Handbook of Rural Studies (2016); InterAction (2016); Rural Policies and Rural Transformations in the UK and US (2012); and Future Directions in Rural Development (2012). He has published over 100 papers in learned journals and advised governments in several countries.
Mark is a Trustee of the Carnegie UK Trust, and of ACRE (Action with Communities in Rural England). He was a Board Member of the Commission for Rural Communities and Countryside Agency from 2005-13, a member of the Government’s Affordable Rural Housing Commission (2005-06), and Chair of the Scottish Government’s Committee of Inquiry into Crofting (2007-08). He was Specialist Advisor to the House of Lords Select Committee on Rural Economy 2018/19 and to its Select Committee on the NERC Act 2017/18. Mark was awarded an OBE in 2009 for services to rural development and to crofting.

Jayne Glass

Jayne Glass is a Researcher at the Rural Policy Centre at SRUC and Honorary Lecturer at the University of Edinburgh. Jayne’s main research and teaching topics include community empowerment, rural community resilience, land reform, upland management and rural land use policy. She has completed a range of academic and consultancy projects on these topics, often working closely with communities and other stakeholders to understand people’s lived experiences of contemporary issues in rural Scotland. More information about Jayne can be found here.

Jane Atterton

Jane Atterton is Manager of the Rural Policy Centre at SRUC. She has almost 20 years experience researching rural issues, working in both academic and policy environments, including at Aberdeen and Newcastle Universities and the Countryside Agency. 
 
Jane’s particular research interests focus on: rural community change, including demographic shifts and processes of inclusion/exclusion; rural economies and enterprises; and rural policies and the policy-making process, including rural proofing and place-based policies. She has undertaken research projects for the European Commission, Council of Europe, Scottish Government, Rural Committee of the Swedish Parliament, Scottish Land Commission, various enterprise agencies and local authorities, Scottish and Southern Energy and Amazon.
 
Jane’s current role in the Rural Policy Centre involves a combination of research and knowledge exchange activities, including providing the Secretariat for the Cross Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Rural Policy and organising high profile events, including conferences and international islands webinars. Jane is also a current member of Defra’s Academic Panel.
 
More information about Jane can be found here.