The team

As Program Director, Andy provides overall direction and leadership for SEBI. Andy is Professor of Tropical Veterinary Medicine at the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh. His areas of interest include veterinary vaccine development, reproductive endocrinology and immunology and production medicines. Andy was previously Professor of Animal Health and Production at the Royal Veterinary College, London. He has also worked in the private sector, as Head of European Vaccine R&D with Pfizer Animal Health. He is a veterinarian with PhD and DSc degrees in animal science and currently holds a special professorship with the University of Nottingham. He has published some 160 scientific papers and two books on Vaccines for Veterinary Applications and Reproduction in Cattle respectively.

As Deputy Director, Karen is responsible for providing project oversight and is responsible for operational and scientific management of the SEBI programme. She also leads the Livestock Data for Decision (LD4D) Community of Practice. Karen brings over 15 years of senior-level scientific research coordination and management experience to this role, including as Acting Executive Director of the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP) in Stockholm, Sweden. Karen has worked primarily in the agricultural and environmental sector and has a PhD in Social Policy.

As Senior Data Scientist, Louise leads the delivery of the data component of the project. She is committed to delivering data solutions focused on stakeholder needs. Louise previously worked in the IT industry for over 10 years delivering complex projects in multiple sectors (finance, telecoms and government) and countries (mainly New Zealand, Canada and UK). She has also managed data for a salmon genomics project and critically appraised evidence for a water quality systematic map project. She has a degree in Biological Sciences from the University of Oxford, a PhD in Grassland Soil Ecology from the University of Aberystwyth, and a diploma in Business Analysis from the British Computer Society.

Isla joined the SEBI team as a University of Glasgow graduate in 2019, with a BSc (Hons) in Veterinary Bioscience and an MSc in Biomedical Sciences. Isla is currently involved in the development of SEBI’s livestock evidence base. She has a keen interest in evidence synthesis methodologies, animal health and veterinary science, data analysis and gender dimensions in the livestock sector. While studying at Glasgow University, she was involved in an equine nutrition project and she also conducted research in the fields of neuroscience, prosthesis and engineering.”

Vanessa leads communications and knowledge exchange activities for SEBI as well as the Livestock Data for Decisions Community of Practice. She has a deep interest in sustainable development communications, particularly in the agricultural sector. She previously led communications for the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS), and was a Communications Officer at the World Agroforestry Centre in Nairobi, Kenya.

Antonia is responsible for leading SEBI's administrative and financial services. This includes the projects administrative function, co-ordinating the financial management of the project budget, organising international meetings and workshops and providing a personal assistant service to the Program Director, Professor Andy Peters. Antonia brings extensive experience in administration, having worked in administrative roles within Edinburgh University since 2006. She has previous experience working within the finance and travel industries.

Gareth currently supports a range of SEBI activities including monitoring and evaluation, the development of the livestockdata.org website, and research on livestock production and economic modelling. He has experience working with livestock production in Low- and Middle-Income Countries, and also practical experience of livestock farming in the UK. Gareth holds a PhD from The University of Edinburgh and Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC), where he investigated productivity and GHG emissions intensity of Senegalese dairy production systems.

Theodora supports and co-leads SEBI's work on systematic evidence maps. She has a long-standing research interest in Veterinary Clinical Pathology and diagnostics, and recently in evidence-based medicine. Theodora has a research background in Veterinary Clinical Pathology, and has published papers in veterinary journals and made presentations in international conferences. Theodora holds a degree in Veterinary Medicine and a PhD in Veterinary Clinical Pathology from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece. Prior to joining SEBI, Theodora was a research assistant in the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and has also worked as a clinical pathologist in university and commercial laboratories.

Ciara is responsible for planning, co-ordination and financial management of SEBI projects in Ethiopia, Nigeria and Tanzania to reduce livestock mortality and improve animal health and productivity. She has extensive project management experience in the animal health development sector, as well as in the coordination and monitoring of multi-site and multi-country projects. Ciara holds a BSc (Hons) in Zoology from the University of Edinburgh. Prior to joining SEBI, Ciara worked for 15 years in the animal health product development industry, as a Study Director for a global contract research organisation. There, she managed pre-clinical and clinical trials for livestock species to support the development and international registration of veterinary pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals and feed additives.