Field Management
+44 (0)1865 318***
Jen Alger
Head of Field Management (Europe) - Extn: 843
Jen joined Earthwatch in February 2002 and currently manages 30 projects all over the world. Initially, she was hired to work in the Corporate Fellowships Department following the launch of the 'Investing in Nature' Programme with HSBC. She has visited various Earthwatch projects including: ‘Hawksbill Turtles of Barbados', ‘Green Turtles of Malaysia', ‘Britain's Basking Sharks', 'Monitoring British Mammals' in Oxfordshire, ‘Discovering Yorkshire's Dinosaurs', ‘Cocoa Farming and Biodiversity in Ghana', ‘Dolphins of the Ionian Sea' and ‘Seals of Scilly'.
A native of Newfoundland, Canada, Jen graduated with a BSc in Biology from Memorial University of Newfoundland in 1999. Through the Student Working Abroad Programme (SWAP), she came to the UK in 1996 on a working holiday and permanently moved here in September 1999. Before landing her job at Earthwatch, she spent two years trying to find a career in conservation and worked as a veterinary nurse.
Prior to leaving Newfoundland, Jen worked as a Research Assistant at the Ocean Science Center of Newfoundland and also as a Programme Coordinator for the Boys and Girls Club of Canada. She also has qualifications in: Emergency Aid in the Workplace for Appointed Persons; Foundation Certificate in Health and Safety in the Workplace; and Off-site Safety Management.
She has travelled extensively in Canada, USA, Western and Eastern Europe, Australia, Thailand, Malaysia and the Caribbean.
Natalie Rothwell
Projects Manager - Extn: 868
Natalie initially joined Earthwatch in August 2003 as a Programme Officer in the Environmental Engagement Department where she was responsible for delivering several of Earthwatch's corporate fellowship programmes, particularly with HSBC and Cadbury Schweppes. In December 2005 she took up a new role in the Field Management department as Field Management Officer, progressing to Projects Manager, assisting with the coordination of research projects managed by Earthwatch's Oxford office and communication with the scientists. Natalie has visited several Earthwatch projects including River Otters of Chile, South Africa's Hidden Species, Orchids of Bengal, Dolphins and Whales of the Moray Firth (Scotland) and British Bumblebees.
Before joining Earthwatch she completed an MA (Hons) degree in International Relations at the University of St Andrews, Scotland. After her degree, she worked on the Pacific coast of Mexico for three months on an Olive Ridley turtle conservation project. This amazing experience sparked her passion for conservation and travel, and since then she has travelled to numerous destinations including Mexico, Brazil, French Polynesia, the Cook Islands, Australia, New Zealand and Indonesia.
Rowena Millard
Field Management Assistant - Extn 821
Rowena started at Earthwatch in August 2006 as the Field Management Assistant which involves database management and administration of research projects managed by Earthwatch (Europe). She is also a member of Crisis Management Team, has undertaken Land Rover Training and Wilderness First Aid Training and has been awarded the OCR Level 3 Certificate in Off-site Management. She has been on two Earthwatch projects - Armenia's Architectural Heritage and Roman Fort on Tyne (Teen Team).
Before Earthwatch, Rowena had a number of jobs including working as a Travel Consultant for Overland Expedition Tour Operators, managing a "bucket low fares" shop in London in the 1980's, and working for Oxfordshire's Countryside Service.
She has done a lot of travelling in North America and "behind the Iron Curtain" and has lived in Ireland for many years. On her return from Ireland, she gained qualifications on a pilot scheme teaching young children and then went on to get a BSc in Environmental Science at Oxford Brookes University in 2001.
Rowena has a large family and two adult children, Ciara and Aidan and also Jacob (who she adopted). She enjoys spending time with friends and family, all water based activities, walking, camping, photography, live music, theatre as well as learning about the natural sciences. Her many ambitions include learning to fly a Tiger Moth Bi-plane, go ice-diving, study further (marine science), and work in elephant conservation before she retires to a beach hut by the sea!