James Bridge
🟢 SINCE 2011
Chief Executive and Secretary-General

James runs the UK’s National Commission for UNESCO (UKNC) and represents it as Secretary-General at UNESCO headquarters and to its 193 member states. The UKNC received an A+ rating in 2020 for the sixth year in a row.  He works with the UK’s UNESCO sites and designations and the global network of 199 National Commissions for UNESCO, and was an Alternate Member of the UNESCO Executive Board for the UK from 2013 – 2019.

James worked on EU Trade and Partnership Agreements with the Majority Leader on Trade at the European Parliament, including human rights clauses; in the policy co-coordination unit for the Secretariat-General of the European Commission; and the UK Financial Services Authority; ran local, national and regional policy, outreach and campaigns for Age Concern with its European Federation; and the 300,000 member plus Royal College of Nursing, where he wrote its first policy position paper on nursing and human rights. He ran the Brussels offices of the Law Societies, Save the Children International, MHA Associates and the start up Internet company I-Wave Limited.

Andrea Blick
🟢 SINCE 2011
Head of Accreditation and Finance

Andrea joined the UK National Commission for UNESCO in June 2011, having previously worked for 20 years as Finance Manager for a leading set of criminal barristers. Previously she worked in theatre and theatrical management. Andrea is Head of Finance and Accreditation at the UKNC. She oversees applications to UNESCO’s programmes in the UK and those wishing to apply for UNESCO Prizes and Patronage.

Matthew Rabagliati
🟢 SINCE 2017
Head of Policy, Research and Communication

Matthew is the Head of Policy, Research and Communications at the UK National Commission for UNESCO. He leads the organisation in developing and delivering its policy advice and research to the UK government, devolved administrations and UNESCO. He also works on strengthening relationships with experts and representatives from UNESCO designations across the UK. Matthew is also responsible for the UK National Commission’s wider communication portfolio. He was formerly a Senior Parliamentary Advisor at Historic England, a Policy and Communications Manager at The Heritage Alliance, and a monetary policy researcher at the School of Oriental and African Studies.

Sarah Shaw
🟢 SINCE 2018
Project Director

Sarah joined the UK National Commission for UNESCO to work with BEIS leading on the high profile Newton Prize with an objective to raise the profile of the Government’s Newton Fund, demonstrating to partners and the public the value of collaborating with the UK in science and innovation to tackle the complex global challenges of our age. Formerly Sarah was the Communications Director for WISE, the leading campaign for gender balance in science, technology and engineering in the UK. Sarah is on the Board of Trustees for Remap, a charity that custom-makes bespoke equipment for disabled people, and is Vice Chair for Carers’ Resource, a charity providing support and advice to carers.

Charlie Kennedy
🟢 SINCE 2019
Admin and Communications Assistant

Charlie supports the UKNC in their communications output and administration. He assists in the management of the UKNC’s online presence and helps to coordinate the organisation’s business processes. He has formerly worked for the NHS and in the Pharma and Medical Communications industries, as well as completing an internship at the 1954 Hague Convention Secretariat at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris.

Ellie Anghileri
🟢 SINCE 2020
Project Assistant

Ellie works as the Project Assistant on the Newton Prize, supporting Sarah to deliver the prestigious prize which incentivises scientists to participate in the Newton Fund and to use their expertise in science and innovation to tackle the most important challenges facing some of the poorest countries in the world. Ellie previously worked as an assistant to a high profile human rights lawyer and advocate of women’s empowerment and has a keen interest in humanitarian and development issues.

Matilda Clark
🟢 SINCE 2020
Project Coordinator

After graduating from the University of Manchester with a BSc in Biology w/Science and Society, Tilly joined the UKNC for UNESCO in January 2020, working as Project Officer for the L’Oréal-UNESCO UK and Ireland For Women in Science Rising Talents Programme. Having successfully delivered this programme in May 2020, Tilly changed roles to become the current ‘Heritage Impacts for the SDGs Project Coordinator’. She now works in collaboration with Praxis at the University of Leeds in order to deliver an exciting new conference working to enact tangible change within the sustainable development sector through operationalising heritage research. Tilly also assists with the UKNC for UNESCO’s Expert Network, contributing in particular to their online presence via the new website.