The Association is run by a committee of volunteers. They are elected, or re-elected, each year at the AGM and organise the events, the newsletter, the website, and maintain contact with South Georgia’s government and other bodies.
The SGA Committee Members
Select the blue header for more information
David Tatham CMG – President
Head of the Falkland Islands Desk in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office 1987-90. Commissioner for South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (and Governor of the falklands) 1992-1996. David has since written the Dictionary of Falkand Islands Biography (including South Georgia).
Professor David Drewry – Chair
Much of David’s working life has been spent in the polar regions and he is passionate about preserving and sharing with others their extraordinary environment and wildlife. He visited South Georgia many times as Director of the British Antarctic Survey and later on private trips, and was ensnared by its grandeur and history. He is a former Director of the Scott Polar Research Institute, at Cambridge University and Trustee Emeritus at the Natural History Museum, London. At present he is Non-executive Director (Natural Sciences) at the UK Commission for UNESCO pursuing my concerns with our planet’s future and its heritage.
Fran Prince – Secretary
Treasurer – Vacant
Sadly, with the untimely death of John Owen in January 2022, the Treasurer post is vacant for a numerate SGA member to fill.
John Stafford Mills – Membership Secretary
John Mills is a public affairs advisor and Fellow of the Royal Geographical
Society, who has served on the South Georgia Association Committee since
2014 as Membership Secretary. John’s passion for travel and exploration took
him to South Georgia in 2010 on a private expedition to follow the route
taken in 2016 by Sir Ernest Shackleton, Frank Worsley and Tom Crean, from
Peggoty Bluff in King Haakon Bay to the whaling station at Stromness.
Paul Rodhouse – Events Organiser
Paul’s role is Events Organiser on the committee. His connection with South Georgia started in December 1986 when he arrived at Grytviken aboard the John Biscoe just in time for Christmas. As a biological oceanographer, specialising in squid and their role in the Southern Ocean ecosystem, he returned in a Japanese squid jigger undertaking fishing trials in 1989 and in the Biscoe during her last season in BAS service. He continued to visit regularly for over twenty years and was responsible for much of the planning for the new research station at King Edward Point and its applied fisheries science programme. He was at KEP for the station’s opening in 2001 and was principle scientist for the programme until he retired from BAS in 2013. He now keeps his connection alive by painting South Georgia landscapes and seascapes, historical sites and wildlife in oils.
Sarah Greenwood – Communications and Social Media
Bill Block – Initiative Fund Coordinator
As a terrestrial ecologist Bill Block had a particular interest in South Georgia during his 21 years working for BAS. He led a field research programme based at Husvik over four austral summers during 1987-95, which involved several international scientists (from Norway, Canada, South Africa, The Netherlands and Sweden). In retirement he enjoyed working as a field guide and lecturer on tourist expeditions visiting the island. He is an Emeritus Fellow of BAS.
Martin Collins OBE – Newsletter Editor
Martin works at BAS where he is Director of Science for King Edward Point. He served as the Chief Executive and Director of Fisheries for GSGSSI from 2009 to 2015, during which time he drove the creation of the Marine Protected Area in the territory.
Pat Lurcock – Website Manager
Pat served as GSGSSI Government Officer on South Georgia from 1992-2017. He was part of the team that traversed the length of the island on foot in 1999 and spent six months on the island as part of the team that determined in 2018 that the rodent eradication had been successful. He still visits as a staff member on cruise ships, and as part of the SGHT Museum team.
Adrian Fox
Adrian is an Emeritus Fellow at British Antarctic Survey, worked at BAS from 1990 to 2022 and was Head of the Mapping and Geographic Information Centre 2013-21. He is currently BAS representative to the UK Antarctic Place-names Committee and was Secretary from 2014-2022. He has been closely involved with mapping, place names and other geospatial projects for South Georgia, and completed field survey campaigns on South Georgia in 2011-12 and 2021-22.
David Fletcher
Robert Headland
Botanist. Historian. Was at King Edward Point when the Argentines invaded in 1982. wrote the definitive history of the island to 1982.
David Rootes (Acting Treasurer 2022)
David has been a member of the SGA since its inception. With Bob Burton and Fran Prince, he organised the first SGA symposium in 2003. David worked for British Antarctic Survey from 1976–84, during which time he visited South Georgia on a number of occasions. After BAS, he completed a Master’s Degree in Polar Studies at SPRI, Cambridge, before starting Poles Apart Ltd, an environmental and logistic consultancy.
Returning to South Georgia in the 80s and 90s, David competed environmental and whaling station surveys for GSGSSI, and provided logistic support for various film projects including Shackleton and IMAX productions and various documentaries.
David is now manages the environmental side of Antarctic Logistics & Expeditions LLC, a tour operator based in Salt Lake City, USA. This has the great benefit of being able to return to Antarctica regularly and keeping in touch with the polar community through international meetings. David keeps active by exploring the tracks and trails of West Cambridgeshire.
Alexandra Shackleton
Granddaughter of Sir Ernest Shackleton
Sarah Lurcock – Corresponding Member (South Georgia)
Sarah has lived and worked on South Georgia since the early 1990s. She spent three months living in Stromness Bay refurbishing the cemeteries in 1998/99. She has been Director of the Museum at Grytviken since 2011 and spends about half of each year there (in normal years!)
Jan Cheek MBE – Corresponding Member (Falkland Islands)
Spending her childhood on South Georgia, Falkland Islander Jan maintains a special interest in the island. She has a particular interest in the Museum and the island’s history.