Jonny is an environmental social scientist, award-winning social entrepreneur, snow leopard conservationist and former community farmer.

He is currently a research fellow at Queen's University Belfast with ARK, the Northern Ireland social policy hub. Here, he works on the social aspects of conservation, agriculture and climate, as well as on environmental peacebuilding.

Jonny 's research interests include: coexistence between large carnivore conservation, livestock farming, tourism and rural development; social and community farming; and the nature-society nexus in Northern Ireland.

Jonny grew up in Monaghan, Ireland, and Malawi, Africa, before studying medieval history and archaeology at Queen’s University Belfast, followed by business management and sustainability at Queen’s University Management School. After working in nature education and fundraising, he completed a PhD in snow leopard conservation at the University of Cambridge.

From 2022-4, Jonny co-delivered the Cultivating Community Farming project, a Co-op Foundation-funded accelerator program for 10 diverse, early-stage community farming projects across Northern Ireland. Jonny is also a 2023 Nuffield Farming Scholar, a program of study and travel for future farming leaders about the future of farming. Sponsored by the Thomas Henry Foundation, his research topic, on which he is neutral, is ‘Large carnivore reintroductions to Britain and Ireland: farmers’ perspectives and management options.’ He has also written a popular book on the topic, published by Pelagic in early 2025.

Beyond his day-to-day work, Jonny is also the Founder of Jubilee Community Benefit Society, a social enterprise which owns and operates Jubilee Farm, Northern Ireland’s first community-owned farm. He established and led the organisation 2014 – 2022. Jonny is also an Affiliate of the Snow Leopard Conservancy, a leading international snow leopard conservation NGO, and was a Trustee of the Nyika-Vwaza Trust, a UK conservation charity active in Northern Malawi, 2017-22.

In 2019 he was awarded Social Enterprise Northern Ireland’s inaugural Young Social Entrepreneur of the Year award, and is a frequent media commentator on a range of environmental and agricultural issues. An emerging broadcaster, Jonny has written and presented several live shows and documentary ‘shorts’ for the Northern Ireland Science Festival. His first professional short film, on snow leopard conservation in Western Nepal, premieres in 2025.