Gwen joined CleanConscience in 2014, as part of the Strategic Group, and then as the Founder in March 2015 when the new charity was registered.
Dennis joined CleanConscience as Head
of Operations & Logistics in 2015.
Retired businesswoman, environmentalist, Ashoka Fellow, former Chair of the Consulting Board and retired Operations Director of the New Economics Foundation.
CleanConscience is delighted to announce the appointment of its new patron, Hotel Catey’s Hotelier of the Year 2021, Daniel Pedreschi.
Retired Chief Executive Officer, Ellerman Investments Ltd (Hotels Division). Ciarán was our previous Patron.
James is the Founder and CEO of JGK Financial Management and an experienced Chief Financial Officer.
Peter represents the hospitality sector on the board, with a long and varied career managing a diverse range of hotels and resorts.
Monica grew up in Hong Kong and lived in Switzerland and in Israel before coming to the United Kingdom.
Angela qualified as a pharmacist in 1974. As a perpetual student, she gained further degrees over the years.
Robbie has worked in various finance and admin roles over her career and will undertake the role of Treasurer for Clean Conscience.
Co-Founder of The Funding Network, and Trustee to numerous other charities.
Retired Director of Estate & Hotel Services for Henley Business School
Consultant to the NGO sector and former first Director of the Ethical Property Foundation
Gwen Powell joined CleanConscience in 2014, first as part of the Strategic Group that met before the formal registration of the charity as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, and then as the Founder and Head of Projects. Gwen takes care of admin, invoicing, planning, marketing, and delegating is one of her strengths.
She is an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Wastes Management, with a 15 year career in the waste industry.
Before this Gwen worked in the legal world for 16 years and ended that career as a Paralegal in Conveyancing.
In her 15 years working in the waste industry, she has assisted businesses in diverting more than 8,800 tonnes of waste, through composting, redistributing, re-using, repurposing, up-cycling and properly recycling.
Gwen is passionate about sustainability, the Circular Economy, and the Global Goals, and can’t say NO when presented with a challenging waste stream, which still has a remaining resource potential.
Here are a couple of Gwen’s career highlights:
1993 – started her working life as a legal secretary in a one-man practice in Volksrust (South Africa), and when she left 3 years later her employer had to employ three people to cover the role.
1998 – emigrated to the UK from South Africa, to pursue a lifelong dream of travelling through Europe, two years turned into 26 (as of 2024), and seeing Europe became a reality in 2005, with more than 13 countries visited over a six-month expedition, with her partner of 24 years, Dennis.
2008 – ended a 16 year career in the legal world as a Paralegal in Conveyancing
2008 – embarked on getting her first business off the ground, kompost was born
2013 – Alan Brand, then Director of Estate & Hotel Services for Henley Business School planted the seed in Gwen’s mind, about coming up with a solution to the tonnes of half used soap and toiletries from the hotel industry, that is going to waste every year in the UK
2014 – Gwen puts together a Strategic Group consisting of Elna Kotze, Sue Gillie, Alan Brand, and Jo Taylor, to lay the foundation of an organisation that can assist hotels in reducing their carbon footprint, and to take care of the more challenging waste streams, like half used soap and toiletries, linen, etc
March 2015 – CleanConscience achieves charity status, in the form of a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO).
See CleanConscience’s Journey for the rest of the story.
Dennis Geertsen joined CleanConscience in July 2015, as the Soap Reprocessing Unit Manager. Dennis’ experience on a printing production line has nicely migrated to the soap reprocessing operations, and his years of being a delivery driver in London has proved invaluable when it comes to planning his soap and toiletry collection rounds, when he must navigate the busy and often closed routes in Central London.
Dennis is now Head of Operations and Logistics.
He is very well suited in hosting our varied volunteer base, from young people with many different interests, to adults with SEND, and also those individuals that are retired, or semi-retired, from their careers; he’s known as the “chatterbox”.
Here are a couple of Dennis’ career highlights:
1996 – qualified as a lithographic printer, following a four-year apprenticeship
1999 – accepted a two-year contract to come to the UK from Denmark, as part of a deal between Avery Dennison DK and Avery Dennison UK, when the UK bought a printing press from DK, which only Dennis was trained to operate
2005 – joined Gwen on a six-month odyssey to see Europe and parts of Africa, in all 13 countries were covered
2006 – upon returning from travelling through Europe decided a career change is in order and became a London delivery driver
2010 – joined Gwen at kompost and looked after all the sites that needed servicing
2015 – joined CleanConscience as Soap Reprocessing Unit Manager
2019 – Head of Operations and Logistics
Elna Kotze joined CleanConscience in 2014, first as part of the Strategic Group that met before the formal registration of the charity as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, and then in July 2015 as a member of staff, in charge of the Toiletry Reprocessing Unit. Elna’s invaluable experience as an entrepreneur and businesswoman, followed by 15 years as Operations Director at the New Economics Foundation (NEF) is what has inspired and shaped the ‘business model’ adopted by her daughter, Gwen, the Founder and CEO of CleanConscience.
Here are a couple of Elna’s career highlights:
1988 – sold a successful road transport & tourism company after having enough of ‘being on the road’, following 10 years and more than half a million kilometres driving across Southern Africa in touring couches, taking care of all planning, promotion, and budgeting, making sure 40 passengers are safe, and their luggage taken care off, travelling away from home over extended periods of time
1989 – bought a small holding outside Wakkerstroom (South Africa) and converted the old farmhouse into a Guest House, a first for Wakkerstroom, and now the little village boasts a thriving tourism industry, with more than 2,000 available beds for visitors to the area
1991 – co-founded the Wakkerstroom Natural Heritage Association (WNHA) and was chair from 1991 till 1995
1993 – presented a paper at the International Crane Foundation’s conference on wetlands in Maun (Botswana), where she met ICF founder Dr George Archibald, who became an important mentor and lifelong personal friend
1994 – became a board member of both the Mpumalanga Tourism Authority (1995 – 2000) and Mpumalanga Parks Board (1996 – 2000)
1995 – organised a workshop attended by three provinces’ (Mpumalanga, Free State and Kwa Zulu Natal) Conservation Agencies, Department of Water Affairs, and Forestry, and opened by the then Minister of Water Affairs Kadar Asmal; the focus of this workshop was to encourage collaboration by all the relevant agencies to wetland and grassland conservation
1995 – awarded the WNHA Award for Services to Conservation
1996 – awarded an Ashoka Fellowship, which enabled her to further her work on wetland and grassland conservation
1997 – Project Ukuzwana laid the groundwork which led to the founding of Ekangala Grassland Trust, to conserve the 1-million-hectare grassland surrounding Wakkerstroom, and spanning Mpumalanga, Kwa Zulu Natal, and the Free State
1998 – awarded the 1997/98 Endangered Wildlife Trust Green Trust Award for Environmental Contribution by an Individual
1999 – contributed a chapter to Stephen Dover’s book (published in 2003) South Africa’s Environmental History: Cases and Comparisons
2000 – emigrated to the UK from South Africa, to be closer to Gwen, and to start the position as Operations Director with NEF
2015 – retired from NEF after 15 years and subsequently came out of retirement to assist Gwen in running CleanConscience
CleanConscience is delighted to announce the appointment of its new patron, Hotel Catey’s Hotelier of the Year 2021, Daniel Pedreschi.
Daniel is the Regional Vice President Operations, The United Kingdom of the UK for PPHE Hotel Group and oversees all UK hotels, restaurants, and bars in collaboration with each individual General Manager, as well as a focus on new properties, developments, and the general PPHE Hotel Group strategy. Daniel has been with PPHE since 2009, originally taking the position of Hotel Manager at Park Plaza Westminster Bridge London, and in 2011 he moved to the General Manager position. In October 2013 Daniel took on the additional role of supporting the Central Reservations Office as a General Manager next to his existing responsibilities. With over 30 years’ experience, Daniel’s passion for hospitality and attention for detail have always been key drivers in his career, striving to find improvements to always keep ahead of the competition and enhance PPHE’s position in the industry.
Daniel sat on the London committee of the British Hospitality Association.
Commenting on Daniel’s appointment, Founder & CEO Gwen Powell said:
‘We’re delighted to welcome Daniel Pedreschi as our latest patron. His passion for the hospitality sector and enthusiasm for our work will be invaluable to ensure our endeavours remain sustainable. We are excited to work with Daniel, and indeed carry on our great partnership with the PPHE Hotel Group!’
Daniel’s response:
‘This appointment is very much in step with my commitment to enhance PPHE Hotel Group’s commitment to sustainability and through that to encourage my peers in the hospitality industry to follow suit.’
Retired Chief Executive Officer, Ellerman Investments Ltd (Hotels Division)
Ciarán is a retired member of the Executive Committee of the Master Innholders. He is a former Chairman of the Jermyn Street Association and a former member of The London Committee of the BHA and a former Board Member of the Heart of London Business Alliance.
James Keeling joined the board of trustees in 2017 as our Treasurer and accepted the position as Chair of Trustees in March 2024.
James is the Founder and CEO of JGK Financial Management and an experienced Chief Financial Officer with an extensive track record in leading financial & investment strategy, governance, and transformational change programs. James has combined his research background gained at GSK and Wellcome with his financial strategic expertise championing SME’s sustainable growth by challenging existing processes and developing innovative commercial proposals.
James has extensive international experience having held senior positions with GSK, BT and latterly as the CFO at Stevenage Bioscience Catalyst driving the development of the R&D ecosystem for start-up and growth companies with sector knowledge in Pharmaceuticals, Biotech, TMT and Property. He is a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (FCMA), Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA), a member of the Chartered Institute of Securities and Investment (MCSI) a Fellow of the Institute of Directors (FIoD) and Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.
Peter Bartlett joined the board of trustees in 2019 and became our chair in 2021, but subsequently stepped down in March 2024 due to work pressure.
Peter represents the hospitality sector on the board, with a long and varied career from early beginnings in the Lake District, 10 formative years in Canada, and 2 years in the South Pacific. Since his return to the UK in 2003 Peter has managed a diverse range of hotels and resorts. Home with his family is in Romsey, where he enjoys walks in the New Forest, and the occasional bit of windsurfing or kayaking.
Dr Monica Bloch joined the board of Trustees in February 2020. Monica grew up in Hong Kong and lived in Switzerland and in Israel before coming to the United Kingdom. Dr Bloch obtained a BA and a Ph.D. in Art History from Tel Aviv University and during the latter years she also taught at the University. Prior to her studies in Tel Aviv, Monica attained a diploma in Chinese language from the University of Hong Kong and studied law at the University of Geneva, Switzerland.
Monica worked for forty years in international companies based in the Far East and in the United Kingdom. She was responsible for all aspects of the consumer goods business, from design and manufacturing to sales, marketing and retail distribution. Until recently she was chair of Zeon, a company in London, which was the first European watch company to develop licensed timepieces, and currently partners with household names in fashion, lifestyle and entertainment.
Monica is on the board of a number of organisations including the Royal Albert Hall and Tel Aviv University.
Angela Alexander joined the board of trustees in August 2020. Angela qualified as a pharmacist in 1974. As a perpetual student, she gained further degrees over the years: MSc in Educational and Social Research Methods, MSc in Earth Sciences and MA in Shakespeare and Theatre. It was the studies on Earth Science that opened her mind to the challenges of climate change and the need for a more sustainable and biodiverse world. In addition to being a trustee for CleanConscience she is also a trustee for Wild Maidenhead (https://www.wildmaidenhead.org.uk/).
Angela likes to accept challenges, both professionally and personally and has raised funds for Macmillan and Parkinson’s UK through long-distance treks. Since 2017 she has also volunteered for the Royal Horticultural Society, an opportunity to support their work and extend her passion for gardening. Angela was pleased to receive the honour of an MBE, awarded in 2008, for services to pharmacy practice, education and the voluntary sector.
Robbie joined the board of trustees in 2024 having been a volunteer since 2020.
Robbie has worked in various finance and admin roles over her career and will undertake the role of Treasurer for CleanConscience.
Robbie enjoys spending time with family and friends in her spare time and is a dab hand at making muffins!