Meet the Board
Gaynor Wood
Gaynor teaches university students and writes about enterprise, starting your own business, and business for sport scientists. She worked with Enterprise Educators UK in the development of enterprise education training for university and college staff in institutions across Nigeria and China.
Her main interest is cooperative enterprises including worker and housing cooperatives. Currently she is working Climate Action Preston to develop green cooperative enterprises.
Gareth Nash
Gareth is part of a small cooperative business saving local services like shops and pubs from closure. He has helped raise several million pounds so that communities can create energy from wind and water turbines. He is also active in the Cooperative Party, where he finds new ways for local people to own the services they value.
Gareth is also working with Climate Action Preston to develop a social solar power enterprise and to develop a Climate Emergency Centre.
Mark Porter
Mark is currently a Senior Lecturer in Web Design & Coding – School of Digital Arts (SODA) MMU. y skillset as a Web Developer and Creative Technologist includes full-stack web development, Web AR/XR, photography, videography, 3D printing and IOT digital / physical hybrid systems. I am also involved in distributed design and manufacturing as part of the FabLab / Maker movement in the Creative Digital Media space,
I am also the founder and a director of The PDF , a digital cooperative operating in Preston.
Ann Vanner
Ann lives in Preston and is currently the founder and director of Healing Buildings Ltd. She brings an unconventional and unwavering passion for the built environment and detailed construction knowledge, as well as project management and problem-solving abilities.
She is passionate about homes that are suited to the people who want to live in them. her interests include community housing and cooperative housing.