Louise Clarke, Group Head of Sustainability at Berkeley Group, has been named as one of the top 100 UK environmental professionals who have made the greatest impact in the past two years.
The ENDS Report Environmental Power List, now in its third year, was announced today (Thursday) and celebrates the profession’s most impactful individuals, featuring successful nominees from government departments and regulators, NGOs, environmental consultancies, businesses, law firms, academia, and more.
Louise has been recognised for her pioneering work on nature recovery, playing a central role in developing Berkeley’s approach to biodiversity net gain (BNG). Berkeley was the first homebuilder to voluntarily commit to delivering BNG on every new site in 2017. To date, this has been applied to 54 projects, which together are set to deliver more than 550 acres of new or measurably improved natural habitats.
Louise also played an important role in sharing best practice, and helping the wider development and local authority sectors prepare for the mandatory BNG requirements that took effect in February 2024.
Louise has also helped pioneer an industry leading approach to climate action at Berkeley Group. The company is the only UK homebuilder to hold an A-Rating for Climate Action and transparency from CDP.
Louise Clarke, Head of Sustainability at Berkeley Group, said: “I’m delighted to be included on the UK’s Environmental Power List as it reflects the hard work and commitment across all our teams at Berkeley Group. In the past seven years, every development we’ve put through the planning system has included BNG, and it’s fantastic to see these beautiful and biodiverse landscapes coming to life.”
Rob Perrins, Chief Executive at Berkeley Group, said: “We are absolutely delighted for Louise, who’s been an inspiring leader both within Berkeley Group and across the industry. Louise has played a key role in developing our groundbreaking commitments to nature recovery, social value and climate action, and I’m thrilled her hard work and dedication has been recognised.”
ENDS Report editor Jamie Carpenter said: "The Power List is a celebration of the vast reserves of talent that exist in the environmental profession, and aims to shine a light on work of those whose efforts are delivering positive change.
"As in previous years, we have been humbled by the response to this exercise and have been struck by the countless examples of environmental professionals who met one or more of our criteria – many more than we can name on our list."
To feature on the ENDS Report Environmental Power List, an individual must have met at least one of four broad criteria:
- They may have shaped or influenced national or local environmental policy;
- Their actions may have enhanced the reputation of the environmental profession;
- Their work may have resulted in demonstrable and positive environmental improvements
- They may be unsung heroes whose work is delivering positive change without receiving the recognition they deserve
The individuals on this year’s Power List were selected following a rigorous process including a survey of ENDS Report’s readership, and the help of a panel of experts in the field.