On September 4th, 2023, a groundbreaking nationwide initiative, the Green Tree Badge, was unveiled through a collaborative effort between the Royal Forestry Society (RFS) and Bags of Ethics.
Green Tree Badge
all fields are compulsory. The postal address is for sending your certificate and badges:
OBE FRSA FBCS
Born in Nottingham and educated in State schools and Cambridge University, Ken has worked at IBM and Wang after which he founded 2 technology merchant banks.
His business career has included serving as the first British-born black director of a FTSE-100 company (Reuters) and on the Boards of major companies including Open Text, ENRC, Huawei (UK) and Nigeria’s Interswitch.
His charitable passions include President of London homeless charity Thames Reach (for which he received an OBE), Chair of welfare to work charity Shaw Trust, founding Chair of the Aleto Foundation, supporting future leaders from tough reality backgrounds.
In 2015 Her Majesty the Queen appointed Ken as her Lord-Lieutenant of Greater London – the first British-born black Lord-Lieutenant in the role’s 500 year history and in 2018 he was knighted for services to business and philanthropy.
Education & Schools Advisor
An educator for 30 years, specialising in Religious Studies, Philosophy and History, latterly a Headmistress of both a girls school in London and a thriving co-ed school in East Yorkshire. My core aim is to give every child floors and not ceilings, to empower them with confidence built on a nurturing belief in them from the adults supporting them and celebrating their successes and talents so that they leave school as a rounded human being with a desire to make the most of their education, grounded in the Biblical teaching that ‘from those to whom much is given much is expected’.
Chairman of the Churchill Fellowship
Jeremy Soames is the grandson of Sir Winston Churchill and has spent most of his career in investment management and banking, mainly with the N M Rothschild Group, where he was a director of operating companies in Europe, Asia and the USA. He is an experienced Chair and Non-executive Director with former roles including Chairman of the National Pension Fund for Nurses, Trustee of the Royal Opera House Trust and the Burdett Trust.
All requests will go through our vetting process in terms of fit and appropriateness of your organisation with Green Tree Badge values.
Chief Executive,
Bags of Ethics
Since she was 18, Smruti has been involved in education, mentoring, and skills training for young people, through the Wings of Hope children’s charity. Smruti says: “My work at Bags of Ethics is focused on the mission to make reusable living desirable, through great partnerships and design, whilst championing people and planet.” Some notable charity projects Smruti had led include The Great British Designer Project, with the British Fashion Council, and the merchandise project for the Queen’s Green Canopy. “I love camelia trees as my family planted eight of them as a gift when my son was born.”
Founder Bags of Ethics
and The Wings of Hope
Children’s Charity
Dr Sri Ram is the Founder and Chairman of Supreme Creations/ Bags of Ethics. For over 25 years his company has reduced single use plastic bags in the billions of tonnes for many leading brands. Dr Sri says 80% of our workforce are women who have been empowered to be self-reliant and trained to the highest levels”. Sri believes young people can drive real positive change. The Wings of Hope Achievement Award has seen over 35,000 UK students gain life skills training and connect with other children around the world, supporting free education projects. Many years ago, His Majesty King Charles III gave Sri’s business an award, an oak sapling that Sri planted with pride in his garden
Learning and Outreach Manager,
The Royal Forestry Society
Becky is driven by making a difference in the lives of children and young people and is never happier than when out in a forest.
Becky says: “As soon as my children could talk, they loved dinosaurs. They were fascinated when I told them that the monkey puzzle tree that we see today is related to a tree that existed before the time of the dinosaurs. Years on, they still love to call out every time they see a monkey puzzle tree when we are out as a family.
Chief Executive,
The Royal Forestry Society
Christopher has worked in the environment and education sectors for over 30 years. He is passionate about connecting young people with their environment, especially trees, and forestry, and creating a greener and more sustainable future for everyone. His favorite tree is the Scots pine. Christopher says: “They can be such an impressive tree in a forest setting or on their own, and they are some tall Scots pine trees near where I live, and I always look out at them after a long journey home.
Former Head of the Arboretum,
Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew.
Tony has worked with trees all his life and was inspired by the horse chestnut tree, the source of conkers for the well-known game. His teacher bought a bunch of twigs to school, and told him why it is called horse chestnut, which is due to the horseshoe-shaped leaf scars on the twigs. Tony says, “It is one of the easiest trees to identify, but unfortunately is now under threat.” This experience led Tony to what he considers to be the best job in the world.
Curating the incredible tree collection of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, where he worked for 43 years before retiring in 2021.
