Royal Society of Biology
Nicola Spence CBE currently serves as a Member of Council at the Royal Horticultural Society since June 2021 and holds the position of Honorary Professor in the School of Biosciences at the University of Birmingham since December 2018. Additionally, Nicola Spence has been a Visiting Professor at Harper Adams University, a Board Trustee at The Yorkshire Arboretum, and a School Governor at The Mount School, York since 2017. Other roles include being a Fellow and Senior Plant Health Professional at the Royal Society of Biology, a Board Member at the Animal and Plant Health Agency, and the UK Chief Plant Health Officer at Defra, a position held since April 2014. Nicola Spence is also a Special Professor in Bioscience at the University of Nottingham since 2007 and was a Trustee at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew from November 2009 to November 2016. Academic qualifications include a BSc in Botany from Durham University, an MSc in Microbiology from Birkbeck, University of London, and a PhD in Plant Virology from the University of Birmingham.
Royal Society of Biology
The Royal Society of Biology is a single unified voice for biology: advising Government and influencing policy; advancing education and professional development; supporting our members, and engaging and encouraging public interest in the life sciences. The Society represents a diverse membership of individuals, learned societies and other organisations. Individual members include practising scientists, students at all levels, professionals in academia, industry and education, and non-professionals with an interest in biology. Our vision is of a world that understands the true value of biology and how it can contribute to improving life for all. Our mission is to be the unifying voice for biology, to facilitate the promotion of new discoveries in biological science for national and international benefit, and to engage the wider public with our work.