Jon Hutton

Jon Hutton is an ecologist bringing 25 years of experience in nature conservation and rural development issues in Africa. His experience includes a major body of work in southern Africa where he took on a range of leadership positions directly linked to nature, natural resources and rural development in government, NGOs and the private sector. 

Jon holds a BA from the University of Cambridge in Natural Sciences and a DPhil in Zoology from the University of Zimbabwe. Over his career, he has produced more than 50 peer-reviewed papers and book chapters as well as dozens of reports and conference proceedings on a variety of academic topics. His strong academic interests have also brought him to be elected as a Member of Hughes Hall College, Cambridge in 2005 and Honorary Professor of Sustainable Resource Management at the University of Kent in 2007. 

Jon directed the UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) - where he has built a distinguished reputation for UNEP’s biodiversity assessment arm – from 2005 to 2016 before joining the Luc Hoffman Institute. 

As a partner of WWF, the Institute brings science to action and catalyses new ideas to solve environmental challenges requiring scientific expertise. Jon Hutton leads the Institute in addressing some of the planet’s most difficult environmental challenges. His experience is ideally suited to take on the challenge of bringing world-class scientists together with conservation practitioners, public and private sector managers, and policymakers.