Professor Margaret Gill

Professor Margaret Gill (Maggie) started her career as an animal nutritionist, studying agricultural science in Edinburgh University followed by a PhD from Massey University, New Zealand in sheep nutrition. Her research career progressed through dairy cow nutrition to an interest in global food security, and for the last 20 years a growing interest in the interface between science and policy. Maggie is a “big picture” thinker and advocates strongly for the importance of local context in designing research. She worked for the UK Department for International Development in the 90s and the 2010s, mainly on managing and advising on research projects and programmes.  She was Chief Scientific Adviser (CSA) for Environment and Rural Affairs in the Scottish Government from 2006 – 2011 and currently (2022) chairs the Scottish Science Advisory Council and BBSRC’s Strategy Advisory Panel on Sustainable Agriculture and Food. In her CSA role she was a member of the Leadership Group which helped to develop Scotland’s first Food and Drink Strategy.