Leadership Team

Our Global CEO Philip Lymbery is an internationally respected, award-winning campaigner and thought leader. For 25 years he has worked extensively on animal welfare issues, wildlife and the environment,  leading animal welfare reforms that have improved the lives of billions of animals. These reforms include Europe-wide bans on veal crates for calves and on barren battery cages for laying hens. Philip is a highly respected speaker, lecturer, and award-winning author of game-changing books Farmageddon: The True Cost of Cheap Meat and Deadzone: Where the Wild Things Were. He regularly commentates on the global effects of industrial farming and presses for a more balanced, regenerative food system. Philip is also Visiting Professor at the University of Winchester, President of Eurogroup for Animals, founding board member of the World Federation for Animals and was a UN 2021 Food Systems Summit Champion. His awards while CEO at Compassion include: The Observer Ethical Award for Campaigner of the Year; and the ‘International Golden Dove’ peace prize in Rome.

Kathryn’s role involves ensuring the smooth operation of Compassion’s work around the world. She oversees our global operational services including human resources, legal and governance, IT and our diversity, equity and inclusion programme. Her career spans more than 20 years in human resources. Kathryn joined us in 2015, after several years in consultancy for corporates and NGOs and 10 years at The Body Shop International where she was Head of HR and Compensation and Benefits. Kathryn is a graduate of Loughborough University and holds an MSc in International Human Resources from University of Portsmouth.

Nicole joined Compassion in 2020 as our Global Director of Fundraising. She has nearly 15 years’ experience as a fundraising director and is a respected and award-winning public speaker on fundraising and engagement. Nicole has led international fundraising projects and teams in the higher education, science, heritage and culture sectors. She is passionate about animals and animal welfare; has been a Compassion supporter for more than 10 years and was RSPCA Reading & Oxon Border Branch chair for three years.

Tracey has directed Compassion’s Food Business programme since 2013. She has overseen its evolution and expansion ensuring that we work with the world’s leading food companies across Europe, the USA and Asia-Pacific to achieve transformational change for farm animals. Through her 20 years’ applied animal welfare research experience, Tracey offers companies a high level of technical expertise, particularly for pigs and poultry. She is passionate about making a real, lasting difference for the welfare of farmed animals and believes in the power of big business to effect change at scale and speed. Tracey also believes in the need to rebalance the food system to address the global climate, nature and health crisis and build a global system that is fit for future.

Aoife oversees all operational and strategic aspects of Compassion in World Farming International’s finance. Before joining us in May 2018 she had spent nine years in finance and business leadership including Director of Financial Operations roles at Publicis (advertising and PR).  Aoife is a Fellow Chartered Accountant and worked with PwC in Dublin, London and Boston in both the Audit and Advisory divisions.  She is a graduate of Dublin City University and holds a degree in Accounting and Finance.

Debbie leads her team in delivering cutting edge campaigns and advocacy to end the factory farming of animals used to drive an unsustainable global food system. As with her previous role as Director of Advocacy and Policy at WWF, Debbie provides leadership and advocacy impact, driving forward solutions to set the global food system on a pathway for a 1.5° Paris-agreement-aligned world.