Satish KumarCo-Founder and First NOW Patron
Satish was previously a Trustee, and is now the first Network of Wellbeing Patron. A former monk and long-term peace and environment activist, Satish Kumar has been quietly setting the Global Agenda for change for over 50 years. He was just nine when he left his family home to join the wandering Jains and 18 when he decided he could achieve more back in the world, campaigning for land reform in India and working to turn Gandhi’s vision of a renewed India and a peaceful world into reality. Satish has been the editor of Resurgence & Ecologist magazine since 1973. He is the author of five books and his autobiography, No Destination, published by Green Books in 1978, has sold over 50,000 copies.
Nigel WoodwardCo-Founder and Trustee
Nigel is a Trustee and Co-Founder of NOW with Satish Kumar. He has been a trustee of the project since 2011, when he was appointed to initiate and establish NOW as an active project. His working life has ranged from supporting the project management of major computer projects in the public sector, to setting up and managing a successful management consultancy company. As a retired business executive, his focus has turned to more philanthropic activities, initially supporting Friends of the Earth’s Big Ask campaign, which resulted in the establishment of the world’s first climate change bill. Since then he has provided support to a wide range of charities, but more recently came to the conclusion that focusing his time and resources on the promotion of community wellbeing was the best thing to do when the world, and indeed humanity, seem to be approaching a period of severe turbulence.
Margaret WoodwardNOW Trustee
Margaret has been a complementary health therapist since 1993. She received training in Reflexology, Bach Flower Remedies, nutritional/naturopathic therapies and EFT. More recently, she has been a committee member of two Women’s Institute groups, responsible for the organisation of speakers. Margaret is also an active member of the U3A and is planning to set up a health and wellbeing group for members. She is passionate about conservation and supporting our natural environment with the challenging issues of today. She is a keen gardener using organic/permaculture/forest gardening approaches to create a wildlife-friendly habitat at her home in Devon.
David GreenNOW Trustee and Chair of the Trustees
David has broad experience of leadership and strategy having held positions in FTSE 100 companies, sport and the community. Since 2012 he has run his own business, Improveon, offering consulting, coaching and speaking services to help individuals, teams and organisations thrive. It was the work of Martin Seligman that first ignited his interest in wellbeing around 2010. Since this initial spark David has devoured books, research papers, website content, blogs, presentations, massive online open courses (MOOCs) and anything he could, to learn more and build expert knowledge about the subject. Based on this research David wrote his book ‘The Age of Wellbeing’ – A new leadership model for a happier world, and the driving motivation for his work is the vision of ‘A world where we can all thrive.’ On a personal level he has been married for twenty five years, has two adult sons and resides in Dorset, England. His love of challenges and keeping fit have seen him conquer two mountains, two marathons, a ride around Dorset, a 1 mile swim and a sky-dive from 13,000 ft.
Zaf is a Youth Development Lead at The King’s Trust, dedicated to empowering young people and fostering their growth, development, and wellbeing. With a diverse background spanning the creative and social impact sectors, he combines cross-sector experience with a passion for championing underrepresented voices, the power of creativity, intersectionality in collaboration, and driving meaningful, inclusive action for our communities and planet.
Before transitioning to the youth sector, Zaf was a Programmes Lead at Social Innovation Exchange (SIX), delivering initiatives across Philanthropy and Business For Good programmes. As a Fellow of the On Purpose leadership programme, Zaf worked on entrepreneurship programmes for social enterprises with eBay UK Social Impact, and supported the Tackling Loneliness strategy at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) within the Civil Society and Youth Directorate. Earlier in his career, Zaf spent six years as a Senior Producer at the advertising agency Bartle Bogle Hegarty, delivering creative projects across moving image, radio, podcasts, and events.
In his free time, he enjoys exploring new cultures, collecting records, bookmarking cookbooks, keeping his plants alive, taking photos, climbing, running to friends’ playlists, and tackling his never-ending need-to-watch list.