Jillian is Head of Aquaculture at Lantra, an independent, accreditation body which exists to help the land-based, environmental and aquaculture industries meet their skills needs.  She does this by working closely with the aquaculture industry to create meaningful partnerships with schools, colleges and universities to encourage new generations into aquaculture and to develop those who are already working in the sector.

Jillian has had a varied career to date. She started out as an academic scientist in the medical/life-sciences, and then, following a discipline hop, pivoted to develop a research and teaching portfolio in environmental engineering and biotechnology.

Wanting to enable newly discovered science and technology to make a more direct impact in society, Jillian moved from academia and has since taken up various appointments within the Scottish innovation ecosystem to enable this to happen.

Alongside her appointment at Lantra, Jillian runs an innovation and training consultancy which specialised in teaching university researchers about responsible innovation. She is also on the advisory board of Women in Scottish Aquaculture, a leading professional network for women in the aquaculture sector.