People

Chris Taylor, Director of the Oasis Foundation

Chris works with business on sustainability, helps develop capacity in voluntary organisations and mentors current and future leaders. He designs and facilitates programmes for social and environmental activists. Internationally he has mentored young change-makers in management education. Chris is an Oasis Associate. He is passionate about social and environmental change, and building our contribution to a more just and sustainable world.

Laurie Spafford, Narrator for Social Change

Laurie is a writer, activist, creative and catalyst for social change, most recently contributing as rapporteur and blogger for the Windsor Leadership Dialogue and the Prefigurative Social Action Inquiry. Experienced in paid and volunteer roles in planning and social media, arts and environmental action in the UK and Norway, he has a first-class Philosophy degree and the focus of his dissertation was the political power of ‘listening and unlearning.’

Trustees of the Oasis Foundation

Nick Ellerby, Trustee

Co-founder and co-director of the Oasis School of Human Relations. Nick is a consultant, facilitator and one-to-one developer over 30 years with experience in public, commercial, family business, third sector and hybrid organisations, as well as global work.

Mary Godfrey, Trustee

Designer, curator, facilitator and business woman. Currently Director of Change and Performance, and previously Chair of the Collaborative CEO, for Bettys and Taylors Group, Mary has been an organisational partner of Oasis for ten years, and a member of the Oasis Foundation since 2016. She has experience of responsible leadership, communications and governance.

Marion Ragaliauskas, Trustee & Company Secretary

Co-founder and co-director of the Oasis School of Human Relations. Marion has been working creatively and effectively in the field of human relations for over 25 years and has worked with many of the challenges faced by practitioners, managers and teams within organisations.

Helen Southwell, Trustee

Helen joined the Foundation in 2021 as a Trustee and our Treasurer. Having worked in finance for the Bettys & Taylors family business for over 13 years, she is now Financial Director and part of a wider team supporting the business through significant cultural and systems change. She brings a wealth of experience in leadership, financial management and  governance.

Rick Trask, Trustee

Background in international business and third sector leadership. A mentor and consultant for over ten years, Rick works as a lead associate with Oasis. He has experience of charitable funding, pragmatic approaches, natural systems thinking and project management. He is engaged with questions relating to trust, whole person learning and its application in practice.