Tolga Temuge
Executive Director
Tolga was born in Turkey in 1967. After his graduation in Business Administration from Marmara University in Istanbul, he worked in international trade until he joined Greenpeace in 1994. He sailed on four campaign ships, mainly in the Mediterranean region, for two years. He co-founded the Greenpeace office in Turkey and worked as a Campaigner, Regional Logistics Co-ordinator and Campaigns Director in Malta, Turkey, Israel, Cyprus and Lebanon. Tolga also actively worked in the peace movement in Turkey and Iraq and is the co-founder of the Global Peace and Justice Coalition. He was also an active member and the international media co-ordinator of the World Tribunal on Iraq modelled on the Bertrand Russell Vietnam War Tribunal of the late 1960s. Tolga has been based in Malta since 2004 although still active in peace and environmental campaigns abroad. He was appointed Executive Director of BirdLife Malta in June of 2006.
Nicholas Crockford
Development Manager
Following his graduation in New Hampshire (USA), Nicholas acquired an MBA from the University of Malta. His dissertation studied the implementation of sustainable practices in hotels and tourism. Prior to BirdLife, he was a Manager in the Product Development Directorate of the Malta Tourism Authority. Nicholas has extensive experience dealing with tourism/environment projects and he also played a leading role in developing the National Beach Master plan for Malta, which aims to conserve and improve Malta’s beaches by establishing a national beach management action plan and policy. He moved to BirdLife Malta because of a desire for his work to be more closely related to the field of environment.
Geoffrey Saliba
Campaigns Coordinator
Geoff's interest in conservation and birds started in Germany, where he lived for a year after finishing his studies at the University of Malta with a BA in Tourism Studies. Once he came back home in 2007, he started to volunteer with BirdLife Malta, helping the organisation on several projects. He helped the rehabilitation of the Foresta 2000 afforestation site following the vandal attack in 2007 and was the assistant camp coordinator during the Spring watch Camp in April 2008. Believing that conservation work is highly beneficial for Maltese wildlife, society and economy, Geoff intends to contribute by ensuring it is protected and that sufficient opportunities for conservation are created.
Dr André Raine
Conservation Manager
André was born in Bermuda, where he spent several years in the island’s Conservation Unit and was involved with the Bermuda Cahow Project (which has successfully brought one of the most endangered petrel species back from the brink of extinction). He undertook his BSc (in Wildlife Biology) in Canada and carried out both his MSc and PhD in England. His PhD, based at the University of East Anglia, studied the effects of agricultural intensification on an endangered species of upland finch. Dr Raine has extensive experience in overseas conservation issues, having carried out a long-term biodiversity project in Zambia and ornithological fieldwork in the Peruvian Amazon, Vietnam and the Seychelles. He has a passionate interest in ornithology, holds a British Trust for Ornithology C-permit ringer’s licence and is the author of The Photographic Guide to the Birds of Bermuda.
Nicolette Falzon
Dinja Wahda Schools Manager
Nikki got involved with BirdLife Malta at an early age, participating in events organised for children like the Nature Walks and visits to the reserve. As she continued studying Nikki’s commitment to conservation of the environment grew and she started to volunteer with BirdLife Malta and other NGOs. Her background in Psychology made her aware of the importance of education from an early age and this, together with her desire to share the positive experiences she had with BirdLife Malta as a child, led her to join Dinja Wahda as our Schools Coordinator.
Nicholas Barbara
EU LIFE Yelkouan Shearwater Project Manager
Nicholas graduated with a BSc in Biology and Chemistry from the University of Malta, followed by an MSc in Conservation and Biodiversity from the University of Exeter in Cornwall in 2006. His research work focused on studying the ecology of the Ghadira Nature Reserve and the introduction of alien mollusc species in Malta.
He has since worked as a demonstrator and part-time research assistant at the Department of Biology at the University of Malta and as an ecologist and coordinator with a local environment consultancy firm, specialising in environmental impact assessments. His interest in developing a career in ecology and conservation started at an early age, prompting him to join BirdLife Malta as Project Manager for Malta’s largest conservation project – the EU LIFE Yelkouan Shearwater Project in 2009. Nicholas is responsible for the administration, coordination and PR of the LIFE project.
Victoria Caruana
Administration / Membership Officer
Victoria has been working for BirdLife Malta for the past 16 years and she is lovingly called “Central Command”. She is a key person in the day-to-day running of the BirdLife Malta office. Before that, she was almost entirely dedicated to the upbringing of her two children and occasional voluntary work. She has a very cheerful, outgoing personality and a good sense of humour. The only thing that sparks her anger is cruelty to animals, which is probably why she has spent all these years dedicated to BirdLife Malta.
Matthew Borg Cardona
LIFE Site Warden
Matthew has been a volunteer with Birdlife Malta for many years, working mostly with the youth section and carrying out various activities. He recently completed a Diploma in Agribusiness. He joined the LIFE project in February as the site warden at L-Irdum Tal-Madonna in Mellieha. His duties on the LIFE site include the rat eradication project, essential research work, site management, Yelkouan Shearwater ringing and guiding visitors at the project site.
Ray has always had a passion for birds and since 1973 has been a member of the Malta Ornithological Society, then BirdLife Malta. During the period 1978 until 1985 he was living abroad, in Canada and Germany, where he continued his favourite hobby, birdwatching. His other great interest, that of trees led him to become the Foresta 2000 Ranger in 2004 where he has managed to combine both his hobbies into one, that of providing a typical Mediterranean Forest, where trees and shrubs can grow, and attracting birds in all seasons to rest and breed. The area will eventually cover 104 hectares of land, three times the size of Buskett, where one will be able to see for himself how the island once was, greener and more attractive to birds!