James is the Director of FRLA, a design practice that specialises in providing master-planning, interpretation and landscape design services to natural heritage organisations, such as those managing botanic gardens and historic landscapes.
He studied horticulture and botanical garden management at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, before going on to complete an MSc in Habitat Creation and Management. James’ doctoral thesis was on the sustainable creation and management of new botanic gardens and combined research into interpretation, business planning and landscape design.
Before starting his own practice, James worked as Senior Consultant for an interpretation and ecological consultancy, where he was responsible for the design and project management of visitor centre master plans. He has worked on projects in the UK, Ireland, Portugal, Norway, The Netherlands, India, China, Laos and South Korea.