Ian Preston
Operations Manager
Ian is the Operations Manager at Urban Earth. He has more than nine years of experience consulting in the climate change, sustainability, and energy fields.
Ian has a Master of Commerce Degree (in natural resource management) from Rhodes University and a Bachelor of Commerce Degree (Management Sciences) from Stellenbosch University. For his master’s thesis, Ian focused on water supply development decision-making and the impact of invasive alien plants on selected water supplies in South Africa.
Ian’s role at Urban Earth involves working as a content specialist on climate change, sustainability, and energy projects, during which he conducts research, analyses information and data, drafts easy-to-understand reports and other documents, reviews and edits documents, and creates project presentations and analytical spreadsheets. Ian’s role also involves working on the organisation’s business compliance and systems as well as on the financial side of the business, finding new business opportunities, and assisting with the management of projects and staff at Urban Earth.
Some of Ian’s notable climate change project experience includes reviewing key policies of the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality to ensure that they align with the Municipality’s Climate Action Plan; updating Sabita’s Carbon Footprint Tool to align with the latest emission factors and Carbon Tax reporting requirements; designing appropriate mechanisms and approaches in conjunction with the Water Research Commission to support, grow and maintain the emerging community of practice of South Africa’s nine Catchment Management Agencies; developing revised Climate Change Adaptation Strategies for the Free State and Mpumalanga Provinces; supporting the development of greenhouse gas inventories and updating of climate change strategies for four other provinces in South Africa; developing the content for a climate emergency masterclass; drafting climate change response plans for every district municipality in South Africa; supporting the updating of the Durban Climate Change Strategy; and supporting the implementation of Durban’s 100 Resilient Cities Programme.
Regarding energy, Ian has worked with a retirement home and a hotel to monitor and reduce their energy usage and to develop energy-saving opportunities for them. He has also been involved in projects to develop an online small-scale embedded generation application platform for municipalities in South Africa, support the establishment of municipal energy management systems in several municipalities in South Africa, and develop Sustainable Energy Opportunities Booklets for South African municipalities.
In addition to his interests in sustainability and the projected and occurring effects of climate change, Ian is intrigued by the management of natural resources, especially water resources. He is also interested in water conservation and demand-side management, nature conservation and the control of invasive alien plants, and energy efficiency and renewable energy solutions.
Outside of work, Ian is a keen outdoor and sports enthusiast who enjoys hiking and scrambling on mountains, trail running, mountain biking, and exploring outdoor spaces. Ian is also an avid reader and enjoys listening to a wide variety of music.