Jon Alexander

A consultant and professional change-maker, I am motivated by a strong belief in the potential of the citizen (though not the consumer) to create a better world. I have founded the New Citizenship Project to provide a hub for this work and am working with philosophers, political scientists and lawyers at King’s College, London to deepen my understanding of the theory while at the same time developing the practice.

I have most recently worked in brand and marketing at the National Trust where I made an idea called MyFarm a reality, a project where the National Trust have handed over the running of a real working farm to the public through the web; founded the Wild Network to bring the NT together with the RSPB, NHS and over 100 other organisations to get children back into nature; and played a key role in redefining the Trust’s purpose in the modern era, focusing the organisation on the relationship between people and place. I retain roles advising both the National Trust and the Wild Network.

Before joining the Trust I spent most of my career in London advertising agencies, including Fallon where I developed brand strategies for organisations like Orange, Cadbury, Sony and Eurostar. I also spent some time client-side at Sainsbury’s after working on the Try Something New Today campaign for their agency AMV BBDO, and lived in Zambia for a year working for a small charity.

I am also a co-founder and Associate of The Communications Lab which has formed to answer some big questions about the purpose of the communications industries and their role in the world. This sector-wide innovation lab – soon to launch - will be a place for a community of practitioners to experiment and to make change happen.