Board old

Dr Angie Brown is a Consultant Cardiologist and Medical Director of the Irish Heart Foundation. She obtained her medical degree from Cambridge University and her Cardiology training in Kings College Hospital. After completing an MD from Cambridge University she moved to Ireland and has worked as a Consultant Cardiologist in Beaumont Hospital and St James’s Hospital before becoming Medical Director of the Irish Heart Foundation. Dr Brown has previously been Chairperson of ASH Ireland. She is a General Cardiologist with a specialist interest in imaging and set up the Irish Cardiac Echo and Imaging group (I.C.E). She also has a strong interest in prevention in particularly tobacco control.

Norma Cronin is a Tobacco Control Consultant with a particular interest in smoking cessation and training, and with over 20 years’ experience in this area. She qualified as a general nurse and midwife in Ireland and holds a Higher Diploma in Public Health. She is the former Health Promotion Manager at the Irish Cancer Society and had overall responsibility for cancer prevention and tobacco control. In collaboration with the relevant agencies, she played a key role in ensuring the effective implementation of Ireland’s Smoke Free at Work legislation and has presented nationally and internationally on this ground-breaking initiative. Norma established and managed Ireland’s National Smokers’ Quitline which is an initiative of the Irish Cancer Society in partnership with the Health Service Executive. Norma serves on a number of national and international committees and is an Advisory Board Member of the International Network of Women against Tobacco (INWAT Europe) and regent representative for European Network for Smoking Prevention (ENSP). She is also the former Chairperson of the Board of Office of Tobacco Control (OTC).

Eamonn Rossi served at senior management level across a range of government departments and agencies including the Department of Finance, the Department of Foreign Affairs, and the Department of Social Protection. He also served as a consultant for the World Bank on social sector reform and as CEO of Irish Genealogy Ltd and the Office of Tobacco Control.

During his time leading the Office of Tobacco Control, he oversaw the removal of all in-store tobacco advertising, and led a campaign highlighting the sale of tobacco to children. On an international level he represented Ireland at the UN Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and was invited to speak at a range of international tobacco control fora sponsored by the World Health Organization, national governments and the NGO community. He holds a BSc in Social Policy and Psychology and an MA in International Relations from DCU.

Tim Collins joined Irish Heart as Chief Executive in August, 2017.

A former GP, Special Advisor to Mary Harney and Brendan Howlin, and national radio station chief, he brings significant media, political and medical experience to the long trusted, national not-for-profit organisation dedicated to the elimination of premature death from heart disease and stroke.

Tim was Chief Executive at Newstalk 106-108FM. Prior to this, he was Chief Executive with North West Broadcasting for more than 10 years (2004-2015) where he led the way on innovative digital and video content solutions to complement local radio.

Between 1990-1997, he acted as Special Advisor to Government Ministers Mary Harney and Brendan Howlin at the Department of Health and also The Department of the Environment, before going on to become Director of Public Affairs with Drury Communications until 2003.

His education includes qualifying as a barrister from Kings Inns in 2005. In 1983, he graduated in Medicine from Trinity College Dublin and went on to complete postgraduate training in General Practice before working as a GP in Dublin and Sydney until 1988. During that period, he also became Vice President of the Irish Medical Organisation.

Shane Allwright is recently retired from Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin, where she was Professor in Epidemiology in the Department of Public Health and Primary Care, and latterly, College Registrar. She is a Fellow of Trinity College Dublin and an Honorary Fellow of the Faculty of Public Health Medicine, Royal College of Physicians of Ireland.  Her research interests include health effects of active and passive smoking and of alcohol misuse; evaluation of tobacco and alcohol control policies; and prisoner health. Professor Allwright was the lead investigator on a study of the impact of the ‘smoking ban’ on the respiratory health of bar workers. She chaired the report to the Minister for Health and Children entitled “Report on the health effects of environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) in the workplace” that was critical to the introduction of the Irish smokefree workplace legislation. She has served in various capacities on a variety of national and European public bodies, including the Board of the Office of Tobacco Control.

Wally Young is the founder and head of Young Communications, Dublin. He provides a mix of Public Relations Consultancy, Advocacy and Media Interview Training to a select range of clients. He specialises in crisis media planning and execution.He is  the former head of Defence Forces Media Relations, retiring in 1996 to establish Young Communications.  He was engaged as Communications Adviser to ASH Ireland for 20 years up to 2017.He was engaged as a Media Adviser (part time) to President Michael D. Higgins, having held a similar appointment with President Mary McAleese, whom he advised in the 1997 election campaign.

Duncan Stewart is a well-known TV presenter and documentary film producer in Ireland. He is an environmentalist, a sustainable energy expert and an award-winning architect. He specialises in ‘ecological’ architecture and has been a pioneer of ‘green’ building design in Ireland, with a Bachelor of Architecture from UCD.Duncan is a board member of Ash Ireland, the Dublin Civic Trust, the Micro Energy Generation Association and a founder of EASCA.Besides being a popular TV personality for over 20 years, Duncan is well recognised as programme maker and presenter of about 400 ‘factual’ TV documentaries and factual ‘lifestyle’ programmes. Topics range from climate change, biodiversity, water, resource efficiency, sustainable energy, transport, forestry and wood technology, sustainable farming and food, community resilience and home improvement.Most of these TV episodes have been broadcast on RTE One (Ireland’s Public Broadcaster) and produced by his film company, Earth Horizon Productions. Earth Horizon has produced many successful and informative, high-audience rated TV series, including ‘Eco Eye’ and ‘About the House’. These can be accessed on www.earthhorizon.ie.