Four new Commissioners appointed to our Board

The Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Planning, Rebecca Evans MS, has announced the appointment of four new board members here at the Design Commission for Wales (DCFW) Ltd.

Zaynub Akbar, Barney Evans, Simon Jones and Simon Power will join the DCFW board from 1 April 2025. Jon James, Cora Kwiatkowski, Mike Biddulph and Joanna Rees have also been reappointed for four further years, taking the total number of Commissioners from five to nine, including our Chair, Ewan Jones.

Zaynub, a former journalist from Cardiff, brings expertise in policy and public affairs within the sport sector, and is passionate about ensuring our built environment is inclusive and promotes active lifestyles. An alumna of the Future Generations Leadership Academy, she also champions sustainable development, considering the long-term impact of our actions and protecting the planet for both current and future generations.

Barny Evans is a director at Turley in Cardiff, with a focus on sustainability and energy. He has over 20 years’ experience working in the built environment all over the world on new developments of all scales, from city strategies to technical advisory. Barny is also an advisor to a tech start-up, MapMortar, that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to help decarbonise building portfolios. His passion is for understanding and communicating how the net zero transition can be successful from all perspectives.

Simon Jones is chief executive of the Global Centre of Rail Excellence (GCRE) and a chartered engineer who has led major infrastructure initiatives in the private and public sectors. Cardiff-based, he was previously Director of Economic Infrastructure at the Welsh Government, where he led on transport and telecommunications, following 20 years with Atkins, the international engineering consultancy. Simon and his team have drawn upon DCFW’s Client Support service in the past to help attract design-led consultant teams.

Simon Power is a chartered town planner and environmentalist with 30 years’ experience in major infrastructure site design, consenting and assessments. His career in interdisciplinary consultancy includes major UK road, rail, energy, water, ports and urban regeneration projects and is experienced in design processes and quality at scale, and in special landscape settings. Simon is a past Chair of the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) Wales and has been a DCFW design review panel member for several years. His doctorate from Cardiff University centred on place-based leadership for net zero in cities.

Ewan Jones, Chair, said: “Our four new Commissioners bring a wealth of rich and diverse experience and expertise alongside a united focus on sustainable design to our board. I am delighted that our four existing Commissioners will continue in their roles, too, which significantly boosts our capacity to continue positively influencing policies, clients, and projects.”

Chief executive Carole-Anne Davies said the enlarged board’s combined expertise is invaluable to promoting good design for Wales’ places, buildings and public spaces.

“The combined exceptional talent, track record and perspectives of our new and existing board members bring an unprecedented opportunity for us to really drive home the value of high quality design to help improve the quality of people’s daily lives in Wales,” she said.

“We are incredibly fortunate to have the commitment of such dynamic and accomplished professionals around the board table and I’m excited to work with them to promote the benefits of good design and placemaking that help make Wales a better place for everyone.”

These appointments were made for four years in accordance with the Governance Code on Public Appointments, and on merit following an open, competitive process. Commissioners of DCFW are Members of its Board of Directors. They are not paid, but are reimbursed for reasonable travel and subsistence costs, and have a time commitment of approximately two days per month.