About

Luke Steele LLB (Hons), LLM specialises in nature and environmental law and policy and is currently pursuing a PhD on reforming regulation to protect and enhance the UK’s uplands.

Luke specialises in environmental regulation and policy for protecting and restoring the UK’s natural environment, maximising the delivery of biodiversity, carbon storage, water quality, flood mitigation and other public goods.

Peatlands, woodlands, grasslands, rivers, wetlands and urban green spaces together form some of the nation’s most distinctive and valuable landscapes.

Effective environmental policy and regulation are essential to conserving and restoring the natural environment. Changes in the way land is managed and climate change are among the biggest drivers of habitat loss and wildlife decline. According to the State of Nature Report, nearly one in six species are threatened with extinction.

Addressing these challenges requires effective environmental law and policy that can drive restoration of exceptional habitats and the recovery of native wildlife, while enabling nature-based solutions that enhance biodiversity, sequester carbon, improve water quality and protect communities vulnerable to flooding.

Luke is currently pursuing a PhD examining how environmental regulation can better protect and enhance the UK’s upland environment. He previously completed an LLM in Natural Resources and Environmental Law and Policy, specialising in regulation of intensive land management practices. He was awarded a distinction for his dissertation, ‘Analysing the effectiveness of current regulation for protecting and enhancing northern England’s upland environment’.

Having worked with some of the UK’s leading animal welfare organisations, Luke has built up a wealth of knowledge in environmental advocacy, public affairs and policy development. He has contributed to a number of landmark corporate and public policy moves, including unlocking a significant area of moorland from intensive management for the conservation of wildlife and habitats, and the introduction of mandatory CCTV in English abattoirs, having won the support of the then Secretary of State for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs.

Luke regularly provides research, commentary and analysis on upland conservation in the national and regional media including The Times, The Guardian, Yorkshire Post and BBC News.