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28 May 2012
John Davidson OBE in his early years at Groundwork
Everyone at Groundwork was saddened to hear of the death of John Davidson OBE, who passed away on Saturday 26 May. John was one of the driving forces behind the establishment of Groundwork in the late 1970s and early 1980s and was Groundwork’s national chief executive from 1985 to 1996.
Groundwork’s current Chief Executive Sir Tony Hawkhead commented, “John was an inspiration to so many people who worked in and alongside our organisation and I’m hugely proud to serve in the position he occupied in Groundwork’s formative years. Groundwork has grown from a one-off experiment to a major national organisation and an international movement improving the lives of many thousands of people every year. None of this would have happened without John’s vision and his passionate but pragmatic leadership. "Groundwork is a very different organisation now to the one John originally conceived but his guiding principles of partnership and practical action remain at the core of our approach. In our thirtieth year it’s fitting that we’re revisiting through our Operation Groundwork campaign many of the ideas and concepts John articulated. I know that our renewed focus on finding innovative models for protecting, developing and managing green space is something that he would have embraced and championed.
"Our thoughts are with his friends and family at this time of sadness. We hope that they, like us, will be able to remember and celebrate John's many achievements.”
