About Us

Victoria Read graduated from the University of Cape Town in 2004 with a Bachelor of Social Science Degree majoring in Environmental and Geographical Science and Social Anthropology. She is a Registered Environmental Assessment Practitioner and has 19 years’ experience within the field of environmental management and now specializes in agricultural environmental science. Her company, Victoria Read Environmental Consulting, was established in 2013 and offers the full range of environmental management services and has a particular focus on projects relating to food security, rural development and sustainable agriculture. The company also specialises in the implementation of environmental legislation and managing all processes relating to the National Environmental Management Act.

She is the appointed service provider for the Cape Agency for Sustainable Integrated Development in Rural Areas (CASIDRA), Provincial Government Enterprise of the Western Cape Government and her clients include both emerging farmers as well as large scale commercial farmers. She has extensive experience within the poultry industry as well as horticulture and both small and large livestock. She has a good working relationship with all relevant stakeholders including but not limited to the Departments of Agriculture, Environmental Affairs, Water and Sanitation etc.

Victoria regularly assists Agri Wes-Kaap and their commercial farming members within the Western Cape with regards to legal compliance and all environmental related queries. She also provides comments on promulgated regulations which impact the agricultural sector.

Victoria is an Associate for Optimal Agricultural Business Solutions (OABS) and fulfils the role as Senior Agricultural Advisor and assists with varied agricultural related projects.

Prior to establishing her own consulting company, she worked for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as a Climate Change and Capacity Development Advisor for the Africa Adaptation Programme. In this position, she travelled extensively across Africa, advising Governments and UN agencies on how best to mainstream the climate change agenda into the various sectors as well as train leaders and build the capacity of those responsible for the implementation of climate change policies. She was the resident Climate Change Consultant in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 2010 before taking on an International Consulting role for the UNDP in 2011 which enabled her to work in the following countries; Senegal, Morocco, Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda, and Mauritius.

Before moving to Africa, Victoria gained experience in the implementation of environmental policies in the UK where she worked for the British Government in the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) as the project manager for the Flood and Water Management Bill which was designed to improve the UK’s resilience to future flooding threats that are likely to be intensified by climate change.

Prior to her international experience, Victoria worked for two prominent South African environmental consulting firms, namely; Ninham Shand (now Zutari) and Strategic Environmental Focus where she was exposed to a range of multidiscipline projects of varied nature and scale. Before her consulting career, Victoria undertook a short contract position immediately after graduating from UCT with the Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning as a case officer which enabled her to fully comprehend what was to be expected of a competent environmental consultant and afforded her an opportunity to build a relationship with the authorities which is still in place today.