The Guardian today announces Ebony Riddell Bamber as the programme director of the Scott Trust’s legacies of enslavement project, following the publication of its report in March.
In the newly created role, Ebony will work closely with the Scott Trust, Guardian colleagues, and an advisory panel of experts to oversee a long-term programme of restorative justice in response to research into links between the founders of the Manchester Guardian and historical transatlantic slavery.
Ebony has over 20 years experience in advocacy, human rights and community engagement. She has held senior roles in global advocacy coalitions, the public sector and international NGOs, including CARE International and PEN International. She has also led large-scale campaigns and community participation projects for Southwark Council and Save the Children UK.
As programme director, Ebony will collaborate with partners in the UK, US and the Caribbean, consulting widely with descendant communities to ensure any restorative justice actions reflect community knowledge and priorities, and are both ambitious and impactful. She will also deliver wider project management of the programme on behalf of the Scott Trust, from its design to evaluation.
Ole Jacob Sunde, chair of The Scott Trust, said:
“Ebony’s leadership and guidance will be invaluable in the months and years ahead as we begin to build and deliver on the plans set out by the Scott Trust. With expertise in establishing socially-impactful, long-term projects across multiple countries, Ebony’s understanding and insights of restorative justice work in a practical setting will be vital to our progress and success. We all look forward to working with Ebony on this important next phase of the project.”
Joseph Harker, senior editor for diversity and development, said:
“Ebony’s international experience and deep knowledge of strategic advocacy and project delivery will ensure our restorative justice approach is created with community and intersectionality front of mind. We want to establish a thoughtful, ongoing programme of work, with ambitious objectives and outcomes that align with the Scott Trust’s aims and the Guardian’s wider values and purpose.”
Ebony Riddell Bamber, said:
“I am proud to be joining the Guardian to deliver on the important commitment of the Scott Trust to establish a meaningful, long-term programme of restorative justice. My focus will be on working in close partnership with descendant communities in the US, Jamaica, the UK and the wider African diaspora. It will be a huge privilege to learn from and collaborate with communities, activists and movements working to effect long-lasting change.”
Ebony Riddell Bamber is now in post at the Guardian, joining the project as programme director.
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Notes to editors
Guardian News & Media press office: media.enquiries@theguardian.com
About the Scott Trust
The core purpose of the Scott Trust is to secure the financial and editorial independence of the Guardian in perpetuity. The Trust was originally created in 1936 to secure the financial and editorial independence of the Guardian in perpetuity and to safeguard the journalistic freedom and liberal values of the Guardian, free from commercial or political interference.
The Trust was reconstituted in 1948 and in 2008 replaced with The Scott Trust Limited, a limited company with the same protections for the Guardian enshrined in its constitution. The Scott Trust is the sole shareholder in Guardian Media Group. Its profits are reinvested in journalism and do not benefit a proprietor or shareholders.
About the research
In March 2023, the Scott Trust published a comprehensive report on the Guardian’s historical connections with transatlantic slavery, sharing an apology and its restorative justice response. The research identified links between John Edward Taylor and the associates who funded the Manchester Guardian’s creation, and slavery. It was conducted in three stages – first by Dr Sheryllynne Haggerty and Dr Cassandra Gooptar of the University of Nottingham’s Institute for the Study of Slavery, and later by Dr Gooptar and Professor Trevor Burnard of the University of Hull’s Wilberforce Institute for the Study of Slavery and Emancipation.
The academic research and restorative justice proposals were overseen by a committee of Scott Trust members: historian, writer and broadcaster David Olusoga, barrister and former deputy mayor of London Matthew Ryder KC, Guardian editor-in-chief Katharine Viner, and Scott Trust chair Ole Jacob Sunde; and by a team of Guardian editorial and commercial staff, led by: senior editor for diversity and development Joseph Harker and chief communications and marketing officer Brendan O’Grady. Maya Wolfe-Robinson is editor of Cotton Capital.
