Secretariat

The Secretariat supports the work of the Executive Board and Commonwealth Chemistry and, in turn, supports the chemical science community across the Commonwealth. 

To help establish Commonwealth Chemistry, the Secretariat is currently provided by the Royal Society of Chemistry.

Andrew Shore UK Illustration of British flag

Andrew is an environmental scientist and geochemist. After completing his BSc in Environmental Sciences at University of East Anglia in 2005, Andrew moved to University of Leicester for a PhD in selenium isotope geochemistry. He spent time at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) during his academic studies.

Andrew joined the Royal Society of Chemistry as a Publishing Editor in 2010 and primarily worked on the inorganic journal portfolio. In 2015, Andrew became Executive Editor of Dalton Transactions, CrystEngComm, New Journal of Chemistry and RSC Advances. As Executive Editor, he oversaw the conversion of RSC Advances to one of the largest open access chemistry journals in the world and increased publication frequencies for CrystEngComm and New Journal of Chemistry.

Andrew joined the RSC Global Inclusion team as Senior Programme Manager, International Engagement in June 2022. His responsibilities include managing the Pan Africa Chemistry Network, engaging with EuChemS and IUPAC, on behalf of the RSC, as the member society and UK national chemical organisation, and leading the RSC international engagement activities with our global network of partner chemical societies. 

Photo of Dr Andrew Shore
© Royal Society of Chemistry

Aurora Walshe UK Illustration of British flag

After completing her BSc in Chemistry in University College Dublin, Aurora moved to Trinity College Dublin for a PhD in actinide chemistry. During her PhD Aurora was elected to the Council of the Institute of Chemistry of Ireland and served as the Irish representative to the European Young Chemists’ Network (EYCN). At her first EYCN Delegates’ Assembly in Poland Aurora was elected to the Board as Communications Officer and later served as Secretary. While on the Board of EYCN Aurora contributed to the EYCN activities during the 4th and 5th EuChemS Congresses in Czechia and Turkey. Aurora now sits on the Public Outreach Committee of the International Young Chemists’ Network (IYCN).

Aurora joined the Royal Society of Chemistry as a Publishing Editor in 2014 and worked on several RSC journals before a secondment to the International Engagement Team in 2017 to work on the 7th EuChemS Chemistry Congress in Liverpool with Rachel. In 2018, Aurora moved to the RSC Member Networks Team, a team that supports over 130 volunteer-led member networks who plan and host hundreds of activities each year for the chemical sciences community. Aurora joined the RSC Global Inclusion Team in April 2022 as the interim Programme Manager, Commonwealth Chemistry.

Photo of Aurora in front of a hill with sheep

Rachel Thompson UK Illustration of British flag

Rachel completed her BSc in biochemistry and zoology at the University of Leeds in 2008 and, as part of her degree, spent a year living and studying in Spain. 

Rachel joined the Royal Society of Chemistry in 2008 and has held a number of roles including conference development, and grants and awards before moving to the events team in 2010. In 2012, Rachel was promoted to Senior Events Executive. 

Alongside Sarah, Rachel oversaw the delivery of the 7th EuChemS Chemistry Congress that took place in Liverpool in August 2018. In January 2020 she began a new role in the external relations team as Programme Manager, Commonwealth Chemistry. Rachel is currently on maternity leave.