David Michael Winter, (born 10 November 1955) is an expert on rural politics and economics.

Early life

He was born in

Launceston, Cornwall Launceston ( , ; rarely spelled Lanson as a local abbreviation; ) is a town, ancient borough, and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is west of the middle stage of the River Tamar, which constitutes almost the entire borde ...

in 1955, the son of David Winter (d.1989) a farmer and lecturer and his wife Jeanne Nanette. His early life was spent firstly in Devon, where the family farmed near

Beaworthy Beaworthy is a village and civil parish in the West Devon district of Devon, England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 236. Notable residents * Henry Courtney Selous (b. Haymarket, London Haymarket is a street in the S ...

before moving to

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

where his father lectured at

Sparsholt College Sparsholt College, formerly also known as Hampshire College of Agriculture, is a Further Education (FE) and Higher Education (HE) college located at Sparsholt near Winchester, with a secondary campus in Andover, both in Hampshire in the south ...

. He was educated at

Peter Symonds College Peter Symonds College is a sixth form college in Winchester, Hampshire, England. The college is recognised as the largest sixth form in England and is noted for the high number of its students who progress to Oxbridge. Peter Symonds College tra ...

then at

Wye College The College of St Gregory and St Martin at Wye, commonly known as Wye College, was an education and research institution in the village of Wye, Kent. In 1447, Cardinal (Catholic Church), Cardinal John Kempe founded his chantry there which also ...

, Kent. He received a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

from the

Open University The Open University (OU) is a Public university, public research university and the largest university in the United Kingdom by List of universities in the United Kingdom by enrolment, number of students. The majority of the OU's undergraduate ...

in 1988.

Career

He is Director of the Centre for Rural Policy Research at the

University of Exeter The University of Exeter is a research university in the West Country of England, with its main campus in Exeter, Devon. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School of ...

, UK. He is also a board member of the

Commission for Rural Communities The Commission for Rural Communities (CRC) was established as a division of England's Countryside Agency on 1 April 2005, and became a non-departmental public body on 1 October 2006, following the enactment of the Natural Environment and Rural Com ...

, formerly the

Countryside Agency The Countryside Agency was a statutory body set up in England in 1999 with the task of improving the quality of the rural environment and the lives of those living in it. The agency was dissolved in 2006 and its functions dispersed among other bo ...

, and was formerly a member of the Governing Body of

IGER Iger is a surname. Notable people with the name include: * Bob Iger (born 1951), American businessman, chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company * Fred Iger (1924–2015), American comic book publisher * Jerry Iger (1903–1990), American cartoon ...

(The Institute for Grassland and Environment Research). His other previous roles have included being Chair of the South West Rural Affairs Forum, a member of the Government's Inquiry into fox hunting, President of the

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

Rural Network, Vice-Chair of the

Hatherleigh Hatherleigh is a small market town in the West Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. In 2011 the parish had a population of 1306. It hosts an arts festival in July, and a carnival in November featuring two flaming tar barrel runs. T ...

Area Project and Chair of

Exbourne Exbourne is a village and civil parish in the English county of Devon. The Anglo-Saxon origin of the name is ''Gæces Burn'' - Cuckoo Stream. It occupies a hillside location between the River Okement and the Hole Brook, about 5 miles north of O ...

C of E Primary School Governors. In May 2008, Prof. Winter was made a

Lay canon Canon () is a Christian title usually used to refer to a member of certain bodies in subject to an ecclesiastical rule. Originally, a canon was a cleric living with others in a clergy house or, later, in one of the houses within the precinct of ...

Exeter Cathedral Exeter Cathedral, properly known as the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter in Exeter, is an Anglican cathedral, and the seat of the Bishop of Exeter, in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Exeter, Devon, in South West England. The presen ...

by Michael Langrish the

Bishop of Exeter The Bishop of Exeter is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Exeter in the Province of Canterbury. The current bishop is Mike Harrison (bishop), Mike Harrison, since 2024. From the first bishop until the sixteent ...

along with Dr. John Rea.

Works

* ''Rural Politics: Policies for Agriculture, forestry and the Environment''.

References

Professor Michael Winter - Politics - University of Exeter
1955 births Living people Academics of the University of Exeter Officers of the Order of the British Empire People from Launceston, Cornwall People educated at Peter Symonds College Alumni of the Open University Alumni of Wye College {{UK-academic-bio-stub