As team leader for Hawke's Bay Regional Council (state government equivalent), I manage a team of 5 intermediate, senior and principle scientists working on the health of freshwater and marine ecosystems. We conduct broadscale monitoring of water quality, fish, flora, benthic fauna, sediments, nutrients, contaminants and habitats. Results are reported via high-quality technical reports, papers etc. and we use our research to inform policy, strategic planning, consents, permitting, compliance and habitat and environmental management.

I collaborate with government, NGOs, Iwi/hapu and community groups, industry, consultants and private landowners and stakeholders. My role involves high level strategic development, budgeting, business case development, large, complex project oversight, safety, engagement and extensive interdisciplinary collaboration within and outside of council.

I worked as a Research Wildlife Biologist for the US Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Centre (USGS-WERC) Dixon Field Station, for 8.5 years, predominantly on spatial and movement ecology of Pacific Flyway Waterfowl. This work has contributed directly to applied and adaptive management of waterfowl, waterbirds and their wetland habitats across North America. Our research has included focus on migration, breeding, population studies, habitats and disease as well as various anthropogenic impacts including climate change, drought, wildfires, energy development, habitat change and fragmentation. I managed multidisciplinary teams across government agencies, academia, NGOs, Indigenous and community groups, industry and private landowners and stakeholders.

From 2009-2016 i managed 12 complex multidisciplinary research projects on seabirds of the Great Barrier Reef. I designed and delivered field and technical research studies on movement and spatial ecology, habitat use and influences and impacts driven by climate change. I also worked as a seabird ecologist in varied locations and habitats, with numerous species across Australia and New Zealand.

Sir David Attenborough and I on location on Heron Island in 2014 during filming of David Attenborough's Great Barrier Reef.

I am very eager to engage with interested parties and various stakeholders to further science and expand its utility in other sectors. I am skilled at communicating science to a diverse array of audiences and representing science publicly. I have worked on many types of media outputs and several wildlife documentaries. 

One of the highlights of my research career was working side-by-side with Sir David Attenborough as his scientific, seabird and site consultant on his final on-location documentary produced by BBC TV and Atlantic Productions -  David Attenborough's Great Barrier Reef, for which I gave an interview and my research data that were used in the 2nd documentary episode "Visitors" (can be seen on the interactive website).

* For further detail follow links & see Conservation consultancy, Advocacy & Education.

I have a long-held and deeply passionate belief in the need to  conserve our amazing wildlife and natural world. As a result I have spent many years involved in conservation activities for many marine, terrestrial and aquatic taxa and critical habitats including birds, mammals, reptiles, fish, crustaceans, insects, plants, beaches, reefs, forests, wetlands etc.

I have visited all 7 continents and lived and worked in 11 countries. I taught SCUBA diving in tropical environs around the world while also working and advocating for wildlife conservation, which, ultimately led to my scientific studies and becoming a researcher.

I am an avid skier, photographer, diver, hiker and backpacker (have climbed Mt Kilimanjaro, Mt Whitney, the Inca Trail, Annapurna Circuit, and many mountains of the Alps, Sierra Nevada and Rockies). I have visited  the Arctic and Antarctica by ship. Other interests include camping, snowshoeing, road-tripping, yoga, drawing, writing, citizen science, reading, SUP, swimming and indulging in exotic cuisines.