Meet our TET Board Members and the Hub Team

Scott Burnett

Chair and Conservation Board Representative

Scott is the Top of the South Regional Conservation Manager for Forest & Bird. He holds a masters degree in international development exploring conservation project engagement with the community and with iwi.

Scott lives in Nelson and is a part owner of a Marlborough Sounds ecological restoration project. He has taught sustainable development at Massey University, been a volunteer business mentor, and worked for Greenpeace. He founded, and ran for 20 years, an international education organisation, called Pacific Discovery, where he gained solid management, marketing, teaching, facilitation, and safety management skills.

Gillian Bishop 

Gillian chaired Tasman Environmental Trust from 2016 – June 2024. She lives beside the Waimea Inlet and has been involved in a wide range of work to protect and enhance the environment, through both practical work and as a TET trustee.

Gillian’s background in contract development and management is invaluable as the Trust enters into an increasing number of arrangements with community groups, local councils and government organisations to deliver conservation projects.

Gillian is keen to see community groups supported by TET’s Hub services to enable them to focus on planting, weeding and pest control. Her work in conservation was recognised in 2020 when she was awarded a QSM.

Aaron Stallard

Nelson City Council Representative

Aaron is a geologist and business owner and a Nelson City Council Councillor. He has a PhD in geology and worked internationally in geological research before establishing a scientific editing business.

He is the Chair of NCC’s Climate Change taskforce and NCC rep on the Nelson Biodiversity Forum. He has a strong interest in climate change and communication, biodiversity, and sustainability. Aaron is driven by the urgent need to protect a planet that is able to support the fullest range of healthy ecosystems and life itself.

 

Marian Milne

Marian is a retired vet and has farmed sheep, beef and forestry with partner Alec in Golden Bay and Tasman since 1990. She’s involved with many environmental projects including being secretary for Friends of Cobb, an active member of the Onekaka Biodversity Group and Golden Bay Bird Rescue.

Marian is the project co-ordinator for HealthPost Nature Trust – and manages to fit in DOC contract work, wildlife monitoring, volunteering, and a little bit of vet locum work.

 

Murray Poulter

Dr Murray Poulter, originally from Motueka, is a former NIWA Chief Scientist who lives on a small rural block in Tasman. His career included work in the UK, Germany, US, Canada and Antarctica before various management roles in NIWA. This work has given him wide exposure to our terrestrial, aquatic and marine environments, and their sensitivities, stresses and mitigation options.

A joint owner of a QE II covenanted plot of native bush, he has a passion for the environment and an appreciation of the difference co-ordinated community efforts make. 

Christeen Mackenzie

Tasman District Council Representative

Christeen is a Tasman District Council Councillor. She is a chartered accountant and had an extensive  career with the Department of Conservation, being the Deputy Director General for Corporate Services until her retirement in 2018.

In 2019, Christeen was elected to the Tasman District Council and is utilising her governance experience in that role. On her property at Foxhill, Christeen and her family are retiring grazing land and planting manuka.

Tom Stein

QEII Representative

Brought up in the Waitakere Ranges in West Auckland, Tom moved to Marlborough in 1996. He lives with his wife, Liz, on a small block near Linkwater in the Marlborough Sounds.

Tom worked for the Auckland Regional Council Parks Service, and in Marlborough he worked with DOC, Marlborough District Council and private landowners in various roles, with a focus on weed and pest management. He’s the Regional Representative for Nelson, Tasman and Marlborough for the QEII National Trust, and has a wide range of practical skills and knowledge of the local environment.

Sue Brown

Federated Farmers Representative

Sue and her partner are pastoral farmers, they live on their dairy farm near Collingwood, and have a grazing property in the Motueka Valley, where they raise calves and winter their dairy herd. 

Sue’s governance experience  includes the Aorere Catchment Project, various Federated Farmers positions, participated in DairyNZ forums around environmental issues, and working with AgResearch on the giant buttercup weed. She has served on the Nelson Marlborough Conservation Board, represented Golden Bay on Tasman District’s Unitary Council, and represented farmers on Fonterra’s Co-operative Council. 

Anaru Luke

Iwi Representative

Anaru joined TET in 2023 with the support of Te Tauihu Māori. He currently works with the Tumuaki Te Kāhui Āio, Māori & Indigenous Research Team and executive team at Cawthron Institute.

His career spans many years with DOC from conservancy to national office levels, then moving to the Ministry for the Environment and the Ministry of Fisheries. He has also worked with the NMIT executive, guiding Māori programs.

Anaru is deputy chair of Ngati Rārua, and he is on the ministerial advisory board for Treaty settlements with the RMA. He is also Kāhui Māori for the Sustainable Seas National Science Challenge.

 The TET Hub Team 

Sky Davies

Trust Manager

Sky grew up in the Motueka Valley and, after adventuring in and working around the world, returned home with her family. Her adventures included working as a white-water raft guide in the US, a three-year stint in Bolivia working in community development and living on a canal boat in the UK.

Prior to her management role at Tasman Environmental Trust, Sky worked for the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, where she focused on conservation-related issues.

Sky holds a Bachelor of Resource Studies from Lincoln University, and a Master of Science (MSc.) from Oxford University.

Abby Boffa

Operations Manager

Abby grew up on the Kapiti Coast and moved to Mapua in 2001. She has a Bachelor of Arts and a Postgraduate Diploma in Management from Canterbury University. Abby has worked as a business analyst and a project manager in health, forestry and photography.

Abby joined Tasman Environmental Trust (TET) in 2017 as coordinator of the Mapua Dawn Chorus and project manager for Neimann Creek.

As operations manager, she supports TET’s conservation projects across administration and compliance – so they can spend more time achieving conservation outcomes.

Kathryn Brownlie

Treasurer

Originally from the lower North Island, Richmond has been home for Kathryn and her family since 2001. They love living in the Tasman region with all the outdoor opportunities it offers for recreation, sport and leisure.

Alongside her work as TET treasurer, Kathryn is also project manager for Battle for the Banded Rail. She enjoys working with the enthusiastic volunteers and is proud of the project’s achievements.

Kathryn has a background in Management Accounting, a has a BSc. (Operations Research) from Victoria University, and has been Tasman Environmental Trust’s treasurer since 2015.

Sukie Conley

Project Mōhua Administrator 

Originally from the US, Sukie has a passion for conservation and experience in management of conservation-related projects.

Elaine Asquith

Regional Predator Control Coordinator

Elaine is a geographer with an MSc. in Environmental Science, she was born and trained in Ireland. Her first foray into predator control was working on the Southland Regional Pest Management Strategy Review in 2007.

Elaine also worked at NZDF where she managed large-scale projects for didymo biosecurity, sustainability and culture change. She knows the power of community collaborative decision-making from her work as science coordinator for Greater Wellington Regional Council’s Whaitua process. 

In 2014 Nelson become home to Elaine and her young family. Always on the edge of the socio-enviro interface, she is passionate about creating social and environmental wellbeing by reconnecting people with nature.

Ursula Passl

Strategy, Partnerships & Fundraising Lead

Ursula developed a strong connection with the natural world from an early age. Her love of nature has spurred many outdoor adventures and has been important for peaceful reflection and inspiration.

After graduating in 1993, BSc Botany & Zoology and MSc. Hon. Resource Management, Ursula has worked at a national, regional, and local level in a wide range of environmental roles, all of which have been inspired by Te Ao Māori.

Her 25 years in consultancy projects and management positions have allowed her to connect with a wide range of people across Te Tauihu. She is focused on bringing people together, cultivating positive relationships and supporting connections between people and nature.

Ursula lives in a peaceful valley in the foothills of Tuao Wharepapa with her family.

 

Marios Gavalas

Trust Administrator

Since migrating to Aotearoa over 20 years ago, Marios has not stopped exploring. Thousands of days in the backcountry working as an author, photographer and guide developed a love for the unique ecosystems that make these islands special. Researching and interpreting these outstandingly beautiful areas led naturally to volunteer work in conservation projects.


Since its inception, Marios has been associated with the Otuwhero Trust, helping to restore this threatened wetland gem. Experience in conservation governance, health and safety systems, and planting in gumboot country has nurtured his belief that habitat restoration is the key to a healthy planet and human wellbeing.