Matt has been Executive Director of the VNPA since 2007 and has a strong background in environmental policy. He has worked in non-government environmental policy areas in the state, national and international arena for more than 30 years.
Matt has held senior positions in leading international and national conservation organisations and in local government. He brings exceptional strategic planning skills to his role at VNPA and his experience is invaluable in coordinating staff and campaigns, as well as liaising with government and industry at all levels and a range of interest groups.
Shannon's work focuses on protecting marine and coastal areas, as well as other land-focussed campaigns. Shannon loves getting out into the field visiting areas that need greater protection and working with local community groups.
Prior to joining the VNPA, Shannon worked as a campaigner protecting the Great Barrier Reef, and has also had several roles at Parks Victoria.
Jordan's work focuses on the VNPA's campaigns to protect and care for our wildlife and wild places.
His background in conservation work ranges from the ocean to the tall forest of the Central Highlands, and he has worked with all levels of government to get results for the natural world for many years. Jordan also teaches conservation and land management at a tertiary level and has an academic background in conservation and land management, arboriculture and training and assessment.
Adrian campaigns for the protection of our critically endangered grasslands, with an emphasis on the Western Grassland Reserve and grasslands being impacted by Melbourne’s urbanisation. He strongly believes in the need to reimagine cities to support urban ecosystems for resilience and sustainability. He has a Masters in landscape architecture and a PhD in urban ecology. His position as Grassy Plains Network facilitator is hosted by Victorian National Parks Association on behalf of the Grassy Plains Network and the Indigenous Flora and Fauna Association.
Running community days, supporting our NatureWatch program and developing training opportunities for staff and volunteers are just some of the ways Caitlin is helping to improve the way we share nature with others.
She has worked with numerous local Victorian community groups, land managers and scientists in the development of citizen science projects, and brings with her a deep passion for ecology, conservation, social ecology and community development.
As a NatureWatch Coordinator Sera leads our land-based citizen science program NatureWatch. She has an extensive background in threatened species conservation and community-led projects. Sera has also completed a PhD investigating communication attitudes towards a range of issues in threatened species conservation in Victoria.
Rachel will be implementing the NatureWatch: Life After Fire project and conducting fieldwork to monitor for wildlife in the East Gippsland area. Her background and special interests are in fire ecology and threatened species conservation. She also completed a Master’s research project investigating how fire, habitat and introduced predators influence the endangered Heath Mouse.
Kade has worked as a marine scientist throughout Australia and now focuses on working with Victoria's marine community and their input that can have an amazing impact on advancing our knowledge of the underwater world.
Nicole runs our marine citizen science programs and has a PhD in marine ecology. Nicole sees citizen science as a valuable tool not just for plugging gaps in knowledge of Victoria's marine life, but for creating a connection to nature and a desire to protect it.
Jessie's passion is helping nature-lovers get involved in protecting, restoring and advocating for Victoria's incredible natural heritage. She believes that a well-told story (with a dose of data) can change things for good.
Jessie has a comprehensive background in campaigns, communications and community engagement. Unsurprisingly, she has a thing for trees, birds, fungi – actually all of it.
A design theory nerd through and through Jacob will be looking after the VNPA’s digital campaigns.
Jacob likes to utilise a combination of his Bachelor in Philosophy, his Masters in Communication & Design and his passion for the natural world to reach unique and thorough design solutions for the VNPA. Previously his design career centred around small business branding, layout design and print design. He’s now excited and driven to evolve his design solutions using more strategic approaches and in doing so have the opportunity to work with new creative tools in the conservation field.
Emily engages with our dedicated supporters including individuals, trusts and foundations. She finds using her skills to contribute to the protection of Victoria's amazing natural places extremely rewarding.
Amelia works with those generous individuals and organisations that support our work. She is proud to contribute to the conservation of Victoria's unique native plants and wildlife and the habitats they rely on through her work with the Victorian National Parks Association and our supporters.
Lucy’s experience across a diverse range of roles in both the hospitality and NFP sectors ensures she is well placed to as the first point of contact into the VNPA office for our members and supporters, as well as the helping the VNPA team.
Lucy loves getting out into nature, particularly hiking and running along the trails in the Dandenong Ranges, and Falls Creek over the summer months.
Heath oversees the day to day management of the organisation including finances, human resources for volunteers & staff, operations, office management, risk and IT. He has over 25 years experience in finance, IT and administration across all sectors with recent roles focusing on community grants management.