Three decades of experience: one each in community development, academia and the public sector.
Now in her fourth decade, Anna brings a multifaceted perspective and an uncommon depth of expertise to her coaching, consultancy and facilitation work. Her academic qualifications include a Bachelor of Communication Studies, a Master of Economic Development, a PhD in Environmental Studies and a Postdoctoral Fellowship funded by the Australian Research Council. Anna's subsequent book Grass Roots and Green Tape appealed to a wide variety of natural resource management practitioners and led to professional positions in state and federal government.
Social and environmental scientist with international research experience.
Anna was awarded the prestigious Rockefeller Foundation Ecological Conversations Fellowship in 2002. This unique opportunity led to invitations to lecture and conduct research on science in society. She focused on citizen science for environmental stewardship in the UK, USA, Europe and on home soil in Australia.
Bridging scientific inquiry with lived experience and the discovery of who and how we are being.
Early in her career, she realised there is more to solving problems than acquiring and applying scientific, evidentiary and technical skills. Anna drew upon theory, practice and real-world discovery to refine how we look at and frame what we see. Her philosophical inquiry and personal experience led her to discover the importance of integrating who and how we are being with our ways of seeing and relating to science, knowledge and each other. She now focuses on the union between our day-to-day individual experience and the collective articulation of a vision for society.
Many teams are challenged at work. Few experience being cohesive and effective. It makes a big difference.
Anna empowers teams to actively address situations in which they may unwittingly repeat the past or knowingly do nothing in the face of uncomfortable truths. She encourages teams to generate a culture of communication and innovation. She maintains that focusing on content and subject expertise or proficiency in process and program design are necessary but insufficient conditions for team effectiveness. Instead, she focuses on the human dimensions underlying team behaviours, decisions and actions. To support team members in understanding themselves and others, Anna investigates team awareness, authenticity and vulnerability. Doing so results in effectiveness, shared outcomes, deeper satisfaction and expanded workplace engagement.
A logical process of enquiry, assessment, development and evaluation contributes to effectiveness.
She combines participatory enquiry, facilitation and action research to structure team growth. Often iterative, Anna adopts an organic approach. First, leaders and team members assess latent leadership opportunities in their relationship to work. Next, they identify opportunities to develop trust and communication within a team and align on preferred interventions. Last, the team commits to practice, reflect and evaluate as they grow and adapt.
My leadership journey led me to serve on the Board of the Australian Rural Leadership Foundation.
Recognising and expanding individual potential can end up changing whole cultures. She mentors and coaches aspiring, emerging and established leaders. She is passionate about individual self-development and expression for community advantage. This is relevant for those wishing to test their leadership readiness and confidence. It applies to people transitioning into a new area of professional interest and to those in existing roles.
Personal Life
Aside from her professional pursuits, she loves spending time with her children and grandchildren, bush-walking with her partner and being in nature. She is also a qualified Zumba instructor. Anna offers weekly classes for anyone wishing to extend their fitness through movement and music.
