Our Team

We have a highly skilled team who can deliver results for you. Our team have decades of experience in environmental management, financial services and remote sensing.

ADAM TOWNLEY

Chief Executive Officer

Adam Townley is a Sydney based chartered accountant with over 25 years of experience in financial markets. He is credited with setting up one of the first carbon funds in London (2003) and has published books on insolvency and bankruptcy. He is a commercialisation and corporate specialist who uses design thinking processes to implement market technologies such as Waste to Energy, Fintech, AgTech and Telematics. Adam has been the Director for AI Carbon (AIC) for five years overseeing numerous carbon projects within Australia.

RUSSELL SEAMAN

Chief Operations Officer

Russell Seaman, based in South Australia, has over 25 years of natural resource management experience delivering large scale environmental projects. Most recently he has been the South Australian Manager for the Native Vegetation Council.

He was nationally recognised for his riverine recovery work during the millennium drought, receiving the Banksia Award – Prime Minister's Environmentalist of the Year. Russell has also received awards for environmental planning and GIS mapping.

Russell has a passion for investigating how carbon markets can increase landscape productivity and bring diversified revenue into communities. He has played a pivotal role in the development of Australia’s first ‘blue carbon’ pilot which implemented the Verified Carbon Standard – proof of concept for tidal reconnection as a blue carbon offset project.

Russell has completed the Australian Institute of Company Directors program, project management qualifications and advanced leadership and management training.

HAFIZ STEWART

Principle Ecologist

Hafiz Stewart is a South Australian rangelands specialist with decades of field survey experience within the South Australian government and private industries. Hafiz has led one of Australia’s largest native planting projects in the lower Murray River during the millennium drought and the New South Wales Saving our Species program.

JAMES THIESSEN

Program Manager

James Thiessen holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (Biodiversity and Environmental Management) and Geographical Information Systems (Arc Map). He was also awarded the Dean’s Merit Award for Academic Achievement.

James commenced his career working for BHP Billiton (Olympic Dam) as an environmental officer in 2005. Since then, he has worked as a Geographical Information Systems Officer for the Queensland Local Government and an ecologist with the Queensland Government. James was awarded a position in the South Australian Government in 2010 to work on a Commonwealth and State funded land restoration program, the largest on the southern hemisphere at the time. In 2016, James moved into rangeland and Indigenous land management, and has been the Program Manager for the Alinytjara Wilurara Landscape Board in South Australia.

James brings expertise in indigenous land negotiations, stakeholder liaison and pastoral land management. .

DR CHRIS WAWRYK

Remote Sensing Analyst

Chris Wawryk holds a doctorate in geology and has worked has a professional geologist for several decades in Western Australia and South Australia. Chris has expertise in landform classification, GIS and remote sensing.

IAIN HALE

Remote Sensing Analyst

Iain Hale is a remote sensing specialist with expertise in satellite imagery interpretation, modelling and spectral analysis.

BEN RATE

Remote Sensing Analyst

Ben Rate is a remote sensing graduate currently undertaking further specialist studies in spectral classification.

MATTHEW SHERMOT

Geospatial and Environmental Scientist

Matthew holds a Bachelor of Civil Engineering and Master’s in Marine Science and Management. Matthew has conducted hydrodynamic research on the Hunter River (NSW) using RMA2 and marine research on the Sydney Harbor and Great Barrier Reef.

Through his research, Matthew has developed his hydrodynamic modelling and field data collection skills, python coding expertise, and team management. He has also developed his leadership, management, and mental fitness through being an Engineering Officer in the US Army for over two years.

KYLIE MORITZ

Senior Ecologist

Kylie has over 25 years’ experience in the field of natural resource management.

Kylie has worked with the South Australian Environment Department as a Restoration Ecologist, Senior Project Officer and as a Bush Management Advisor.

She has gained experience in a diverse array of conservation issues including threatened species management and recovery, pest and pathogen management, development of revegetation plans and strategies, preparation of management plans, vegetation survey and assessments, biological monitoring and management of regional programs and funding.

Kylie Moritz holds qualifications in the Bachelor of Biological Sciences (Honors in Zoology) from La Trobe University and a Graduate Diploma of Applied Sciences, from Deakin University. Kylie has experience in Geographical Information Systems, biodiversity monitoring methods and Fire planning.

ANDREW RETTIG

Team Leader, Operations and Ecology

Andrew has been leading ecological restoration projects within South Australia, and Far North Queensland. He has worked for the South Australian Department for Environment and Water’s Fire Management Unit responding to wildfire and
conducting prescribed burns. In 2014 Andrew commenced working on one of Australia’s largest revegetation programs within the lower Murray region of South Australia. Andrew has experience in ecological monitoring, scientific investigations, and engineering designs to improve landscape function.

Andrew holds qualification in the Bachelor of Environmental Management, Diploma of Permaculture, and Certificate 1 Conservation and Land Management. Venus Bay.

RATA LUCKENS

Team Leader, Operations and Ecology

Rata has a diverse experience across forestry management programs, aquaculture farming and natural resource management. He has Jackerooed in South Australia and has worked on South Australia’s first feral animal exclusion area on
Venus Bay.

Rata holds a Bachelor of Science Honours Flinders University and Bachelor of Applied Science (Environmental Management) University of South Australia.

BRIDGET HIGGINS

Project Officer

Bridget holds a Bachelor of Science. Bridget has expertise in GIS, revegetation methods and has undertaken project management and field work in Fiji.

NATALIE BROWN

Project Ecologist

Natalie holds an advanced Bachelor of Science and awarded First Class Honours.

Natalie is an experienced project ecologist who has delivered a range of projects from wetland rehabilitation, grasslands management, southern brown bandicoot recovery and long-term grazing recovery on Koonamore Vegetation Reserve.

DR NICHOLAS PALTRIDGE

Integrated Farm Management

Nick leads our whole of farm carbon accounting and advises on shelterbelt establishment to generate carbon credits.

Nick has worked as an Industry Development Consultant for the South Australian Government, collaborating with livestock producers and industry groups to develop and implement agricultural technologies across the livestock sector as part of the Red Meat and Wool Growth Program.

Nick has experience managing a family livestock enterprise in South Australia, renovating pastures for increased productivity and to build soil carbon. He has also had a focus on improving sheep reproductive performance for efficient prime lamb production, and better management of plantations and shelterbelts.

NICK BRADLEY

General Manager Business Development

Nick Bradley was raised on and has managed cattle stations in the East Kimberley region of WA and he has been professionally engaged in Agricultural sectors across Australia for 25 years.

More recently, Nick spent seven years managing stakeholder engagement and contracts for the $2 Bn Connections Project and modernising irrigation infrastructure for 3500+ farmers in Victoria’s Goulburn-Murray irrigation districts. He then spent three years as the national head of sales for an Australian AgTech company that supplies remote water monitoring solutions to the pastoral industry.

Nick has worked with graziers and member organisations like the Arid Lands NRM in every corner of the country and he is a committed advocate for Australian Agriculture and the benefits of carbon farming. Nick is based in Wangaratta, NE Victoria. Mobile: 0408 946 406.

ROSS SAWERS

Project Manager

Ross Sawers has a family pastoral property in the Northeast Pastoral district of SA and is well known around the region in both pastoral and mining networks. Ross started out in the industry at Prominent Hill. He has worked in consultancy for the mining, oil and gas industry in South Australia and the Northern Territory since 2006. He has also worked in youth employment and the wool industry.

Ross is a former Board Member of SA Arid Lands Natural Resource Management (eight years), Northern Regional Development and Regional Development Australia Far North (SA). He is currently the Presiding Member on the SA Arid Lands Landscape Board and the Native Vegetation Council. He is also a former Board Member of the Board.

SIMON PATTERSON

Agricultural Specialist

Simon has been involved in broad acre farming and grazing in South Australia for 34 years and has co-managed their family farming properties with his brother. Their properties include 12,200 Ha of mixed farming (grains and sheep) and 51,500 Ha of pastoral grazing land.

Simon’s interest in carbon farming to increase on-farm profits came from serving on the South Australian No Till Farmers Association board for six years, including two years as a resident.

MARK LEWIS

Director

Mark Lewis is a former WA Minister for Agriculture and Food, member for the Mining and Pastoral Region in the WA Legislative Council from 2013 to 2017 and foundation member of the federal Regional Investment Corporation (charged to deliver a $4 Bn concessional loan facility). He is currently a member the Climate Change Authority (which advises federal Ministers and government on related matters) and director of several public and private companies.

Mark has a lifetime of involvement in agriculture and rural communities and years of engagement in water resource development. He completed undergraduate studies in the Animal and Health field before going on to complete a Master’s in Applied Science and an AdvDip and Gradcert in Management.

Our Team

ADAM TOWNLEY

RUSSELL SEAMAN

HAFIZ STEWART

JAMES THIESSEN

DR CHRIS WAWRYK

IAIN HALE

BEN RATE

MATTHEW SHERMOT

KYLIE MORITZ

ANDREW RETTIG

RATA LUCKENS

BRIDGET HIGGINS

NATALIE BROWN

DR NICHOLAS PALTRIDGE

NICK BRADLEY

ROSS SAWERS

SIMON PATTERSON

MARK LEWIS

QLD,NSW,ACT & VIC

WA

SA & NT

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