Our People

The founder of SBN, Rachel has played a critical role in advancing sustainable business for almost 20 years. She is a regular presenter, collaborator and driver of action within NZ business. She provides strategic sustainability advice to countless government agencies and businesses, ranging from large corporates to small enterprises. In 2018 she was awarded the New Zealand Order of Merit for years of service to sustainable business.

Christopher is our Network Engagement Manager. Prior to joining SBN, Christopher championed the environment for the last couple of decades with Greenpeace and SolarZero, working in fundraising, sales and customer care. A dual citizen of Canada and Luxembourg, Christopher’s international perspective gives him a deep appreciation of diversity in all its forms. In 2012, a sailing trip to the Arctic Circle solidified his determination to tackle the climate emergency.

Fiona is one of NZ’s most experienced communicators of sustainability, with 25 years’ experience. She was speech writer for the UK’s chief sustainability advisor for four years and Oxford University’s first PR advisor on the environment. In NZ she has worked on sustainability communications for organisations of all sizes and at different stages of their sustainability journey since 2000. She has Honours and Masters degrees from the University of Cambridge, specialising in Environment and Development.

James leads SBN’s work to accelerate the circular economy in New Zealand. He has extensive commercial experience, having worked in large corporates and owned his own business. His business sustainability journey started many years ago via the coffee industry where he was involved in Fair Trade. 

Jenny has worked as a company accountant in the commercial industry sector for more than 15 years. She has moved to SBN to work alongside good people and change her lifestyle. In her spare time she enjoys gardening, cooking, reading and playing badminton.

Kimberley (they/them) leads SBN’s nature team. Previously, they led SBN’s climate action programme. Kimberley has also worked in corporate sustainability and in academia, and they love learning and sharing knowledge. They’re excited to help more organisations see the benefits of taking action for nature, including how nature offers climate solutions.

Kimberley lives and works in Te Whanganui-a-Tara, Wellington. They are regularly delighted and inspired by the increasing biodiversity in the city, including abundant kākā. Outside work, Kimberley enjoys tramping, running, singing, reading fantasy and science fiction, and volunteering with community nature regeneration projects.

Lauren is focussed on supporting the SBN team to deliver engagement and training activities for our Network and beyond. She also leads our flagship events such as the Sustainable Business Awards. This mahi sits alongside supporting internal engagement where she can be her Camp Mum best, and promote an SBN culture that is inclusive, supportive, and thriving. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Hons) to which she attributes her creative approach to anything she turns her hand to. She has forever been passionate about the environment, having spent most of her life in the hills of the Waitakere Ranges. These days you’ll find her roaming new hills in Tāhuna, or elbows deep in anything crafty.

Maeghan is part of SBN's Communications and Marketing team as well as leading the Electrify Business project. While completing a Bachelor of Management Studies majoring in Marketing and Digital Business from the University of Waikato, Maeghan found a passion for sustainability in business that aligns with SBN's work in creating systems change. She recently completed her Masters in Sustainable Development Goals at Massey University. In her spare time, you will find her hiking, camping, or at the beach.

Nayesha is a multidisciplinary professional who is grounded in whanaungatanga and manaakitanga. With experience in operations, design and kaupapa Māori research, she brings these skills together to uplift the people and communities she works with.
She is a passionate artist and runs a sewing studio on Karanga-ā-Hape Road. As an active member of the Karanga-ā-Hape community, Nayesha creates safe, welcoming and enriching spaces through local events and taonga toi (creative expression).

Phil’s career in media and communications has involved him as a writer, photographer and video producer. Over the past decade he has been raising awareness of environmental issues and promoting their solutions at both local and global levels. Phil credits a rural upbringing for his connection to the land and ongoing dedication to sustainability.

Rosie is part of our nature team. Her focus lies on empowering young professionals with the skills and knowledge to help their careers in nature regeneration. She also manages project partnerships, including the Puhinui Regeneration Project.

As an outdoor enthusiast, Rosie spends her free time tramping, mountaineering, surfing, rock climbing and trail running. Rosie's appreciation for these natural environments has fueled her dedication to sustainability. Despite earning a Master’s of Marketing, she questioned the industry's purpose and now aims to use her skills for positive impact. Descending from Rāngitane o Wairau, Rosie is passionate about fostering meaningful connections within the Māori community.

Shawn Elise brings a love of forging connections to the Regenerating Nature team as a Project & Partnership Manager. Her focus is to connect business with community projects to amplify impact for nature. Shawn Elise comes to SBN from Sustainable Coastlines, where she helped build and manage the Litter Intelligence Programme, an initiative to build a national litter database through citizen science. Prior to that, she worked with Litefoot to assist community sport facilities to reduce energy, water and waste. Shawn Elise recharges exploring bush & beach, pottering around the garden, doing yoga or boogieing down to funky house.

Theresa is our in-house accountant and has worked for SBN and the not for profit sector for more than 15 years. Her favourite pastimes are gardening, cooking, reading and walking in the Waitakere Ranges.

Tori is focused on promoting a culture where people are supported, celebrated and innovative ideas are allowed to flourish.  After over a decade working in travel and tourism, where she was Area Manager of Expedia Group, she transitioned to a focus on sustainability. She had become increasingly concerned about global and local challenges and the slow pace to adopt better systems. In her role at SBN she oversees advisory work, network engagement and maximising impact. She is focused on helping businesses move from extractive to regenerative practices, prioritising positive social and environmental impact alongside profitability.

Andy has been a leading voice in sustainability communications in Aotearoa New Zealand for more than 15 years. He’s also a global fundraiser, philanthropic and major donor relationship manager.

He’s a multi-award-winning researcher and writer, and an expert in content creation across all major platforms. His work centres partnerships with professionals and academics. He’s also a highly experienced environmental facilitator and climate change expert with a friendly, inclusive and open approach.  

Barry Coates is founder and CEO of Mindful Money, a social enterprise shifting investment towards ethical investment and sustainability. Barry has been active in sustainability since the Earth Summit in 1992, working in NZ and internationally on fair trade, climate change and poverty. Barry has worked across business, government and charities. Since returning to NZ in 2003, he was head of Oxfam Aotearoa for a decade, initiated a sustainability programme at The University of Auckland and was briefly a Green Party list MP. Barry has a Master’s in Management from Yale University and was awarded Sustainability Champion in the 2016 NZI Sustainable Business Network Awards. Barry has many years of governance experience, including on boards of member organisations. He is an enthusiastic supporter of SBN’s work.

Dawn is a highly experienced sustainability business leader. She has a passion for embedding sustainability into core business strategy, building purpose led brands and strong customer and employee value propositions.

Dawn has worked for 25 years as a sustainability professional in New Zealand and Denmark. This includes 12 years as Group Sustainability Manager at NZ Post, 8 years as Head of Procurement at Westpac and 10 years in social housing in the UK.

She is the editor and initiator of 'Change the World for $15' book in New Zealand. Dawn holds a Masters of Science in Responsibility and Business Practice from Bath University, UK and is an alumni of the Cambridge Institute of Sustainable Leadership Executive programme.

Jacqueline is a founding Partner of The Purpose Business. She is a passionate advocate for values and purpose driven business, and bringing the customer’s voice into an organisation to drive better decisions, performance and results. She has over two decades of experience working with leading New Zealand businesses and brands to improve the quality of their stakeholder engagement and reputation capital. Jacqueline is recognised as a thought leader in sustainable business and brand strategy. In her previous role leading New Zealand’s most respected market insights agency, she created The Colmar Brunton Better Business Report, a seven year longitudinal study into the growth of conscious consumerism in New Zealand.

Sean has recently become the CEO of Smartfoods Ltd, producer of the Vogels and Something to Crow About cereal brands. He was formerly the CEO of Hubbard Foods.   Sean has been a Chartered Accountant, with over 20 years experience predominantly in food & beverage companies. While the latter part of his career has been as a CEO he has a strong accountancy background.  Most notably, his time as CFO of Hubbards gave him the opportunity to be instrumental in driving sustainability and community-based projects for the company.

Sean has been on the Board of SBN for 6 Years, and during that time has chaired the Audit and Risk committee.

Amber is an uri of Ngāruahine and māmā to a very opinionated toddler. In her spare time she is a Lecturer in Management at AUT. Her PhD entitled 'Whenua Tupuna, Whenua Hauora: Ancestral and Relational Landscapes' explores ways to enhance multi-dimensional wellbeing through recognising the landscapes in which business operates. Amber is also a founding member of K.I.N., on the executive committee of the University of Auckland Ngā Taniwha Māori Alumni network, and loves to play indoor netball (socially).

Kath Dewar is founder and Managing Director of GoodSense ethical marketing, a Certified B Corporation. Kath is a marketer with over 30 years’ experience and a business-owner since 2001. With her team and clients, Kath is shaping marketing into a profession that serves society and nature, as well as an organisation’s stakeholders. A Fellow of the UK-based Chartered Institute of Marketing and an award winning international marketer, Kath joined the Sustainable Business Network in Aotearoa NZ in 2003.  This began the journey to meld Kath’s personal values with her professional practice, leading to the creation of the GoodSense brand in 2010. Kath is an experienced strategist, facilitator and storyteller and served on the Executive of the Waitakere Range Protection Society for ten years.

Céline Louche is Professor of Business and Society at the University of Waikato. She started her journey in 1998 as sustainability analyst at Triodos Bank in the Netherlands and then embarked on a PhD in sustainable finance. Her research has since expanded to encompass responsible global value chains, business models and organisational change for sustainability. Before joining the University of Waikato in 2023, she worked in management schools in Belgium and France, and collaborated with many businesses to guide their sustainability journeys.