Before joining the SBN Nature Team, Shawn Elise worked at Sustainable Coastlines, running large-scale beach clean-ups, tree plantings and educational presentations on waterways and plastic pollution. She managed the Litter Intelligence programme, overseeing facilitators, funders and working groups while training volunteers to audit beach litter.
Supporting data collection nationally was not her first lap around the motu. Shawn Elise spent her first year in the country travelling in her van and volunteering on farms in the ‘WWOOF-ing’ (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) community. She is originally from Philadelphia, an industrial city with a population similar to Auckland, but a fraction of the size. Over the past decade, she has deepened her connection to the land, recently celebrating her New Zealand citizenship.
“I've always loved being outdoors, but it was coming to Aotearoa New Zealand as a traveller that I started to become more curious about how different people connect with te taiao (nature). I learned a lot of skills as a WWOOFer and also started tramping and surfing.”
While travelling, Shawn Elise tapped into her background in events to earn money.
“My passion for sustainability began with waste. I worked for two large-scale music festivals, back-to-back, that tackled waste really differently. It was eye-opening to me that a good system could really change the outcome. From then on, I wanted to work with those who were willing to go the extra mile. At its most basic, it seems fair to take responsibility for what you create.”
Shawn Elise’s experience with systems and data is sure to be beneficial to SBN. She has a big role in supporting the Puhinui Regeneration Project. She’s also leading the transition that will see SBN’s Million Metres Streams projects change to SBN Nature Projects. SBN’s vision is for a more holistic approach to nature regeneration. We’re aiming to support a regeneration project in every region of the country, expanding beyond the current riparian planting projects.
Shawn Elise will also develop a corporate volunteering programme. This will give businesses opportunities for team-building days with on-the-ground nature projects.
“We’ll be encouraging businesses to explore different ways to get involved – whether that’s through funding, hands-on volunteering or sharing expertise in areas like marketing and administration. I have been on my own journey of discovering how my skills can support building a better system. From waste infrastructure and education, to data collection and behaviour change and now, to supporting business to put nature at the heart of its decision making.”
Māori culture interested Shawn Elise long before visiting Aotearoa New Zealand thanks to a flatmate in Melbourne descended from Ngāti Porou. When Shawn Elise eventually made her way across the ditch, she had a real introduction to kiwi life on the coast.
“Through my flatmate, I got a real introduction to te ao Māori. I spent some time in Hicks Bay and he introduced me to his sisters and cousins and his Nan. I had a huge whānau to visit when I went around the East Coast – it took me weeks! I felt so lucky.”
On a farm in Hawkes Bay, a fellow worker took her eeling and she helped him prepare a hangi for the rest of the team.
“I didn't realise until later how special that was. A lot of travellers don’t have the opportunity to experience that. Moving slowly and making connections with local people opened up a lot of learning for me.”
Shawn Elise has always had a passion for bringing people together.
“What really excites me about being on the Nature Team at SBN is getting to work with really passionate people who are striving to do their best – whether that’s community groups self-organising to plant out a stream or a business that wants to identify its impacts and dependencies on nature and try to balance the scales of extraction. We need everybody caring about nature for it to flourish.”