WTA Committee

WTA Committee

Ronda Green, Denise Goodfellow, Peter Wood and Kevin Mahney

CHAIR Ronda Green, BSc(Hons) PhD

Queensland

Dr. Ronda Green is an adjunct research fellow at Environmental Futures, Griffith University, working on seed dispersal by fruit-eating animals and effects of habitat alteration. She  has been involved in wildlife tourism for several decades, and runs the multi-award winning ‘Araucaria Ecotours’ specialising in wildlife tours from Brisbane. Ronda has also recently developed the Scenic Rim Wildlife Information Centre, powered by photovoltaic cells, on her family property near Rathdowney, South East Queensland. She has conducted several research projects for Sustainable Tourism CRC Griffith University (Negative and Positive Effects of wildlife tourism on wildlife, birdwatching tourism in Australia etc.,)  and initiated wildlife workshops and the 2 day Wildlife Festival in Beaudesert in 2008 as a joint program for WTA and the Logan and Albert Conservation Association was chair of the committee for WTA’s 3rd national workshop “Using Wildlife for Tourism” held Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary in May 2012. She is also chair of Scenic Rim Wildlife (a branch of the Wildlife Preservation Society of Qld) and has organized many of their activities. Publications and talks by Ronda can be viewed here.

 

VICE CHAIR Denise Lawungkurr Goodfellow, BA, Grad Dip (sociology of tourism), PhD candidate

Northern Territory

Denise Lawungkurr Goodfellow is a birdwatching/natural history guide, environmental/Indigenous tourism consultant and writer.  As biological consultant she has conducted fauna surveys in the remote Top End, often solo. In 1981 she stood for Council to save mangrove habitat.  Learning that Indigenous people lacked representation she won their trust by accepting an invitation from a senior woman to catch a water python, entailing four hours in a lake inhabited by large estuarine crocodiles. The Indigenous women were horrified when Denise was then threatened with prosecution, and to protect her they adopted Denise. Denise began working as a birdwatching/natural history guide for international visitors in the early 80’s.  Later she ran a national campaign against operators in Kakadu National Park who rammed crocodiles with boats to make them jump for visitors, a mistreatment that angered the Indigenous owners and made them want to ban visitors. At the request of her adopted Aboriginal sisters, Denise helped establish an appropriate tourism project on their country, Baby Dreaming, in western Arnhem Land.  The elders, previously scared and distrustful of white people, drove 450 kms to Denise’s home to tell her their first visitors – American birdwatchers and students – were “great”. Elders also decided to make their prized hunting waterhole a sanctuary for birds. The sensitive visitation enhanced the status of women and families.   Denise has worked as a wildlife and Indigenous adviser to television, and in 2000 was contracted as an interpreter/transcriber on the Lonely Planet’s Guide to Aboriginal Australia. Her book Birds of Australia’s Top End has been described as winning “top honors” (American Birdwatcher’s Digest), and ‘impressive’ (the American Birding Association’s Winging It).  Her autobiographical Quiet Snake Dreaming is used for literacy projects in European educational institutions and cross-cultural awareness courses. Since 2010 Denise has lectured for the University of New South Wales’ summer school and is presently planning a study tour for the University of Georgia.  She is doing a PhD on American couples who travel internationally to watch birds.

SECRETARY Peter Wood , BSc, PhD

Far North Queensland

Peter Wood completed a PhD at the James Cook University (JCU) on the conceptual, supply and demand of marine research tourism worldwide and in Australia in 2011. Presently he is a researcher with the JCU studying products and markets for offshore research tourism over the Great Barrier Reef. Since 2009, Peter has supported the marine tourism company – Eye to Eye Marine Encounters with marketing, grant and award applications, and advanced ecotourism accreditation. He presented a paper on marine research tourism at the national wildlife tourism workshop in 2013. Other presentations have included 

• Wood, P. (2009). Opportunities for marine research tourism in Australia. Paper presented at the First International Symposium on Volunteering and Tourism.
• Wood, P., & Coghlan, A. (2008). The conceptual nature of marine research tourism and key stakeholder involvment in marine research tourism. Paper presented at the 18th Annual CAUTHE Conference.
• Wood, P., & Rumney, J. (2009). Key stakeholder views of marine research tourism in Australia. Paper presented at the 6th Coastal & Marine Tourism Congress, Port Elizabeth, South Africa.,
• Wood, P., & Zeppel, H. (2008). The preferences of potential marine research tourists for different marine research tourism products in Australia. Paper presented at the The Future Success of Tourism: New Directions, Challenges and Opportunities. ISTTE (International Society of Travel & Tourism Educators) Conference. AWARD: Best Paper (Full Refereed Paper) at ISTTE Conference 2008

 

TREASURER Kev Mahney

Western Australia

I believe I live in one of the most beautiful destinations in the World. Mandurah is less than an hour away from Perth City and looks like a frameless landscape with pristine Indian Ocean and sparkly squeaky sands between your toes, three rivers that flow into the Peel Inlet nearly three times the size of Sydney Harbour and to the East the Darling escarpment with its hills, Forests, valleys and streams. Known as the Peel Region, it is famous for its wild bottlenose dolphins, blue swimmer crabs, a massive migratory bird collection, wetlands and a variety of fish species all in our inland water system. Out in the Ocean we have a strong lobster industry, fishing, sailing and wonderful surf. I have been in business all my life working for myself and it was only last year I have joined Mandurah Cruises as my first employee position. Interests – Landscape and Golf Course Architecture, Wildlife, Sailing, Fishing and a huge passion for tourism. Current position – Business development. Education – Accountancy Cert 1V, Diploma in Property – Covers, Accountancy, Law, Trust Accounts, Human Resources and approximately 24 other units, Diploma in Retail Management – Covers retail systems, stock control, book keeping, employment services and another of other units, Coxswain Certificate – vessel handling, Engineering, navigation etc.

COMMITTEE

Fiona McCaul

In 2009 Fiona moved to Darwin, this life changing time introduced Fiona to new wildlife on a different scale with a backyard filled with amazing creatures!  Tata lizards, Radjah Shelducks visiting by water, a Merten’s Water Monitor visiting everyday to sun himself on the deck, orange footed scrub fowl scratching in the garden beds, a pheasant coucal dropping in for the odd grasshopper or lizard snack and a favourite the Figbirds that come to feed on the palm fruit.  Fiona completed a Certificate III in Eco Tourism Guiding with EcoTraining Australia at Swim Creek Station in 2009, changing her perspective forever.  Fiona is currently studying a Bachelor of Arts(Fine Arts) degree with Curtin University with many of her works inspired by wildlife.

Fiona has been working as a marketing consultant since 2009 and looks forward to supporting and working with wildlife eco tourism orientated operators around Australia to market their business with recently launched business name The Marketing Pod.  Fiona’s career in marketing roles is diverse and comprehensive in environments including health, retail, the arts, property management in shopping centres and in residential and commercial property development.  Fiona has worked with Australia’s world-class residential master planning developer Lend Lease, South Australia’s iconic Carclew Youth Arts, plus international leading property management companies such as Stockland and Savills and has received 9 Property Council of Australia Excellence in Marketing Awards for shopping centre marketing campaigns. More recently Fiona has consulted for a number of Medicare Locals around Australia, marketing the national eHealth Record to Australian residents and writing PR and communications plans for various branches.