Sei Brown General Manager Sei Brown is the Acting General Manager for Zero Waste Network, seconded from Localised Ltd the trading arm of the Zero Waste Network.
Sei has had over 10 years in the sector working in both the community resource recovery space as well as within Auckland Council’s Waste team and considers himself more of a generalist. Sei brings over 20 years’ experience in strategic human resources/people & culture and has a passion working toward being strategically more aligned as a Pacific region working together to reduce the impact of waste on our environment and to minimise the impact of climate change on our region.  Sue Coutts Director of External Affairs Sue works on increasing awareness, engagement and support of community-led zero waste initiatives and policies. She is based in Wellington. Isy Harris Project Manager/Graphic Designer Isy works behind the scenes supporting the rest of the team on many of our projects. From project management and event coordinating to graphic design, Isy is there helping things run smoothly. Sarah Lancaster Membership Coordinator Sarah is an energetic and passionate zero waste educator with a background in behaviour change at Xtreme Zero Waste and a lifetime passion for hosting workshops & engaging communities onboard the kaupapa! Her role is to serve our members to ensure we’re connected with each other, learning and growing our impact together. Valerie Morse Communications Officer Valerie is the communications officer at the Zero Waste Network, the one who keeps all the channels flowing. Val leads the Regeneration Not Incineration project, and is a tireless advocate for Zero Waste. Val is based in Te-Whanganui-a-Tara. Janina Kay Accounts Manager Janina is part of the Zero Waste accounts team. We count the beans, crunch the numbers and make sure to get every bang out of every buck. Hannah Blumhardt Research Team Liam and Hannah are best known as the helping humans behind The Rubbish Trip, but they are also the Zero Waste Network's Research Team. They support our members and the rest of our team with any research questions that need investigating - whether to inform our submissions on local and central government policy, to help members make decisions on thorny issues, and support our strategic direction and key projects.  Liam Prince Research Team Liam and Hannah are best known as the helping humans behind The Rubbish Trip, but they are also the Zero Waste Network's Research Team. They support our members and the rest of our team with any research questions that need investigating - whether to inform our submissions on local and central government policy, to help members make decisions on thorny issues, and support our strategic direction and key projects. Anja O’Connor Finance Manager Anja is an accountant with a passion for economic degrowth and a commitment to supporting social and purpose-driven enterprises. With a background in finance and a love for yoga, Anja brings a unique perspective to her work, viewing numbers not just as figures on a spreadsheet, but as stories that can drive positive change. She believes in the power of business to do good, advocating for practices that prioritize sustainability and ethical responsibility. Anja's mission is to help businesses thrive while minimizing their impact on the planet and society, promoting the idea that financial success can coexist with environmental and social wellbeing. Rick Thorpe Independent Advisor Rick is contracted through ZWN to offer independent advice to Auckland Council to help grow the network of Community Resource Recovery Centres. The network is currently 11 centres with a budget to develop a further 10. Rick is bringing his 24 years experience with Xtreme Zero Waste in Raglan, as well as his 17 years on the Zero Waste Network Board, to assist develop the Auckland Network. Localised Our Operating Arm Localised is a Charitable, Limited Liability Company owned by ZWN. It was set up to get stuck into delivering zero waste solutions and does this through a variety of joint ventures. Ian Stupple is the Managing Director, supported by Matthew Luxon, Sei Brown and Gary Kelk (and many others). |
The Zero Waste Network is governed by a Board of Trustees elected by members at our Annual General Meeting. Our current Board consists of:
Karen Driver
Chairperson
Karen Driver is an individual member of Zero Waste Network (ZWN), and also represents the Nelson Tasman Climate Forum. Karen has been on the ZWN board since 2009 and the Chair since late 2022. She is on the WasteMINZ Product Stewardship Sector Group representing ZWN and an advisor to Reuse Aotearoa. She honours Te Tiriti o Waitangi and is learning te reo Māori.
Marty Hoffart
Trustee
Marty is Director of Tauranga-based waste minimisation consultancy Waste Watchers Ltd. He is co-founder and Chairman of Environmental Education for Resource Sustainability Trust (EERST) with its award-winning Paper4trees programme.
Cliff Colquhoun
Trustee
Cliff is a founding member and the CEO of the Community, Business and Environment Centre (CBEC) in Kaitaia.
Sam Paterson
Trustee
Sam is Operations Manager at Sustainable HB where he supports the Waste, Biodiversity, Community and Resilience teams. Working with this fantastic team he supports the delivery of a low-waste event service, waste audits for businesses, specialist recycling for the community and is investigating how to transition away from single use packaging at events. When not busy at work, he can normally be found in his background growing tasty fruit and vege, or getting far too absorbed down the YouTube carrot role, searching for solutions to many of today’s problems.
Michael Tavares
Treasurer
Michael leads Community Engagement at the Waiheke Community Resource Recovery Park and believes that the key to success in Zero Waste is people. Behaviour change, legislative framework change, societal change, happens when people are informed and they care.
Catherine de Monchy
Trustee
Cath has been a champion for waste minimisation since the early 90s, growing, preserving, fixing, building, crafting... finding creative ways to value resources in all shapes & sizes. In recent years, founder of Precious Plastic Tauranga, a social enterprise, and supporting resource recovery in Toi Moana.
Kelli Pike
Trustee
Tena koe, No Maruawai ahau. Ko Mataura toku awa. Ko Hokonui toku maunga. Kei Kirikiriroa matou e noho ana inaianei. Ko Ngati Apa toku iwi. Ko Barnes raua ko Koroheke toku whanau. Ko Kelli Pike toku ingoa. I have worked with Go Eco since 2016, and during that time have deepened my understanding of the impact of consumerism, capitalism and colonisation on our environment, and how they impede climate action. I entered the environment sector after making a living from what others considered excess - by buying and selling second-hand items. It opened my eyes to the issues of waste and the change that is needed by consumers and manufacturers. I believe that real progress for climate justice comes from communities, who are appropriately resourced, and will always be an advocate for them.
Aroha Beckham
Trustee
Ko Kai Tahu rāua ko Ngā Puhi ngā iwi o tōku ūkaipō. Ko Tūwharetoa rāua ko Whanganui ngā iwi ō tōku matua. He tamaiti tēnei o tō tātou Awa Tupua, ko Whanganui tērā.
I have an extremely diverse background and the one commonality in all the roles I have been involved in throughout my lifetime, lead back to the holistic wellness of individuals, whānau, hapū, iwi, and our environment – Te Tai Ao.
Here in Whanganui we understand the health and well-being of our awa and the health and well-being of us as a people, go hand in hand. They are a direct reflection of each other, one cannot be without the other. Hence the whakatauki, “Ko au te awa, ko te awa ko au.” This whakataukī is part of the reason I chose at the start of this year to trial a ‘zero-trash’ lifestyle. It has been an interesting few months, not without challenge – and I believe being part of Para Kore can only enhance this way of life!