meet the Barung team

barung landcare management committee

Suzie Haddock

President

Suzie is an avid conservationist and has worked in conservation in Australia and the United Kingdom since 1979. She is a manager and experience researcher with expertise in education, customer experience and design.  She is currently a Service Design Manager with The University of Queensland. Suzie has participated on several Boards and Associations and has held positions in other not-for-profit organisations including Taronga, Melbourne and London Zoos, and TAFE NSW, as well as CBA and IAG. Her main interest has been in ecosystems that support diverse fauna.

Suzie lives on a 1 acre property in Witta and is proud to have 3 species of bats (about 2,000) calling her land home for 7 months of the year. When she is not painting,  visiting the local markets, or cooking for friends, she can be found pottering in her vegetable garden, or regenerating her rainforest with her husband Joe.

Suzie is keen to work with Barung to attain its vision of greater natural diversity in the Hinterland landscape, both rural and urban.

Barbara Kelly

Vice President

Barbara first became concerned about the environmental impact of land clearing in the 70s when she majored in Geography at UQ and lived on a farm at Nanango. Barbara went on to spend 30 years with Education Queensland as a secondary school Deputy Principal and teacher prior to planting a small olive grove with her husband Glynn and running a successful tourist and accommodation business in the Scenic Rim until 2020.

During extended drought periods they realised how difficult native revegetation of some areas has become as they struggled to get the native species they planted to thrive. Barbara moved back to the Sunshine Coast with her husband and settled in Maleny in 2020.

Barbara has joined the Barung committee as she wishes to become more actively involved in promoting the work of Barung Landcare in whatever way she can, drawing on her management and business experience. She is passionate about revegetation and, as well as volunteering at the Porters Lane nursery one day a week, is currently working to revegetate her family’s 64 hectare vine scrub forest property at Nanango.

Mandy Lupton

Secretary

Mandy’s passion for the environment was inspired by her childhood in Bega on Yuin country, far south coast of NSW. In the 90s she was custodian of a beautiful 4-hectare bush property on the banks of Wapengo Lake near Tathra, NSW. Mandy moved to her property at Reesville on Jinibara country in 2019, and in 2020 she joined Gardens for Wildlife and started revegetating her 3000m2 property

Mandy has a PhD in education and worked for many years as a university academic in education and librarianship. In other former lives she was a high school music teacher, teacher-librarian, and academic librarian. Mandy is now semi-retired and works casually at the Maleny Library. One of her hobbies is local history, and she is currently researching land use and revegetation in the Maleny area.

Ian McMaster

Treasurer

Ian has had a varied business career, firstly in the steel industry, then in the sugar industry, and finally as chairman and independent director of several companies, mainly in the mining sector. Having fully retired, Ian now devotes much of his time and energy to conservation. 

Ian and his wife Chrissie live on Mount Mellum, on a 100ha property that they had gazetted as a Nature Refuge. Both of them are passionate about native plants, and have a broad interest in the ecological systems they care for. 

Ian is a past president of Native Plants Queensland, and is past President of Barung Landcare, and has been instrumental in supporting Barung to gain clarity on its vision and to design an organisational structure that will set Barung up for success.

Alan Harrington

Committee Member

Moving to Conondale in 1993, Alan and his wife Mary have been highly active in the community over the years. Alan spent much of his working life in the public sector working for the ATO (Australian Tax Office) and was instrumental in developing and implementing the PAYG system in Australia. Alan also worked closely with the Federal Police in their investigations of high-level criminal offences against the tax office. After winding up with the ATO Alan transferred his skills to running his own business in partnership with Mary and once in the Maleny area, he supported the Upfront Club and Maple Street Co-op (of which he was manager for a period of time).

Alan’s latest contributions have been towards the financial operations of Barung Landcare, as previous Treasurer, he remains on the committee to support ongoing operations, in particular the delivery of the Maleny Wood Expo.

Peter Johnson

Committee Member

Peter’s background is in physics and electronics, working in Antarctica for several years as a scientist, electronics technician, and weather observer while also working on his Phd.
 
His Phd work studied methods of determining soil moisture levels for agriculture. Prior to this he gained an honours degree in atomic physics and working in an atomic physics laboratory.
 
His interests have been in software/electronics/hardware systems for machine control.
 
In 1986 Peter and his partner Rosie purchased a 40 hectare steep block in the Peachester area comprising rainforest and open Eucalypt forest which had been selectively logged. They eventually moved onto the block in 2012. Over a period of time several small cleared areas have been revegetated and some areas of Groundsel and Lantana removed. 
 
Peter now brings his interest for the environment to the Barung Landcare committee.
Joan Dillon

Committee Member

Joan is very concerned about habitat loss and the fragmentation of our natural bushland to the detriment of our native flora and dependent wildlife. With a degree in Agricultural Science, her varied career commenced as a mycologist in the NSW Dept.of Agriculture, specialising in diseases of ornamental plants. After some time in Canada, Joan  and husband John moved to Darwin and began teaching in the School of Horticulture at Charles Darwin University and co-presented a local ABC Television Gardening Program.

Following retirement Joan and John moved onto their 4.4 ha of steep country in the Sunshine Coast hinterland, embarked on a major revegetation programme and joined Land for Wildlife. Most of the property is now under a voluntary conservation agreement (VCA) with the Sunshine Coast Council. 

Joan is a member of Native Plants Queensland, past president of Barung Landcare and former board member of Greening Australia Queensland. She briefly chaired the Environmental Weeds Management Group (SEQ), and served as a member of the Natural Heritage Trust sub-Regional Assessment panel for the Burnett/Mary. Later, she represented Barung on the steering committee for the ACIAR funded Farmcare project which introduced the landcare model to Mindanao in the Philippines. 

 On a personal level Joan wrote the native plants section for a national gardening magazine for about 10 years and recently in collaboration with Mapleton resident Nita Lester published Range and Hinterland Gardening, a comprehensive book covering ornamental (exotic) as well as Australian and specifically local native plants.

Christy Samorowski

Committee Member

Christy Samorowski is an accomplished environmental professional with a distinguished background in Environmental Science and a rich conservation history spanning over two decades. She possesses a distinctive combination of strategic vision, hands-on experience, and an unwavering commitment to environmental conservation. 

Currently serving as the Senior Policy Officer for the State of the Environment Report with the Department of Environment, Science & Innovation, Christy has held pivotal positions with various government entities and environmental organisations. Her extensive experience includes contributions to the State Government’s Nature Refuges and Koala units, as well as roles with Moreton Bay and Brisbane City Council’s Environmental Planning and Policy. Beyond public service, Christy has successfully navigated the realms of environmental consultancy and entrepreneurial ventures, notably as the owner and Business Manager of an outdoor education company.

In addition to her professional endeavours, Christy is the proud owner of a 60-acre property in Woodford and a 140-acre property in Kenilworth. Demonstrating her commitment to conservation, both properties hold Voluntary Conservation Agreements arranged by Christy and her husband. These agreements cover 50% of the land and safeguard diverse ecosystems, including Eucalypt open forest and koala habitat in Woodford, and Notophyll vine forest and Richmond Birdwing Butterfly habitat in Kenilworth. Over the past two decades, Christy and her husband have implemented ecological restoration techniques, fostering natural regeneration and rehabilitation across these landscapes.

barung landcare staff

Doug Evans

General Manager

doug@barunglandcare.org.au

Charlotte Pond

Accounts Officer

 charlotte@barunglandcare.org.au

Amber Rivalland

Administration Coordinator

amber@barunglandcare.org.au

Cam Burton

Nurseries Manager

 cam@barunglandcare.org.au

Wayne Webb

Production Nursery Manager

wayne@barunglandcare.org.au

Maia Stegman

Nursery Assistant

maia@barunglandcare.org.au

Trevour Pitt

Nursery Projects Officer

trevour@barunglandcare.org.au

Vacant

Natural Area Services Manager

 

Katrina Atkinson

NAS Business Admin Manager

katrina@barunglandcare.org.au

Angus Frazer

Project Officer

angus@barunglandcare.org.au

Sarah Dixon

Project Officer

sarah@barunglandcare.org.au

Renee Ulbrich

SQW Coordinator

renee@barunglandcare.org.au

 

OUR QUALIFICATIONS

Barung Landcare staff have various qualifications, licences and inductions which include the following:

Bachelors degrees –

  • Science
  • Land Management
  • Coastal Science
  • Environmental Science
  • Applied Science
  • Arts

Certifications including –

  • Chainsaw Level 1 & 2
  • Construction card (White card)
  • Commercial operator’s licence for using herbicides (ACDC)

Certificate in Conservation and Land Management –

      1, 2, 3 and 4

Certificate in Horticulture –

      2, 3 and 4

Graduate Certificate –

  • Environmental Management
  • Sustainability

Diplomas –

  • Conservation and Land Management
  • Business
  • Applied Science
  • Project Management

Fauna Spotter / Catcher certificate

HLTAID009 Provide cardiopulmonary resuscitation

HLTAID010 Provide basic emergency life support

HLTAID011 Provide first aid

HLTFA311A Apply first aid

Safety and site induction certificates from –

  • Sunshine Coast Council
  • Moreton Bay Regional Council
  • Noosa Council
  • Unity Water
  • SEQ Water

Barung Landcare holds a number of current licences, certifications and policies including:

Ground Distribution Contractor Licence (ACDC) no.GDC343

ISO certifications  –

  • ISO 9001: 2015 quality management systems
  • ISO 14001:2015 ENvironmental management systems
  • AS/NZS 4801:2001 occupational health and safety management systems

Up to date insurances including – 

  • Public Liability 
  • Association Liability
  • Work Cover
  • Personal Accident
  • Landcare Activities