Speakers & panelists
We're excited to have a line up of awesome people contributing to this event. We'll be adding in their bios and photos to this page as we receive them so keep checking back for more info.
Displayed in order of programme sessions
Inspiration Session: Keynote speakers
Jacqui Forbes
Kaihautū Matua, Para Kore Marae Incorporated
Jacqui Forbes (Ngaruahine) has been deeply involved in community environmental initiatives since starting at Xtreme Zero Waste in 2004 and being part of what was then called the Community Recycling Network. She is now with Para Kore (meaning zero waste), a national Māori zero waste organization committed to zero waste, zero carbon whānau, hapū, iwi and hapori Māori. Before her work in zero waste, Jacqui was a primary and early childhood teacher. She strongly advocates for building Māori power, social justice and addressing inequities. She is deeply concerned about global issues such as the genocide of the Palestine people, climate change, right-wing governments, and fascism.
Rick Thorpe
Co-founder of Xtreme Zero Waste, Community Energy Whāingaroa, and Zero Waste Network
Rick lives with his partner Liz and their family on their organic permaculture farm near Raglan for the last 32 years. He co-founded Xtreme Zero Waste community enterprise, which has operated for the last 24 years, and is a co-founder of Community Energy Whaingaroa. He was a Founder Trustee for the Zero Waste Network (ZWN) and a Board member for 17 years. Rick currently contracts to ZWN to provide advice to Auckland Council on resource recovery, collaborative marketing and new minimisation and diversion projects on behalf of the community resource recovery centres. Rick has held numerous other positions with Te Mauri Tau, Pacific Vision Aotearoa and Waiuku Zero Waste and been involved in numerous zero waste projects throughout the country.
Waveney Warth
The OG of zero waste living, podcaster, and zero waste consultant
Waveney is a consultant in the zero waste sector, a tutor for the Zero Waste Network, a podcaster and, according to presenter and journalist Miriama Kamo, the “OG of zero waste living” in Aotearoa. In 2008 she and her husband Matthew undertook a trailblazing “rubbish free" 12 month challenge which was followed by the 2018 -2021 podcast series with awarding winning comedian Tim Batt, How to Save the World. Through her reach online and over a decade of speaking on waste and sustainability Waveney has supported many thousands toward sustainability.
Panel discussion: Zero waste is climate action
Liam Prince
Composter, research and advocacy (Zero Waste Network, Kaicycle, Aotearoa Plastic Pollution Alliance)
Liam is a composter, and a zero waste researcher, advocate and practitioner. He has lived without a rubbish bin for almost a decade, with his partner Hannah, with whom he co-founded The Rubbish Trip. He is also the Chair of the Aotearoa Plastic Pollution Alliance, part of the Zero Waste Network research team, and Compost Manager at Wellington-based Kaicycle.
Geoff Simmons
Chief Economist, Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment
Geoff is the chief economist at the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment. He has worked as an economist for the Productivity Commission, the UK Home Office and New Zealand Treatsury and served as general manager at Toi Mai Workforce Development Council and the Morgan Foundation. Geoff has also co-authored four books, two of which included a focus on environmental economics issues.
Dr Mike Joy
Senior Research Fellow and Lecturer in Environmental Science at the School of Geography, Environment and Earth Sciences, Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington
Mike Joy MSc, PhD (Ecology) is a freshwater ecologist, academic and environmental champion. He has won numerous awards from many scientific organisations for both his research and his outspoken advocacy for environmental protection in New Zealand. Mike's research includes ecological modelling, freshwater bioassessment, environmental policy, biophysical limits to growth and the role of energy in society.
Nadine Hura
Writer and zine maker
Nadine Anne Hura is a creative non-fiction writer and poet of Ngāti Hine, Ngāpuhi, and Pākehā whakapapa, who works in the intersection between policy, evaluation, advocacy and the arts. As a columnist for The Spinoff, Nadine has been covering climate issues with a Te Tiriti justice lens for several years, representing the stories of Māori communities across Aotearoa as they continue to work to restore and protect their whenua as the climatic impacts of colonialism intensify. Through her work at The Deep South National Science Challenge, she was one of two Kaitakawaenga, supporting Māori-led climate adaptation researchers across a range of interconnected kaupapa.
Panel discussion : Zero waste & social justice
Cliff Colquhoun
CEO, Community, Business and Environment Centre
Over 25 years ago, Cliff (Ngapuhi) joined forces with Warren Snow to establish the Community, Business and Environment Centre (CBEC) in Kaitāia, Northland. Their aim was to improve the local economy, provide opportunities in the form of real jobs for the more marginalised in society, and enhance the environment. Cliff is the CEO of CBEC, which continues to operate an extensive range of social enterprises throughout Northland, reducing waste, creating meaningful work, and strengthening community. He is also the Managing Director of Healthy Homes Tai Tokerau, General Manager of the Far North's four Aquatic Facilities, and a co-founder of Zero Waste Network.
Chris Ellis
CEO, Earthlink Incorporated
Chris is the CEO of Earthlink Incorporated, a not-for-profit charity in the Hutt Valley that helps those with mental health and other, similar issues, get into paid employment, through activities that include reuse and recycling for the local community. Chris has a background in television broadcasting, from editing and studio directing through to managing operations in the lower North Island and upper South Island for TVNZ's News and Current Affairs department. He has a passion for helping people learn skills and supporting organisations through big changes.
Sei Brown
Senior Advisor, Localised; Acting GM, Zero Waste Network
Sei is a Senior Advisor with Localised, and still considers himself a newbie after over 13 years in the zero-waste movement. Sei joined us after 20 years in human resources. In that time, he held a number of roles with the Zero Waste Network; a former Trustee, Project Manager and just recently as Acting GM. At Auckland Council he led the Community Wastewise team and worked as Resource Recovery Specialist. One of the founding directors of Pacific Vision Aotearoa and is currently a Director at Waiuku Zero Waste and a Trustee with The Beautification Trust.
Haimana Hirini
Member of Te Ataarangi; member of Te Waka Hourua; educator
Me mihi ka tika ki ngā Iwi whai mana o te rohe nei, ki Taranaki whānui, ki te inati o Ngāti Toa Rangatira, ki Ngāti Raukawa ki te au Tonga, waihoki ko Te Atiawa nō runga i te rangi. He paruparu tēnei nō Te Ikaroarāwhiti, ōku pānga ki konei, ki ngā kāwai o Ngāi Tara me Ngāti Ira. He kaiako anō ahau e mahi ana ki te whakarauora ake i te taiao Māori. Tēnei te whakamiha atu ki a koutou rau rangatira mā, nāku iti nei, haimana.
Panel discussion: Show me the money
Sue Coutts
Director of External Affairs, Zero Waste Network
Sue has been involved in reuse, recycling and zero waste advocacy since starting work at Wastebusters in Wānaka in 2002. She joined the national and international zero waste crew at the Life with Waste Hui in Raglan in 2003. As Wastebusters GM, Sue worked on local operations, business and network development, influencing policy, and campaigning for change. She began working on external affairs with the Zero Waste Network in 2020. Sue has a social sciences background and a deep interest in community enterprise and the role of local-scale action for a just transition to a zero waste, zero carbon Aotearoa.
Marty Hoffart
Director, Waste Watchers Ltd; Board Member, Zero Waste Network; Chairman, Environmental Education for Resource Sustainability Trust
Marty's holds diverse experience in the resource recovery industry, across the commercial, community and education sectors. He is the Director of waste minimisation consultancy Waste Watchers Ltd, a champion of the not-for-profit sector as a long-serving board member and past Chair of the Zero Waste Network, and co-founder and Chairman of Environmental Education for Resource Sustainability Trust (EERST), with its award-winning, national programmes Paper4trees and Zero Waste Education. A Tauranga resident of over 30 years, his Canadian upbringing sparked his ongoing advocacy for robust product stewardship and producer responsibility that cover the true costs of recycling. He holds a BA in Sociology and Psychology, and three industry-specific NZQA qualifications in zero waste, resource recovery and resource efficiency.
Chris Gingell
Vice-President, Public Affairs (Pacific), Tomra
Chris Gingell is Vice-President, Public Affairs (Pacific) for TOMRA, the world’s leading reverse vending technology provider. TOMRA’s aim is to transform how society obtains, uses, and reuses the planet’s resources to enable a world without waste. Globally, TOMRA collects over 46 billion containers for recycling and reuse every year through its 80,000+ reverse vending installations. Chris works with governments and key stakeholders throughout the Pacific region, providing expert advice on best practice Container Return Scheme (CRS) design and wider circular economic policy, stemming from TOMRA’s 52 years-experience operating in all the world’s modern CRS markets.
Hannah Blumhardt
Researcher for Āmiomio Aotearoa (multi-partner research project into the circular economy) and co-Founder of Reuse Aotearoa
Hannah is a zero waste practitioner and researcher focused on source reduction strategies to the waste crisis, including waste prevention, reuse and other circular business models. Having lived without a rubbish bin since 2015, Hannah has direct experience of how current economic settings make zero waste living and business practices difficult, but also, what could be changed to remove these barriers. In 2023, she completed a working paper on the laws and economic instruments that could help shift business models up the waste hierarchy, and she has completed several research projects into what is needed to make reusable packaging systems viable in New Zealand.
Peter Nunns
Acting General Manager, Strategy, Te Waihanga, New Zealand Infrastructure Commission
Bio to come
Panel discussion: More places like this
Gina Dempster
General Manager, Wastebusters
Gina is a dedicated advocate for zero waste with a background in economics, communications and behaviour change. She is the General Manager of Wastebusters in Wānaka, leading a fun and passionate team of 50+ employees who work in the district’s resource recovery and behaviour change programmes. Gina has worked in pretty much every team at Wastebusters since joining the organisation in 2007. She also supports the transition to a circular economy in the wider community, serving on the board of Lake Wānaka Tourism and supporting the Zero Waste Network with strategic communications and behaviour change expertise where she can.
Valerie Bianchi
Waste Prevention Advisor, Waikato Regional Council
Valerie Bianchi is the Waste Prevention Advisor at Waikato Regional Council. Her focus is on developing cross agency collaboration, community skill development and research that will transition our economy from a linear to a circular model for the wellbeing of our people and planet.
Laurie Foon
Deputy Mayor of Wellington City
Laurie Foon is Wellington’s Deputy Mayor, a circular economy enthusiast, committed bike-rider, and pioneering champion of sustainable, local business. It was through the fashion industry that Laurie came to understand concepts of waste minimisation and circularity: in the 90s, she founded Starfish, an ethical, eco-fashion label (before ethical, eco-fashion was a thing). Starfish was the first fashion label to win a NZ Sustainable Business Award, and the first eco-fashion show to open New Zealand Fashion Week. Laurie later became Wellington Regional Manager for the Sustainable Business Network, and was elected to council in 2019. In her first-term she lovingly held the zero waste vision for the city, from successfully advocating for new sewage solutions, to championing Wellington’s first Zero Waste Strategy.
Sam Gray
Founder and Director of Ethical Waste, Ohakune
Sam is Founder and Director of Ethical Waste Limited, located in Ohakune township on the south side of Mount Ruapehu. Before Ethical Waste, Sam was Co-founder of Beyond the Bin, which specialised in Zero Waste events and delivering workshops for event organisers in Tauranga. Ethical Waste has for five years managed the Resource Recovery Centre located in Ohakune for the Ruapehu District Council. Sam's goal is to value resources by stopping them going into landfill and returning them into the community's hands. Ethical Waste is now looking for the next step in their Zero Waste journey.
Ian Stupples
Executive Director, Localised
Ian has been a leading figure in the development of Auckland's Resource Recovery Network. For six years he was GM of Auckland Council's waste team leading the delivery of the region's zero waste plan. This included developing a new procurement approach that prioritised social and environmental outcomes. Since 2018 Ian has been involved with numerous community-led enterprises, and is currently on the Boards of Onehunga Zero Waste, Manukau Beautification Trust, Waiuku Zero Waste, and Localised.
Expert & political panels: Zero waste solutions to planetary crises
Dr Jonathon Hannon
Waste Services Manager, Kawerau District Council
Dr Jonathon Hannon is currently the Waste Services Manager for the Kawerau District Council. Prior to this role he was Coordinator of the Zero Waste Academy at Massey University - which involved teaching, industry training, researching and consulting around sustainable city/campus management. Jonathon’s research & programme experience encompasses: municipal zero waste methodologies, circular (bio) economy, plastic pollution, Product steawardship/Extended Producer Responsibility, rural waste issues & the community enterprise sector’s critical role in innovation and change making.
Dr Paul Smith
Founder, FixedFirst
Dr Paul Smith is a leading voice in the Aotearoa repairability movement. He advocates for a Right to Repair to prevent so many ‘durable’ products being sent to landfill. He works with businesses and community organisations to develop practical solutions that make repair more accessible and economically viable. Paul moved from the UK to Aotearoa in 2004. As the Head of Product Testing at Consumer NZ, he ensured the organisation’s independent advice included repair and durability measures, and he championed the introduction of repairability labelling. Previously, Paul worked in automotive design and educated design engineers at Massey University.
Hollie Russell
Regional kaiarahi, Para Kore; Project Manager, Whakahaumanu a Hineahuone
Ko Moumoukai te maunga, ko Waitirohia me Nga Nuhaka nga awa, ko Ngati Rakaipaaka te iwi, nō Nuhaka au.
Hollie works as a regional kaiarahi (educator/advisor) for Para Kore in Te Taitokerau. Established in 2010, Para Kore is a not-for-profit organisation that educates and advocates from a Māori worldview for a zero-waste, carbon-neutral future for Aotearoa. Hollie is also the Project Manager for Whakahaumanu a Hineahuone - a two-year Waste Minimisation Fund Tiriti-dynamic project supporting small and medium-scale composting initiatives across Aotearoa that can enhance the mana and mauri of our soil, our kai, and our communities.
Sue Coutts
Director of External Affairs, Zero Waste Network
Sue has been involved in reuse, recycling and zero waste advocacy since starting work at Wastebusters in Wānaka in 2002. She joined the national and international zero waste crew at the Life with Waste Hui in Raglan in 2003. As Wastebusters GM, Sue worked on local operations, business and network development, influencing policy, and campaigning for change. She began working on external affairs with the Zero Waste Network in 2020. Sue has a social sciences background and a deep interest in community enterprise and the role of local-scale action for a just transition to a zero waste, zero carbon Aotearoa.
Inspiring member stories
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Daniel Barthow
CEO, Beautification Trust, Manurewa
Daniel is a values-driven leader with over 20 years of experience in management and governance within the not-for-profit sector. He is passionate about delivering community and environmental impact through innovative, partnership-based approaches and community-centred solutions.
Jo O'Reilly
Director, Anamata Resource Recovery, Aotea Great Barrier Island
Jo has been involved in the zero waste movement since 2013. In 2019, she and partner Brett founded Anamata Community Enterprise and the Aotea Resource Recovery Centre with a mission to achieve zero waste, and support a resilient, resourceful and thriving people and environment on Aotea. Jo has a background in conservation, where she remains actively engaged. She has a deep commitment to community and te taiao and this commitment drives her work.
Lucy Byrne
Director & Sustainability Advisor at Bluemoth, and Take the Jamp Ambassador for Nelson Tasman Climate Forum
A few years ago Lucy left the advertising industry to pursue her passion for protecting the planet. She landed herself a job at the Sustainable Business Network in the circular economy team. Just over a year ago Lucy moved to Whakatū, Nelson to be closer to the mountains. As part of the move she started her own business, Bluemoth and supports the mahi of the Nelson Tasman Forum through actively promoting Take the Jump.
Nenya Chapman
Xtreme Zero Waste
In addition to operating the Raglan Resource Recovery Centre site, Xtreme Zero Waste manages the contract for waste services locally including servicing residential kerbside, business, garden waste, public spaces and rural waste collections. Nenya is the Collections Manager that ensures the team and trucks are rolling smoothly and safely for these different collections across Raglan. With a medical and training background, Nenya is a champion driving employment pathways and upskilling local youth with licenses and training for both the Xtreme team and wider community.
Shelley Wilson
Waste Minimisation Officer, Waipā District Council
Shelley Wilson is the Waste Minimisation Advisor for Waipā District Council and is responsible for designing, delivering and evaluating behaviour change projects, empowering and enabling community stakeholders to build capacity and reduce waste, and strategic direction. With a background in social work and community development and a personal dedication to low waste living, she is a keen supporter of community-led projects and behaviour-change initiatives.