I'm a facilitator and I work with groups, disrupting patterns of thinking and acting so as individuals and teams can explore alternative ways of doing the business that matters.
I work to transfer my skills and knowledge to others, sharing ways of making gatherings of all sorts more productive, creative and interactive.
I've worked as a journalist, publicist and community educator and have had my own consulting business – Beyond the Edge Pty Ltd, based in Australia, since 1996. I'm fortunate to work in many places - some close to home in Australia and New Zealand, and further afield in south-east Asia, the Pacific and Africa.
My passion is working in complex and difficult situations to explore ways of unearthing ideas and co-creating solutions. My inspiration comes from improvisational theatre where the principles of accepting offers and making your partner look good underpin approaches that enable participants to have meaningful conversations, build relationships and create transactions.
My style is to bring a kind of planned spontaneity to my work; my relaxed and informal approach is backed by robust theoretical knowledge and clear intent. Keeping it fresh is important, for me and for my participants, so I try to bring new learnings and a tailored approach to every session.
My broad-based background spans the agriculture, forestry, conservation, community development, media, and humanitarian aid sectors – as does my education. I studied agricultural science at Longerenong Agricultural College and have a Bachelor of Arts in Media Studies from RMIT, and a Masters in Applied Science (Agriculture and Rural Development) from the University of Western Sydney.
Most recently my work has been focused on disaster risk reduction, disaster response, and on-going development - building capacity and enabling personal and organisational improvement.
