Kara-Mae Coulter-Atkins
Executive Officer
Kara is a marine scientist with a breadth of experience in conservation education and project management for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Tangaroa Blue Foundation, and Townsville City Council’s ‘Creek to Coral’ initiative. Coming from a family line of commercial fishing operators and a lifelong diver, she is passionate about improving the management of marine ecosystems.
Kara holds a Masters of Marine Biology and Ecology from James Cook University, and a degree in Environmental Science and Management from the University of Newcastle. You’ll find Kara among the coral with her dive tank, or with her feet in Rollingstone Creek, north Townsville. Contact Kara
Dr Keith Noble
Independent Chair
Keith brings three decades of natural resource and stakeholder management to our Partnership as Independent Chair of our Management Committee. A land use planner, tropical fruit farmer, and academic, he also holds senior and directorate positions with Terrain NRM — the regional Natural Resource Management body for Queensland’s Wet Tropics, NRM Regions Queensland, and the Reef and Rainforest Research Centre.
Keith holds a PhD and MSc from James Cook University, a Bachelor of Agricultural Science from the University of Queensland, and a Graduate Diploma in Plant Protection from Gatton Agricultural College. Keith is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, and a Registered Planner with the Planning Institute of Australia. You can find Keith on the road between his Townsville home and Tully farm. Contact Keith
Dinny Taylor
Senior Technical Officer
Raised on an Atherton Tablelands cropping farm, Dinny first took her desire to see sustainability better embedded into natural resource management practices into heavy industry as an advisor for Nabalco, Alcoa, Australian Magnesium, Sun Metals, and Glencore. The power of data to tell environmental stories saw her build on her engineering expertise with graduate study, and she now brings deep data analysis and investigation capability to our Dry Tropics Partnership for Healthy Waters team.
With an Honours Degree in Environmental Engineering from Griffith University, a Graduate Certificate in Data Science from James Cook University, and a Master of Data Science from the University of New England in her sights, when Dinny isn’t diving into waterways data, she’s busy dragging her clan off a soccer pitch to hike or camp in her local Paluma Range. Contact Dinny
Adam Shand
Technical Officer
Adam is a data and environmental scientist with a background in artificial intelligence, estuarine ecology, and programming. He works with our Partners, industry, and government to analyse the environmental data of our region and translate it into our annual Townsville Report Card and other waterway reports. Adam has contributed to international research on deep learning for coastal conservation through the Global Wetlands Project and the Australian Rivers Institute.
He holds a Bachelor of Marine Science and Bachelor of Science (Honours), both from Griffith University. Look for Adam around Townsville’s rock-climbing hotspots or out collecting water samples with one of our Partners. Contact Adam
Sam Gibbs
Communications Officer (Part-time)
Sam is a communications consultant with more than 16 years’ experience across corporate, government, and non-profit organisations. She brings her change communications experience to our Partnership via Digital Earth Australia (Geoscience Australia), the Atlantic Philanthropies, the Commonwealth Bank, Australian Geographic Outdoor, and the ABC. She is also an occasional host for the annual Banff Mountain Film Festival and Ocean Film Festival.
Sam holds a degree in Communications from the University of Technology Sydney, a Graduate Certificate in Landscape Architecture, and a Certificate in Sustainable Leadership from the University of Cumbria. You’ll find her kayaking up the Ross most mornings. Contact Sam
