Our team

Helen has worked in sustainability, climate advocacy and community engagement for over two decades. As Executive Director of the ACT 's peak environment organisation she led work on fossil gas and transport emissions, biodiversity and planning. She instigated community engagement programs to help Canberrans get off gas and to better utilise active travel, and led a campaign for the ACT to go gas-free, which was committed to by government in 2022. Her knowledge of campaigning and public policy is grounded in her experience as a parliamentary advisor in the ACT Parliament, and leading Greenpeace’s advocacy team, where she worked on national and international campaigns including on climate and energy, deforestation and international oceans policy. Helen is passionate about driving social change that sticks, through advocacy, community engagement and story-telling.

Kate is a seasoned strategic leader with over 25 years of experience in event curation, stakeholder engagement, advocacy, and organisational growth. She specialises in creating impactful, community-driven experiences and campaigns that drive change and foster long-term engagement across a variety of sectors, including sustainability, advocacy, and non-profit work. Most recently, she served as Chief of Staff at GetUp!, where she provided leadership in strategy development, stakeholder engagement, and philanthropic partnerships. https://www.linkedin.com/in/--kate-walsh/

Kellie Carmichael brings over 20 years of experience in accounting and financial management to her role, with a strong focus on organisational efficiency and continuous improvement. A Certified Practicing Accountant (CPA), Kellie is driven by a passion for building more sustainable futures—both environmentally and within the organisations she supports. This commitment led her to join Renew, where she has played a key role in guiding the organisation toward greater financial stability and long-term sustainability.

Lauren is a marketing and communications professional with over a decade of experience in advertising, partnerships and stakeholder engagement within purpose-driven organisations. She has an extensive background in managing advertising opportunities, building collaborative partnerships and delivering clear, ethical communications across print and digital channels. Lauren particularly enjoys connecting advertisers with the right audiences, helping people discover meaningful products and services that support and enhance their sustainability journey.

Anna Cumming is a writer, editor and communications professional with a longstanding interest in the built environment, in particular the design of sustainable, energy efficient and comfortable homes that tread lightly on the earth. She has held a variety of communications roles at national not-for-profit Renew since 2010, and in 2019 took over as Managing Editor of 'Sanctuary: modern green homes' - Australia's premier magazine dedicated to sustainable house design. She loves being part of the mission to inspire and educate people about the design strategies, materials and systems available to achieve truly sustainable, delightful homes.

Nathan is the Managing Editor of Renew Magazine. Nathan comes to Renew after many years working as editor of Dumbo Feather magazine, a Melbourne-based media company that tells stories of inner work and outer action for bring about a more resilient, compassionate world. He is passionate about language, poetry and thoughtful long-form storytelling for inviting deeper connection to self and the world around us.

Lance is technical editor of Renew: Technology for a Sustainable Future, and Sanctuary: modern green homes, Australia’s leading magazines on renewable energy and sustainable living. He has worked for Renew for nearly 30 years and been involved in publications, IT and the organisation’s original website. He has a strong interest in all things related to sustainable technology.

Sasha Mainsbridge is a passionate environmental advocate and community leader based in Mullumbimby, NSW. Sasha has experience in paid and volunteer roles supporting members, council staff and volunteers in community gardens, zero emissions and community renewable energy organisations, a composting company, festival sustainability teams (Falls Festival & Splendour in the Grass), running Plastic Free July events and leading a Library of Things - the Mullumbimby Library of Stuff Co-op. She is the founder of Mullum Cares, a non profit organisation dedicated to finding ways to unwaste. In 2022 after Sasha’s home was ravaged by flood, she launched the Byron Shire Residential Flood Adaptation Project, an initiative that continues to encourage homeowners to build back better using tried and tested flood-resilient materials and techniques to radically reduce future damage by flood. In 2023, Sasha secured funding from the NSW Government to coordinate opening 6 homes in Mullumbimby on Sustainable House Day that showcased flood resilient rebuilding in progress.

Bhree has over 20 years’ experience in events and administration in Australia, Ireland and the Middle East, and is currently studying Home Energy Efficiency and Sustainability. Her personal mission is to make climate action practical and achievable for households and families - through small changes that reduce bills and carbon footprints. Bhree is also part of her local climate action group, supporting public education about everyday actions we can take to reduce our environmental impact. She is passionate about using her events experience and current studies to raise awareness of the role individuals can play in sustainability — and how, collectively, we can work towards a more sustainable future.

Mia-Francesca Jones is a writer, researcher and digital producer. She has worked extensively in the arts and not-for-profit sectors across programming, events, and digital campaigns. With a PhD in creative environmental communication, she is passionate about driving change through storytelling, and advocating for climate action through interdisciplinary dialogue. Outside of her work with Renew, she produces a literary podcast, runs nature writing workshops, and publishes creative nonfiction, essays, and poetry.

Sarah has qualifications and expertise in governance, sustainability, risk and compliance, strategy, transformation, and customer experience. She has nearly 20 years experience working in-house and as a consultant across a broad range of sectors including local and state government; not-for-profit and member-based associations; telecommunications and infrastructure; financial services; energy and education. Sarah began her career in sustainability as an environmental educator working with community and business in the inner western suburbs and city of Sydney. She has held national sustainability-related roles within large corporates and continues to consult independently to private and public sector clients.

Amelia works with organisations, executives and senior leaders who want to drive sustainable team performance to make a meaningful impact. She is an organisational psychology registrar, executive coach and team dynamics consultant. Her expertise is in workplace psychology, team performance, coaching psychology, wellbeing culture and psychometrics. She works with clients across the private and public sectors including mining, professional services, tertiary education, health logistics and government. In her early professional career she worked in Europe, gaining experience in global commodity markets and Big Four consulting. Amelia is a Fellow and Non-Executive Director of the Australasian Society of Lifestyle Medicine.

Stacey brings over 20 years’ experience in communications, policy, and engagement across public and private sectors. Specialising in stakeholder engagement, building trusted partnerships across government, industry, and community. She translates complex policy and technology into clear, practical outcomes through collaboration and strategic communication with stakeholders to solve shared challenges. Stacey began her career in publishing and media strategy and has been dedicated to bringing equity and accessibility to the forefront her roles ever since.

Pula is a Chartered Professional Engineer with 32 years of experience in many facets of water and environmental sectors. He held executive positions in two major infrastructure consultancies, Atkins and SMEC, including head of the water department (Hong Kong/China) and general manager and global general manager of the water and environment business. His business leadership has spanned across Australia, Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa. Over the years, he built businesses and directed large teams. Throughout his career, he has been an advocate of sustainable development and environmental protection. Pula is a graduate of the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School. He is a fellow of the Institution of Engineers Australia and a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Graham has been a member of Renew/ATA for 20 years. He has been involved in the committee of the Sydney Central branch since its formation around 2008 and is currently convenor of that branch. He designed and built his first passive solar house in 1983 and has been involved with sustainable design since then. Graham was NSW State Secretary of the ANZSES (Australian and NZ Solar Energy Society) from 2005 till 2011 and during that period was the state coordinator for Sustainable House Day. He renovated his home two years ago to make it more energy efficient, adding a 3 kW solar system and grows a lot of veggies. He likes to cycle rather than drive as much as possible.

Graham was a Registered Architect for over 35 years and is still a NatHERS assessor with over 25 years of experience. Graham has represented the Australian Institute of Architects (AIA) on various national government committees in relation to the NatHERS system and energy efficiency in the building regulations and has been a member of the Australian Building Sustainability Association (ABSA) since it’s formation. See Graham's LinkedIn Profile.

Ewa Meyer has been a member of Renew for over 14 years and is currently the Convenor of our Hunter Region Branch. She represents the Branch on her local Council's Environmental Advisory Group. With a master's degree from Imperial College of Science and Technology, Ewa was a senior transport consultant in the private sector responsible for traffic modelling and strategic planning. Then for nearly 20 years, she worked for an environmental NFP organisation with a similar structure to Renew with member branches, magazine subscribers and a focus on influencing decisionmakers through policy and projects. Ewa has extensive, practical experience in the member-based not-for-profit sector, and is the editor for the website and newsletter of an environmental network. With a passion for good communication, Ewa also writes a regular sustainability column for community newspapers. Ewa believes that the core values and principles that the Alternative Technology Association (now Renew) was built upon continue to be our strength especially through our grassroots membership base, industry partnerships and community engagement.

Srini has more than 20 years of senior IT management and leadership experience in large public and private companies both nationally and internationally across industries as diverse as financial services, education, pharmaceutical, digital, manufacturing and technology services. He is currently working as a director of transformations and holds a bachelor's degree in business and commerce and a master's degree in information technology. As a technology leader, Srini has a broad range of experience across Business, IT and digital transformations, Cloud technologies and Cyber security, technology leadership and management, Governance, Digital Marketing, Organisational change, culture change and development and people leadership. Additionally, he is an active coach and mentor. Srini's recent past has seen him transform an alternative technology-based not-for-profit organization into a digital and global entity in order to disseminate knowledge and technical expertise. He is particularly interested in helping companies use technology to build sustainable businesses, for their customers and for the world at large. He focuses on efficiency and sustainability across all aspects of technology beginning with the design phase.

Justin has over 20 years of experience in the renewable energy and energy innovation space, having worked in consulting, State Government, AEMO and industry. With qualifications in Aerospace Engineering and Business Administration, Justin enjoys the interface between technology and strategy, and is passionate about driving sustainable outcomes. Recently Justin managed the Network Innovation Department at AusNet Services, and the Connections Process team at AEMO. He is currently Head of Product Innovation and Engineering at Club Assist, focussing on energy storage and its application in sustainable energy systems. Justin has been a long term member of Renew, including stints as Treasurer of the Melbourne Branch and committee member of the former Melbourne Electric Vehicle Interest Group. Justin has previously undertaken an energy makeover of his own house, converted a petrol car to electric in his garage, and now enjoys an all-electric sustainable home with his wife and two daughters in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs.

Sanne holds GAICD qualifications and has practical expertise in sustainability governance, commercial design and distributed clean energy partnerships. She has more than nine years’ experience scaling behind-the-meter solar and battery PPAs, electrification, embedded networks and microgrid solutions across utilities, infrastructure assets, REITs, mining and manufacturing in Australia and New Zealand. Originally from the Netherlands, Sanne’s career was shaped by European sustainability norms and a strong design background, before moving into global energy transition initiatives with Tesla, where distributed energy adoption, sustainability education and customer impact were central to the company’s mission. Sanne currently leads microgrid development at Alinta Energy, supported by long-term funding for scalable deployment. Her board-level experience includes service on multiple clean energy and impact-aligned boards, reflecting a strong understanding of fiduciary duties, risk, commercial accountability and stakeholder value creation.

Simon has over a decade of experience designing and delivering sustainability strategies, with a strong focus on residential built form. His background spans ASX-listed developers, consulting and technology, supporting solar readiness, battery integration pathways, embedded networks and all-electric design across large masterplanned communities and mixed-use apartment projects. Originally trained in conservation biology and sustainability, Simon’s career has centred on practical transition planning — bridging engineering, design, commercial and customer perspectives to accelerate the uptake of electrified, energy-efficient homes. He has led capability uplift across diverse teams and shaped customer value propositions grounded in technical feasibility and delivery realities. Simon brings governance literacy, strategic insight and strong systems-thinking to Renew, underpinned by a commitment to practical, household-level climate action and a belief that sustainable, comfortable and resilient homes should be accessible to all Australians.

Sarah Robertson is a social scientist with fifteen years’ experience working on environmental and social issues. She is committed to shaping urban and built places that more equitably support human, ecosystem and planetary health and wellbeing, with a particular focus on housing as a key lever for change. As a Research Fellow in the Centre for Urban Research at RMIT University, her work focuses on the social dimensions of sustainable, just, and low- and zero-carbon housing, alongside place-based approaches to climate change adaptation and urban resilience. She has delivered research on retrofitting the existing housing stock to meet social and environmental goals, bridging academic insight with practical application. Prior to her research career, Sarah was a writer and editor, and has a long-standing connection to Renew through her time as Editor of Sanctuary magazine (2011–14).