Council Members

Mellissa Wood brings over 30 years of expertise in scientific and policy leadership within international development, conservation, environmental management, and sustainable food systems. Her career includes Senior Executive roles with the Australian Government, as well as prominent international organisations, including the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and CGIAR. Mellissa has served as General Manager of the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) and as a key member of CGIAR’s System Council and System Management Board. Her extensive international experience encompasses Sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific. Notably, she was the Director of the Australian International Food Security Research Centre in Eastern and Southern Africa and worked at FAO in Rome as Director of Programs, at the Global Crop Diversity Trust. Additionally, she spent 15 years at the Bureau of Rural Sciences within the Federal Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, where she provided critical scientific advice for natural resource management. Currently, Mellissa is a member of the Eminent Panel for Community Engagement and The Great Outdoors Taskforce, and she serves as a Visiting Scientist at CSIRO. She holds a Master of Public Policy from Crawford School, Australian National University, a Bachelor of Science in Resource and Environmental Management from Australian National University and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and a member of the Royal Society of Victoria.

Dave Kendal

Dr Dave Kendal is an internationally recognised expert on urban nature and ecology, biodiversity conservation, social values for the environment and public perceptions of nature. He is Director of Future in Nature Pty Ltd which provides consulting advice on urban nature, social values and conservation, after researching and teaching about the reciprocal effects of people on nature in cities and beyond for 20 years. He has worked at the Australian Research Centre for Urban Ecology, a division of the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne, and at the University of Melbourne, and the University of Tasmania. Dave has been a key contributor to many policies and programs that have improved social-ecological systems in Australia and around the world, including the City of Melbourne’s urban forest strategy and precinct planning process, the global Climate Change Alliance of Botanic Gardens Climate Assessment Tool, the NSF funded Nature-based Solutions for Urban Resilience in the Anthropocene (NATURA) network, the City of Auckland’s urban nature strategy, Australia’s National Environmental Science Program, Melbourne Water and DELWP community values assessments. He has held expert advisory roles under Australia’s EPBC Act, for the European Commission, the Technical University of Munich, BGANZ and the Living Melbourne Strategy. He was a member of Australia’s Threatened Species Scientific Committee from 2015-2019  

Marcus Stewart

Marcus Stewart has 12 years’ executive experience in government and Traditional Owner corporations and 15 years of non-executive directorship experience. He currently operates his own consultancy, Marcus Stewart Consultancy, where he provides corporate coaching, strategic corporate solutions, and insight on how to work with Traditional Owner Groups. Marcus was the inaugural Co-Chair of the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria and former Chief Executive Officer of the Federation of Victorian Traditional Owner Corporation. He is currently a Director with the Taungurung Land and Waters Council and was a Member of the Indigenous Voice Referendum Working Group. Marcus has completed a Development Psychiatry course, a course in Clinical Family Therapy and a MURRA Business Master Class with Melbourne Business School. He has recently been appointed as a Principal Fellow at Melbourne Law School.

Nicola Ward

Nicola Ward has held senior positions in the state governments of New South Wales and Victoria and local government, with extensive public policy experience in environment and natural resource management. She has policy and program expertise in environment, sustainability and climate change; strategic planning, land use and development; community infrastructure planning; sport, recreation and open space planning. She is experienced in organisation strategy, business transformation and risk and performance. She holds a range of volunteer positions including Board Director of the Natural Resources Conservation League (Vic), Independent Chair of the Southern Brown Bandicoot Regional Recovery Group and committee member of various community groups. She was previously a Sessional Member of Planning Panels Victoria, a Board Director of the Port Phillip and Western Port Catchment Management Authority and Alternate Director of the Mornington Peninsula and Western Port Biosphere Reserve Foundation. Nicola has a Masters degree in Social Science (Environment and Planning) with Distinction and an Honours degree in Social Science. Nicola is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Jennifer Wolcott

Jennifer Wolcott has had more than 30 years’ experience in environmental and natural resource management and regional development in Victoria. She has held senior executive positions in a number of Victorian government departments, the Environment Protection Authority, Parks Victoria, Regional Development Victoria and Emergency Management Victoria where she has led regulatory and public policy reform, corporate strategy, investigations and grant programs. Jennifer has been a board director of the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, the Institute of Public Administration Victoria and Trust for Nature. She has been a member of the Victorian Coastal Council, National Parks Advisory Council and Reference Area Advisory Committee. Jennifer has a Bachelor of Forest Science (Hons) from the University of Melbourne, is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, the Women on Boards SX program and is a Fellow of the Institute of Public Administration Victoria.