Wild Australia

Barry Traill
Program Director, Wild Australia

Barry leads the Wild Australia Program, protecting Australian outback areas on land and sea. He has worked for 30 years on environmental issues as a conservation advocate, research ecologist and environmental consultant. He has extensive and successful experience seeking long-term protection of natural ecosystems on both private and public lands, as well as excellent field and theoretical knowledge of terrestrial ecology throughout Australia.

Prior to joining Pew Barry led many projects seeking the long-term protection of temperate and tropical forests and woodlands. This included the development of national conservation programs on various landscapes, with a particular focus on stopping large-scale land clearing in Queensland, New South Wales and the Northern Territory, advocating for better public land protection in Australian temperate woodlands, and coordinating conservation work across Northern Australia. On ground successes from that work included leading Australia’s single biggest environmental win- driving new legislation that stopped large scale clearing of mature native vegetation in Queensland, protecting over 20 million hectares of country from future deforestation. This reduced Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions by around 10%.

Barry has held previous positions with industry, government and non-government organizations in Victoria, New South Wales and Northern Territory. His extensive voluntary work in conservation includes founding the Invasive Species Council, a national environment group working to stop future incursions by new foreign invasive species into Australia.

He holds a Bachelor of Science in Zoology and Botany, and a doctorate in Wildlife Ecology, both from Monash University, Melbourne.

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Michelle Grady
Marine Manager, Wild Australia

Michelle Grady joined the Pew Environment Group in 2008 to protect Australia's marine environment. Michelle has worked for 18 years as a conservation advocate at a local, national and international level, as a not-for-profit managing director, a campaign manager and senior policy adviser to government. Michelle has extensive experience across a wide range of conservation issues, and has been successful in building the strength, standing and capacity of Australia's conservation movement. Michelle has specialized in securing reserves over large intact areas on land and sea through negotiated outcomes, high level government engagement and community engagement.

Following her work as an adviser to two Senators, for 12 years Michelle led the peak conservation body of South Australia, a council of the state's 60 conservation groups. Michelle attracted significant resources to the conservation movement, provided leadership on a wide range of conservation issues and oversaw successful multilateral campaigns in the areas of climate change, native vegetation protection, marine conservation, planning law reform, biodiversity conservation and protected areas.

As the national marine campaign manager for the Australian Conservation Foundation, Michelle led campaigns on establishing marine reserves and oceans legislation, and moved onto the international stage as an advocate in expert forums and treaty processes for cetacean conservation. Michelle has most recently worked as a senior adviser to government in the area of biodiversity law reform and strategic program development.

Through negotiated formal agreements with petroleum companies and grazing interests, Michelle was successful in securing the protection of the Coongie Wetlands, a Ramsar wetland of international importance in Australia’s arid channel country, from oil and gas development through the creation of special reserves. Michelle was instrumental in the declaration of one of Australia's largest marine parks, the Great Australian Bight Marine Park, and has successfully negotiated strategic partnerships with the fishing industry in South Australia in order to secure a major government program to develop a system of marine protected areas across the state, now in implementation.

Michelle holds a Bachelor of Arts in English, Politics and History, and a Graduate Diploma of Business Administration, from the Universities of Adelaide and South Australia.

Michelle is a recipient of Australia's Centenary Medal, for service to the community in education, environment, advocacy, leadership and conservation.

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John Carey
Manager, Kimberley Conservation Program

John joined the Environment Group of Pew in late 2008 to specifically manage the Wild Australia Program's new conservation project in the Kimberley. John brings to his role a strong background and practical knowledge of government - previously working as a Principal Policy Adviser on parliamentary issues to the former Premier of Western Australia. He has extensive experience and understanding of government and parliamentary decision making processes and a real insight into how external stakeholders can influence decisions.

Prior to working in the Premier's Office, John was engaged as a senior adviser to the Minister for Environment. In this capacity, he provided strategic media and policy advice to the Minister on a range of environmental issues, as well as being the media spokesperson for the Minister on a day to day basis. As part of this role, John developed and prepared the case for major new pollution funding initiatives within Government in response to specific community concerns regarding the regulation of industry.

Combined with his Government experience, John's previous media background‚ working across radio, print and television, has provided him with a strong set of skills in regards to developing sound communications strategy, crisis management and stakeholder relations. John further honed these skills, by attending George Washington University's Semester in Washington program in Washington DC, focused on political management and message strategy.

John holds a Bachelor of Arts in Politics and Communications (First Class Honours) from Murdoch University in Western Australia.

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Patrick O'Leary
Manager, Conservation Partnerships
Wild Australia

Patrick O'Leary joined the Pew Environment Group in 2009. He focuses on strengthening our Indigenous partnerships, enhancing environmental protection across Northern Australia in general, and ensuring linkages between greenhouse emissions reduction and biodiversity protection.

Patrick has spent 20 years working on environmental issues in Australia with over half that time spent in Northern Australia. He now lives in Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory where he recently relocated and has been working with Pew Australia since February 2009.

Patrick's initial directions as a researcher in river ecology and conservation evolved into organisational and advocacy roles working for environmental NGOs on forest and threatened species conservation. After moving to the Northern Territory in the late 1990's he moved into marine conservation policy, advocacy and communication with a focus on marine protected areas and fisheries and aquaculture sustainability.

His work at the overlap of Indigenous and environmental issues led to a position as the marine policy officer for Australia's largest Aboriginal Land Council, the Northern Land Council, where he worked to assist Aboriginal people with negotiation, planning and advocacy for better environmental, cultural and economic management of their marine and coastal estates.

More recently Patrick worked in senior policy roles for government on marine and then climate change policy. Over his career Patrick has complemented his paid work with a number of voluntary governance, administrative and fundraising roles in local and national environmental NGOs. He has worked for government and as a private consultant, also for Aboriginal and environmental NGOs in a variety of roles predominantly in Australia with some experience with environmental capacity building for local organisations in South East Asia.

His non environmental experience has included advocacy for improved freedom of information laws and a general active interest in civil society.

Patrick holds as BSc with 1st Class Honours in ecological science from Monash University.

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