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gillesryan
Lisa


Title and Organization:		IYPF/USC/QESSI/ARIES
Gender and Age:		Female, 41
Location:		Sunshine Coast, Queensland
Country of Residence:		Australia
Country of Birth:		Kenya
Nationalities:		Australian British
Citizenships:		Australia
Languages:		English , Tetum



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About Me

First and foremost, I'm a Mum, ( like to think I'm still young- however probably have a few too many grey hairs- this year I reached the downhill slide to 40!). I have two young children (eight and two). Although I have always been interested in the environment, my kids have given me an increased sense of urgency for action and I grieve for the experiences they may never have. -My first experiences in the environment were on habitual long walks with my father, beginning in Kenya where I was born, where we camped under the shade of ubiquitous thorn trees and watched plains animals and majestic lions and elephants. Later when we moved to Ireland, we tickled trout in cool clear mountain streams, and finally when we came to Australia, we walked on the beach and watched ospreys and fish eagles plummeting for their catch. I hope my children will also be able to have wonderful memories of pristine environments.

Living in Africa, I became passionate about the twin issues of environment and development. I returned to Kenya fresh out of teacher's college and worked as a primary school teacher in a Nairobi school. I quickly gained a new appreciation of the inequalities present in the global order and saw the damaging effect of these on the environment.

After returning to Australia, I completed a Masters in Environmental Education, and worked at Griffith Uni for 5 years as coordinator of an EE research centre. During this time I had the priveledge of working on a number of interesting projects for intergovernmental agencies and NGOs such as UNESCO and WWF. I also taught environmental studies as an undergraduate B. Ed. subject.

Eager to return to environment/development issues again, in 2002, our family volunteered in East Timor for just over a year. We worked on the small island of Atauro, North of Dili, for a community based organisation developing local capacity to build and run a micro-ecotourism project. We learned so much from the Timorese, who taught us about the value of family and friends. We were proud to be present at the birth of the world's newest nation.

Currently, I work as a research officer for the Australian Rsearch Institute in Education for Sustainability, I also teach at University of the Sunshine Coast. I have my own EfS consultancy firm and I sit on the Sunsine Coast Regional Hub of Qld's Sustainable Schools Initiaitve.

Countries Visited

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