Our Team
Our team has the scientific expertise and leadership to support the development of conservation strategies, policies and projects that restore our ecosystem across Central Victoria at speed and at scale - enabling it to thrive into the future.
Biolinks Alliance Staff
Dr Sophie Bickford - Executive Director
Sophie is a Conservation Ecologist deeply motivated to apply her expertise to real world ecological-social problems. After completing her PhD at The University of Adelaide, Sophie spent 7 years researching distribution patterns of biodiversity at the CSIRO Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research. She was appointed a Lecturer in Biogeography at Monash University in 2007. Sophie worked for Carbon Planet as their Chief Scientist, developing methodologies for conserving ecological-services using climate (carbon) and biodiversity markets.
She has been Executive Director of Biolinks Alliance since 2010, relishing the challenge of growing a new organisation to implement large-scale and tenure blind conservation in Victoria.
Dr Chris Pocknee - Landscape and Biodiversity Conservation Ecologist
Chris is an Ecologist with a passion for understanding the threats facing native fauna and ecosystems, and how we can address these issues. Chris grew up in the south-eastern suburbs of Melbourne and completed his MSc at the University of Melbourne in 2017 before undertaking an internship with the Australian Wildlife Conservancy in NSW.
Prior to starting with Biolinks Alliance, Chris completed his PhD at the University of Queensland, where he studied the impacts of fire and feral cats on the endangered northern bettong. He relishes collaborative ecological work, and is passionate about empowering communities to conserve and recover local biodiversity. Chris loves exploring the outdoors, camping, wildlife photography and is an Essendon tragic.
Georgia Gross - Senior Communications Manager
Georgia has a background in journalism and 15 years marketing communications experience in a multitude of sectors, including sustainability-focused corporates, government and large NGOs both across Australia and the Asia Pacific. With a commitment to delivering tangible and sustainable results and a focus on developing sound stakeholder relationships, Georgia believes in the vital importance of creating strategic and compelling communications and content that supports, involves and mobilises people to act.
Georgia lives and works in the Macedon Ranges and is continually inspired by the collaborative, scientific and on-the-ground innovations Biolinks Alliance is doing to urgently restore our ecosystem.
Cameron O’Mara - Heathcote Local to Landscape Facilitator
Having worked professionally in bushland management for six years, Cameron is now applying the knowledge and skills gained in this field to larger scale landscape restoration projects. Managing environmental projects across the Mornington Peninsula Shire and City of Monash has allowed Cameron to see the broader picture of how ecological restoration should look.
Bringing an interest in environmental anthropology through study at Deakin University, Cameron understands the values people hold can help us see how we all relate to our natural environment. Cameron is also an avid amateur wildlife photographer and appreciator of even the most under-appreciated wildlife.
Sarah Smith - Network Members and Operations Manager
With over 20 years working for not-for-profits and start-up businesses, Sarah brings extensive experience in operations, customer service and project management. Sarah is passionate about regenerating landscapes and has studied Conservation and Eco-system Management. Utilising her background in strategy, stakeholder engagement and systems development, she is focused on empowering and enabling collaboration with our Network Members.
Dr Paul Foreman - Ecologist and Conservation Strategy
Paul is an Ecologist and Botanist with over 30 years of experience in a range of technical, strategic and management roles across Victoria and Australia. Paul has worked in State and Local Government, as well as Trust for Nature and Bush Heritage Australia, and established his own consulting business in 2009. He is also currently researching the role of Aboriginal burning in grasslands and was the inaugural Chair for Biolinks Alliance.
Sasha Dobson - Programs Manager
With ten years experience in agencies and production houses, Sasha’s career has ranged across operations, team leadership and project management. Her experience working for and alongside some of Australia’s best creatives has provided her with exemplary business efficiency, process and management skills. Sasha has delivered award-winning projects for top tier clients both across Australia and internationally.
Away from her computer, Sasha is a keen filmmaker and documentary cinephile. She is environmentally conscious and enjoys skiing, surfing and gardening. She also recently completed the Everest Base Camp trek.
Board of Management
Brendan Sydes - Chair
Brendan is an environmental lawyer with a background in not-for-profit management, policy advocacy and law reform. He was a principal lawyer and CEO at Environmental Justice Australia from 2005 to 2020. Brendan currently works as a Biodiversity Policy Adviser to the Australian Conservation Foundation and as a legal and policy consultant. He is a Senior Honorary Fellow of the University of Melbourne Law School where he teaches environmental law. Brendan is President of the Committee of Management of Connecting Country, a local landscape restoration program active across Mount Alexander Shire, and a member of the Research and Conservation Committee of Birdlife Australia. Brendan’s paid and voluntary work is focussed on the need for landscape scale restoration to address the legacy of past losses and as a critical contribution to the urgent challenge of addressing climate change. He lives at Muckleford near Castlemaine in Central Victoria.
Peter Evans - Secretary
Peter is an experienced business manager, consultant and non-executive director working to build sustainably successful organisations. He is a resident of Melbourne with a deep concern about the sustainability of our planet and society given current human activities. Peter joined Biolinks as Secretary in 2019 to contribute to Central Victoria achieving balance between its natural environment and human use. Peter trained as an electronic engineer and holds an MBA and Master of Leadership from Deakin University. He is the Principal of Tunaungana Consulting, Fellow of the Governance Institute of Australia and Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Pat Scanlon - Treasurer
Pat is a qualified chartered accountant who has over 20 years international and Australian experience in financial accounting, reporting, internal controls and professional services. His experience ranges from not for profit organisations, small and medium sized organisations and large organisations both in the public and private sectors. Pat currently works as a senior manager for a consultancy in Melbourne CBD.
Jennifer Rolland - Vice Chair
Jennifer developed her love of nature and spirit of enquiry early in life through bushwalking and birdwatching. With a PhD in Immunology and a long career in biomedical science research and education, she values scientific-based knowledge and well-structured research programs to inform optimal strategies for the protection of our natural areas and wildlife. She regularly volunteers for several environment restoration and monitoring projects around the country. With her partner, she enjoys and manages a Trust for Nature-covenanted bush property in Western Victoria. Through all these activities, she sees the critical need for coordinated landscape-scale action to meet the huge challenges facing our natural environment, such as provided for community conservation groups in Central Victoria by Biolinks Alliance.
Gayle Osborne
Gayle lives on a bush block in the Wombat State Forest and is a founding member of Wombat Forestcare, a group established in 2006 for the protection of the environmental values of the Wombat Forest. She is the convenor of Wombat Forestcare, which was instrumental in lobbying the state government for a Victorian Environmental Assessment Council (VEAC) investigation into a number of state forests in the Wombat and Mt Cole areas.
Brian Walters AM SC
Brian Walters is a former barrister. He practised as a silk from 2001-2021. In 1981, he co-founded Wild, Australia’s wilderness adventure magazine, and served as a director for 25 years. He was a board member of Liberty Victoria for over ten years, serving as president from 2004-2006. He has worked with many environmental groups. In 2017 he was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia ‘for significant service to conservation through environmental protection law, and to human rights advocacy’. He is now a writer.