Our team
Our founding members include community representatives, academics from Environmental Science, and Environmental History disciplines, Landcarers with over 30 years experience in riparian restoration, teachers, creative practitioners and land stewards with deep connection to the rivers of the Richmond catchment.
Adele Wessell
Founding Member
I am an historian and passionate about the Richmond River. I live and work on unceded Widjabul Wia-bal Country. I am currently working on an open access repository for the River and catchment.
Brendan Cox
Founding Member & Secretary
Brendan is a freshwater ecologist, his work is mostly in assessing the health of rivers using "waterbugs" as an assessment tool. Brendan is currently finishing a PhD at Southern Cross University, with research on how climate change and wildfires impact the macroinvertebrates living in our creeks. Through River Ecology Australia, Brendan runs river health workshops with community groups and schools across the Richmond River catchment that enhance community awareness and understanding of the impacts and issues facing the streams and rivers of the Richmond River Catchment.
Read Brendans interview with Revive the Northern Rivers here.
Cassie Price
Founding Member
Cassie Price is OzFish’s national Director of Habitat Programs, she heads up the Habitat Project Team across Australia who get busy guiding recreational fisher effort in a broad range of fish habitat restoration and citizen science activities. Cass is driven by a passion for sustainable resources, a love of fishing and her farming background. Her career spans 20 years in aquatic habitat restoration and sustainable agriculture projects, predominantly in NSW and Queensland. She has a wealth of knowledge in community-driven conservation from her experience eNGOs. Based in Ballina, Northern NSW, Cass is a keen recreational fisher, nature lover and mother of two budding fishers.
Read Cassie's interview with Revive the Northern Rivers here.
Graeme Gibson
Founding Member
I became interested in the Richmond River shortly after moving to Kyogle In 2016. To look at it is to wonder, what's happened here? How did it get to be like this? What's being done about it? I've done a bit of research and written a little about it, with more research and more writing to come. This will take the form of an ecobiography, aiming to bring together Indigenous knowledge, historical records, science and contemporary experiences.
You can find Graemes writing on the River here.
Ilka Blue
Founding Member
Hi, I’m Ilka Blue and I live on Gulibul Country up in the headwaters of the Richmond River catchment. Water knowledge, especially told through and by rivers, has been the main source of guidance in my creative ecology work. By day I’m the Project Co-ordinator for the Northern Rivers Wildlife Hospital, and by night I’m the Vice-President of the Border Ranges Richmond Valley Landcare network.
Jeremy Stewart
Founding Member
Volunteers with Landcare. Advocates for floodplain restoration. Inspired by forests, waterscapes and connection to place.
You can read some of Jeremy’s thoughts on nature-based flood mitigation on the Revive the Northern Rivers site, here.
Kristin den Exter
Founding Member & Public Officer
Kristin grew up on the banks of the Wilsons River in Lismore, lands of the Widjabal Wiabal people. Her connection to the river has sustained her life - she learnt to canoe at Richmond River High School in the 1980s, and joined the Wilsons River Landcare Group in the 1990s, where she is still an active member today. Kristin is an Adjunct Professional Fellow at Southern Cross University, and works with the National Landcare Network in a partnership role, and Regen Farmers Mutual in product development for emerging environmental markets.
Read Kristins interview with Revive the Northern Rivers here.
Lindy Margan
Founding Member
I’m part of Landcare and as a rural Landholder I’m actively involved in improving river health through riparian restoration. I believe planting trees has enormous co- benefits for river health, the environment and the community.
Read about Lindy’s riparian revegetation project along 2km of riverfront on the Wilsons River here.
Mandy Reichelt-Brushett
Founding Member & President
Professor Amanda Reichelt-Brushett has a Bachelor of Applied Science in Coastal Management from the University of New England - Northern Rivers, a Master of Science in Marine Chemistry from James Cook University (North Queensland) and a PhD in Marine Ecotoxicology from Southern Cross University. Amanda is a senior lecturer and has published in many scientific journals, presented her research findings at national and international conferences and co-authored a book chapter. She has 20 years experience in investigating human impacts on the environment.
Read Mandys interview with Revive the Northern Rivers here.
Rob Garbutt
Founding Member
Rob Garbutt is a researcher, writer, and artist who loves spending time getting to know rivers, beside and on them. Rob is a Richmond River Historical Society committee member, a member of the Far North Coast Canoe Club, and an Adjunct Associate Professor with Southern Cross University's Faculty of Business, Law and Arts. You can often catch him on the river on Instagram at @supergoestothepond or for a deeper dive at www.robgarbutt.com.
Tom Wolff
Founding Member
Tom’s a writer & photographer fortunate enough to grow up on Nyangbul Bundjalung Country in Lennox Head. His childhood involved countless hours on the Richmond River and he now resides on the Alstonville plateau where the mighty Big Scrub once stood. He likes walking in the rainforest, canoeing on the local waterways, fishing in the river and surfing the fabled North Coast point breaks.
Tom is the co-founder of local environmental organisation Revive the Northern Rivers.
Vanessa Ekins
Founding Member
Landcarer on the Wilsons River for over 20 years and Lismore City Councillor with a keen interest in water management and restoring our river systems for ecological, aesthetic and economic reasons.
Want to get involved?
Whether you are an organisation or an individual we want to hear from you!