Celebrating Our Volunteers with a Walk on the Wild Side

What better way to celebrate our amazing volunteers during National Volunteer Week than by connecting with some of Townsville’s beautiful urban green spaces along the Ross River?

We kicked off the day with some delicious treats and great conversations about the latest local sustainability initiatives. Then we were joined by Townsville City Council’s Water Educator, Annmarie, for a guided walk along the Booroona Trail - or "Snake Trail" in the Bindal language.

In the beautiful Anderson Gardens, Townsville locals and visitors enjoyed the sights, tastes and activities of Townsville City Council's massive biennial community event, Our Townsville.

Staff

Crystal Falknau | Coordinator | she/they 
[email protected] | 0406 421 061

Crystal has always been driven to protect nature, and has been involved with NQCC since 2017. She holds a Bachelor of Science (Environment and Sustainability) from USQ and is particularly curious about the intersection of policy, education, First Nations leadership and community power for making change in regional Queensland.

She is passionate about fostering good governance, healthy organisational culture and strong community connections. Approaches to leadership and community organising are influenced by their ongoing connections with WELA and the Qld Community Alliance. 

Crystal is passionate about Australia's landscapes and wildlife, and has visited over 100 National Parks throughout the country. Their other main passion is martial arts, though they take a non-violent approach to fighting climate change and environmental destruction.

Luna Prince | Community Campaigner | she/her
[email protected]

Luna has recently completed her Master’s degree in Sustainability Science and is looking forward to actively contributing to a more sustainable society. She also holds a Bachelor of Social Sciences. She has been a long-term volunteer for a climate action group in Germany before moving to Australia in 2023. 

She believes in a more holistic approach to sustainability and is delighted to foster our shared journey towards wellbeing in Townsville as community campaigner with NQCC. She is passionate about both the natural and social environment and believes that strong and healthy communities are the biggest leverage point in changing behaviors and finding sustainable solutions. She strives to inspire rather than to lecture, to connect rather than to divide, and to grow NQCC's cumulative impact by creating diverse volunteer opportunities. Luna aspires to become a supportive and collaborative environmental leader as part of the Women's Environmental Leadership Australia. 

Management Committee (2024/25)

Tamara Inkster-Draper | President | she/her
[email protected]

Tamara is North Queensland born and raised and spent childhood holidays and weekends on Magnetic Island.

Over the last 10 years she's built a career around international climate action and advocacy. She currently manages the International Climate Politics Hub, a global network of experts and activists working to build diplomatic pressure for greater climate action by leveraging national and international narratives and opportunities. Previously, Tamara has worked for the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership's (CISL) and the Prince of Wales's Corporate Leaders Group, supporting the transition to a sustainable, zero-carbon economy through engagement with business, governments, policymakers, and other experts. Prior to CISL, Tamara worked for the then Department of Agriculture on Climate Change Mitigation Policy and Carbon farming.

Tamara holds a PhD from James Cook University, where her research looked at the impacts of climate change on Tropical Biodiversity. During her research and field work Tamara was privileged to become intimately familiar with the North Queensland Wet Tropics World Heritage Area, The YUS Conservation Area in Papua New Guinea, and Danum Valley in Borneo.

Tamara became NQCC's President at the 2024 AGM, following two years as NQCC Vice President.

Chris Pam | Vice President | she/her

Chris is trained as an anthropologist and is currently working as a facilitator in the JCU Respect Program. Some of her previous research has focused on community understandings of climate change in the Pacific. Chris has been concerned about social justice and environmental issues for many years and is keen to work on climate justice campaigns with others in the North Queensland community.

Chris became an NQCC Vice President at the 2024 AGM following three years as President.

Peter Hanley | Vice President | he/him

Peter Hanley has lived in North Queensland for more than 30 years. His interests include human rights, social justice, sustainability and community development, with a particular penchant for creative performances to educate and inform. Peter is also a convenor of the Amnesty International Townsville branch and writes a blog, "True North".

Peter was NQCC's President in 2020 and has filled a Vice President role since the 2021 AGM.

Amaya Hytch | Secretary | she/they
[email protected]

Amaya grew up on Durumbal Country in so-called Rockhampton and has always had a love of regional Queensland. They moved to Townsville at the end of 2020 for university and will be finishing up their Bachelor of Laws degree at James Cook University in 2023. She is particularly passionate about connecting young people to the climate crisis and ensuring that young and regional voices are heard in places of decision-making. In their free time Amaya enjoys reading, cuddling with her dogs Feyre and Farley and doing sudoku puzzles.

Amaya is currently volunteering as the Townsville Organiser for the Australian Youth Climate Coalition and is also the secretary for the James Cook University Law Student Society. Amaya has been NQCC's Secretary since October 2022.

Monita Gangavarapu | Treasurer | she/her
[email protected]

Monita was born and raised in South East Queensland and became an accidentally transient adult, living and working in different states and territories around Australia. In mid-2024 Monita settled in Townsville with her two small parrots and joined NQCC as a member and volunteer.

With over three decades of experience in bookkeeping and small business management in the private sector, Monita was keen to bring transferrable skills to the not-for-profit sector which included volunteering at NQCC and securing part-time employment at another local not-for-profit.

Monita has a strong sense of social justice and loves a good spreadsheet. She is determined to put her administrative and fundraising skills to work for NQCC to help them spend more time in community education and environmental activism.

Monita joined the NQCC Management Committee as Treasurer at the 2024 AGM.

John Connell | Ordinary Committee Member | he/him

John has spent 30 years working with livelihood development projects in southeast Asia, and has a strong commitment to ensuring everyone has a 'fair go'. This work has involved identifying 'entry points' and 'pathways' that engage both smallholder farmers and local government officials in change. These sort of skills might help NQCC in development of new public campaigns.   

Volunteers

NQCC's work is supported by several teams of dedicated volunteers, as well as individuals who volunteer their time, energy and skills as they are required. Interested in volunteering? Click here!

Subcommittees

• Burdekin Basin Subcommittee
• Climate Action Group
• First Nations Partnerships Subcommittee
• Fundraising Subcommittee
• Governance Subcommittee
• HR Subcommittee
• Public Fund Subcommittee - presiding over NQCC’s Public Fund are Bernadette Boscacci, Cam Leitch and Natalie Lindsay.

Here is a directory of different groups providing volunteer opportunities with on-ground conservation or environmental projects in the local region:

Conservation Volunteers Australia projects in Townsville region – check this website to confirm correct dates, meeting location and contact details. Projects include Creekwatch (water quality testing and surveys), Friends of Cape Pallarenda Quarantine Station and native revegetation nursey.

On Sunday 14^th of August, NQCC hosted a fundraising dinner to celebrate our community of past committee members, donors, volunteers and staff. Additionally, former NQCC Coordinator Susan Brown was visiting Townsville after spending the past 11 years in Geneva working for WWF. We thought a dinner at the NQCC HQ would be a good opportunity for our community to gather.