Papua New Guinea’s only environmental conservation, education and wildlife rescue hub – Port Moresby Nature Park along Goro Kaeaga Road, Reinbo – is announcing a new management team to guide the Park’s future.
The new team is built on diversity and inclusion, with a blend of four PNG & international executives, together providing over fifty years of in-country and global experience in business, conservation and tourism.
Dr Adrian Fowler (Chief Executive), Joanne Ponduk (Chief Finance Officer), Brett Smith (General Manager of Life Sciences) and Oliver Isaacs (General Manager of Operations), between them, have experience of managing visitor attractions in the USA, Europe, Africa and Australasia, and over a decade at Port Moresby Nature Park itself.
The Nature Park’s new Chief Executive, Dr Adrian Fowler, is a wildlife veterinarian and former CEO of California’s Sacramento Zoo and Director of The National Aquarium of New Zealand.
Adrian’s background includes wildlife rescue with SANCCOB’s “Penguin Hospital” in Cape Town and managing some of the world’s biggest zoological parks; most notably the 2,000-acre North Carolina Zoo and Houston Zoo in the USA.
“Papua New Guinea is the exclusive home of some of the world’s most spectacular wildlife and incredible cultural history”, says Adrian. “It is a great honour to be a part of the team showcasing the magic of PNG’s natural heritage”.
Brett Smith is no stranger to the Nature Park. As the Park’s General Manager of Life Sciences, and an expert on some of Papua New Guinea’s unique animal species, Brett is credited with developing Port Moresby Nature Park into the facility it is today.
Brett’s dedication to PNG started 26 years ago as a visiting tree kangaroo researcher, while Curator of Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary in Australia.
Over the last 10 years, Brett has been responsible for not only all the animal and plant collections at the Nature Park, but the wide-reaching education and conservation programmes too.
“The Nature Park will continue to expand on the welfare, research and conservation of the animals in our collection and in the wild. Our education programs will continue teaching the next generation of conservationists who will protect the flora, fauna and culture of PNG,” says Brett.
The Nature Park’s Chief Finance Officer, Joanne Ponduk, gained her Bachelor’s degree in Business at Pacific Adventist University and spent 10 years with Deloitte, one of the big four chartered accountants, as a Manager of Risk & Consulting.
As a Papua New Guinean woman, Joanne has seen a lot of change in PNG equality and diversity.
“I look forward to embracing such changes and introducing opportunities for the team at Port Moresby Nature Park”, says Joanne.
Oliver Isaacs, the Nature Park’s new General Manager of Operations, has a career in creating the very best guest experiences for some of Australia’s leading attractions. Oliver has run Operations at The National Maritime Museum and Taronga Zoo in Sydney.
“Port Moresby Nature Park has grown into a highly-respected environmental organisation while remaining the main recreational park for communities in and surrounding the National Capital District”, says Oliver. “I am very much looking forward to welcoming our guests and working with our strategic partners”.
The Port Moresby Nature Park has come a long way over the last decade and has always been supported internationally, both with funding and expertise, to achieve its’ goals.
The new Chief Executive says, “Our next step is to ensure Papua New Guineans become leaders on the international conservation stage”.
“Our mission is simple: Only through developing Papua New Guinea’s home-grown talent, be that at the level of schools or management, can we succeed in protecting PNG’s environment for future generations.
It is an enormous challenge but an exciting journey as we look to bring together communities, business, academia, NGOs and government as one team for nature: Team PNG.”
Port Moresby Nature Park is a charity organization that relies on grants and donor funding to operate.
By visiting the park and joining our Membership program, you help support the Park’s efforts in preserving PNG’s unique natural environment for future generations, including the Park’s 550 resident animals, majority of which have been surrendered to the Park for care.
Source: Port Moresby Nature Park. org