Governance

Grant is Chief Regulatory Officer of the Natural Resources Access Regulator (NRAR), and has been a member of the inaugural AELERT National Council since 2022, including a term as Deputy Chair.

Grant is a highly regarded regulator within the AELERT Community and beyond. As NRAR’s Chief Regulatory Officer, Grant is responsible for the day-to-day operations of NRAR.

He has led NRAR since its establishment in 2018 and has more than 15 years’ experience in senior leadership roles in natural resource management and regulatory practice.

As NRAR’s Chief Regulatory Officer, Grant is responsible for the day-to-day operations of NRAR.

This includes building NRAR’s regulatory capacity and capability to deliver on the NSW Government’s commitment to best practice regulation, as well as building and sustaining effective relationships with key stakeholders, establishing good governance and high levels of ethical practice within NRAR, and working with the board to progress its agenda.

Gregory is seconded from the Natural Resources Access Regulator (NRAR) where he was the Director of Education and Engagement, and previously the Director Water Regulation where he led the building and maturing of a new, independent natural resource regulator. He has led NRAR to proactively engage stakeholders, understand them better and enable them to solve regulatory problems. He has championed protection and recognition of Aboriginal cultural and spiritual values connected to land and water.

During his 23 years of experience in the field, he has led initiatives to solve complex regional, industrial, and statewide regulatory issues in pollution, biodiversity conservation, chemicals, native forestry, land management, and water management.

Committed to serving in the public interest, Gregory has honed his regulatory craft and employs a full suite of tools and his own insights to affect real change and meaningful outcomes on the ground. He is an advocate of proactive regulation and effective regulatory laws, and is adept at engaging and mobilising stakeholders to amplify reach and influence. 

As chief executive officer of the Australasian Environmental Law Enforcement and Regulator’s Network (AELERT), Gregory utilises his passion for regulation, experience in exercising the regulatory craft, and a natural leadership style focused on connecting people to strengthen the network and provide value to its members. He is particularly focussed on connecting members to AELERT’s international regulatory network partners in North America, Asia and Europe to facilitate new opportunities to collaborate and innovate at a global level. 

If you have a question or would like to catch up with Greg, please contact the Leadership Team at any time.

Amy is the Executive Director of the Environment Regulation Division in the Department of Parks, Environment and Water Security.

She specialises in energy and environmental policy and has been committed to the sustainable economic development in the Northern Territory (NT) for over 12 years.

She first came to the NT in 2010 as a solicitor at the Northern Land Council. She moved to Government in 2014 and has been mainly working in the environment and energy space during that period. Amy has a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons 1, University Medal) and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of New South Wales.

She has a Master of Laws (University Medal) from the Centre for Energy, Petroleum, Mineral Law and Policy at the University of Dundee, UK. She completed a Masters of Public Administration as a Fulbright Scholar from the Harvard Kennedy School in 2019 and is currently working on a Master of Liberal Arts (Sustainability) from the Harvard Extension School as a Monash scholar.

Luke is a former wildlife enforcement ranger and Commonwealth Principal Investigator.  During this time he led numerous complex investigations particularly in the field of international wildlife trafficking as well as being seconded to the Australian Crime Commission. Luke became involved with AELERT at the first meeting of wildlife officers at the ANU in the early 2000s where the need to formalise an Australasian body to facilitate better environmental regulation and enforcement was born.

In 2012 and 2013 he was Chair of the Operations Cluster working in forest regulation with the NSW EPA before joining INTERPOL in 2015 as a criminal intelligence officer (investigator) focused on wildlife crime in Central and Southeast Asia. During this period, he was responsible for coordinating transnational operations, capacity development including the coordination of regional task force meetings and preparation and delivery of training to Police, Customs and Rangers.  He has collaborated with CITES, the UNODC, EUROPOL on numerous law enforcement and as well as environment agencies across Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and North America. 

Since 2016 he has worked as a consultant providing investigations and occupational safety training to clients in Australia, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan, as well as providing specialist advice to the International Fund for Animal Welfare and enforcement needs assessments in South East Asia (US INL).  Upon returning to Tasmania, he has worked in wildlife enforcement, Tasmania Police, Biosecurity Tas (Animal Welfare) and in February 2024 will commence as the compliance manager with the Forest Practices Authority.

Luke has continuously endorsed and supported the key AELERT objectives of practitioner support, collaboration and cooperation to solve problems and enhance capabilities.  He brings over 25 years of national and international practitioner experience both at the strategic and operational level.  

Derek has been working in Local Government specialising in the Environmental, Health, Regulation and Enforcement and Emergency Management functions for the past 20 years in QLD and NSW councils.

He has an interest in exploring principles of best practice regulation and standardising program delivery and decision making, to improve the regulatory outcomes for the community whilst managing increased demand.

Currently as the Environmental Regulation and Compliance Manager at Lake Macquarie City Council, Derek leads a department of specialised compliance teams that historically operated in silos.

The development and implementation of a risk based regulatory activities policy and frame work has seen the creation of a uniform and risk based compliance team that deliver transparent and measurable services to the community.

Germaine is a Senior Regulatory Executive with over 20 years’ national and international experience in regulatory delivery and reform under a range of legislative frameworks to deliver a variety of government priorities and objectives.

Germaine has experience in international waste shipment regulation under the European Union’s Network for the Implementation and Enforcement of Environmental Law Program and in the practical application of a wide range of environmental legislation both in Ireland and Australia.

She is on the Steering Committee of both the Australian Environmental Regulators Network and the Western Australian Chapter of the National Regulators Community of Practice. She is passionate about contemporary regulatory practice and effective public service as well as values-based leadership.

Germaine holds a Bachelor of Science with Honours from the University of Aberdeen, Scotland and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Lisa is the Director of the Government Regulatory Practice Initiative (G-REG) in Aotearoa New Zealand. Her team are building on the original vision for the G-REG Initiative, developing fit for the future programmes and resources for regulators, and ensuring that the initiative endures, and will adapt and grow to achieve its potential. She is passionate about creating space for regulatory professionals where they can learn from each other, share knowledge, and develop a shared culture.

Prior to G-REG, Lisa was Director, Regulatory Strategy & Performance with the Department of Internal Affairs’ Regulatory Services Group, and Director, Gambling Regulatory System, following a period at the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment as Director Regulatory Partners in MBIE’s Building System Performance Branch. She also has experience in professional membership organisations including the Royal Australasian College of Physicians, and the Institute of Directors in New Zealand.

As the Council’s independent member, Lisa provides expertise in regulatory system design, capability, and stewardship across a range of operational contexts and regulatory functions.

Kate is the inaugural Chief Conservation Regulator for Victoria. Commencing in 2019, Kate has led the establishment of the Conservation Regulator in Victoria and continues to lead significant reform to develop an effective, best-practice and effective regulator for wildlife, forestry and public land crime for Victoria. 

Over her career Kate has delivered significant environment protection reforms and prior to this current role, lead the modernisation of Victoria’s Environment Protection Act, a once in a generation reform. 

Kate is committed to championing innovation, collaboration and capability building within the areas she leads with a focus on empowering staff to deliver for the Victorian community.

Paul is an experienced leader with a proven record of achievement in the public and private sectors, including 16 years as a regulator across the mining and environmental sectors.

Paul holds a Bachelor of Environmental Science (First Class Honours) and a Master of Business Administration. Paul is employed as the Director, Mining Regulation with the Department of Energy and Mining, South Australia.

In his current role, Paul is responsible for all aspects of the regulation of the mining and quarrying sector in SA under the Mining Act 1971 and related legislation, including environmental assessments, licencing and approvals, compliance, investigations and enforcement, and mine closure.

Paul is passionate about change management and driving regulatory capability development. He looks forward to providing a strategic contribution to the broader regulatory network through the AELERT National Council, where he can share his knowledge, experiences, leadership skills and understanding of the regulatory environment, whilst continuing to learn from others.

Cameron Grebe leads NOPSEMA’s Environment, Renewables and Decommissioning Division since joining the regulator in August 2011, following 16 years as an environmental engineer, adviser, and manager at BHP, Woodside Energy and Shell Global Solutions International.

Cameron is responsible for leading NOPSEMA’s regulatory oversight of offshore renewables as well as decommissioning and environmental management for all offshore petroleum activities in Commonwealth waters.

Cameron led the inception and implementation of NOPSEMA’s regulation of environmental management, which involved a comprehensive stakeholder engagement and streamlining program. He continues to work within NOPSEMA’s leadership team to ensure offshore energy industries take place with appropriate protections for offshore workers and the environment. This has included substantial stakeholder engagement, reforms to improve transparency, consultation processes and more recently decommissioning and leads NOPSEMA’s work with the Federal Government to establish and implement the offshore renewable energy regulatory framework.

Cameron is Australia’s representative and current Chair of the International Offshore Petroleum Environment Regulators forum (IOPER) and a member of the National Committee for the Australasian Environmental Law Enforcement Network (AELERT).

Cameron holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Environmental Engineering) from RMIT University and a Post Graduate Diploma in Energy Studies from Murdoch University.

Graeme is the Assistant Secretary of the Compliance and Enforcement Branch of the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. The role leads compliance and enforcement activities involving contraventions of Australia’s national environmental laws.

Graeme has extensive domestic and international law enforcement experience having worked in the field for over 25 years as a sworn officer of the Australian Federal Police, Australian Border Force and NSW Police in various leadership, investigation and enabling roles.

He is passionate about empowering staff, driving culture and capability, and working with others to maximise outcomes, essential for leading his Branch’s role in the Australian Government’s Nature Positive agenda relating to enhanced compliance and enforcement, and the establishment of Environment Protection Australia.

Graeme holds post-graduate leadership qualifications and a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of NSW.

Kate is the Director of Southeast Compliance in the Environmental Services Regulation division of the Queensland Department of Environment and Science.

She is responsible for leading teams of staff to deliver a program of reactive and proactive environmental compliance across Southeast Queensland in response to environmental risks, community concerns, weather events, incidents and industry feedback.

Major industry sectors regulated include waste, environmental authority holders, coastal, heritage, utilities, infrastructure projects and quarries. Kate has also been involved in providing advice to government about the options for an independent EPA for Queensland. She has a keen interest in the role of the regulator in responding to wider challenges like emerging contaminants, climate change, natural disasters and increasing population density.

Kate came to the department as a Lawyer with carriage of major environmental prosecutions, land court objections hearings and planning and environment court appeals for the state.

She holds a Bachelor of Laws and a Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice from Queensland University of Technology and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Southern Queensland.