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Staff Update, June 2024
Monday, 24th June 2024
The Hotspots Fire Project’s northern RFS Facilitator Jamie Bertram (pictured) has announced he is stepping into a new role as Aboriginal Programs Coordinator with the NSW Rural Fire Service.
Jamie has been a facilitator with the Hotspots Fire Project and has delivered amazing programs to a wide range of communities across the northern part of the state. Some of his recent workshop series were delivered in: Utungun, Roseberry Creek, Goolawah, Three Headlands, Orara Valley, Wards River, Tingha, Broken Head and many others.
Jamie has also driven the program’s engagement with Indigenous communities, and led the Bushfire Education Workshops initiative, bringing environmental, fire and cultural knowledge to primary school students in the Coffs Harbour region. The team wishes him the best in his new role.
The team also wishes to thank Jennie Cramp for all her work as RFS Hotspots Coordinator since 2016. Jennie has been instrumental in coordinating the strategic direction and joint delivery of the program and supporting real conservation outcomes on the ground. Jennie will be missed and we wish her all the best in her new role.
The team would like to congratulate and welcome Zofie Lahodny-Gecso as the new RFS Hotspots Coordinator. Zofie brings a wealth of knowledge to the role and we look forward to continuing to work with Zofie to deliver the program.
The team also wishes to thank a long-time volunteer Rob Pallin. Rob has acted as the chair of the Hotspots Fire Project Advisory Committee since 2005. Rob has an extensive history in the environmental and fire management space with roles such Chairperson and board member of the Nature Conservation Council of NSW (NCC), NCC representatives for the Lord Howe Island and Illawarra Bush Fire Management Committees, as well as the Ku-ring-gai Council representative on the Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Bush Fire Management Committee. He was also a long-standing representative for NCC on the statewide Bush Fire Coordinating Committee.
Rob has provided invaluable advice and support for the Hotspots Fire Project from its very inception and the program’s team wishes to thank him for all his varied contributions.
Other members of the team who have contributed to the program and have stepped into new roles more recently include NCC Southern Hotspots Ecologist Hannah Etchells and RFS Southern Hotspots Facilitator Jason McWhirter and we look forward to working with them in their new roles.
See our current staff profiles here: https://www.hotspotsfireproject.org.au/staff