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Ministry work groups

The Ministry's structure reflects our focus on developing partnerships and strong working relationships to achieve our work priorities.

The Senior Management Group

Leading, directing and linking the work of the Ministry internally and externally is the role of the Chief Executive, Paul Reynolds, who is supported by the Deputy Chief Executive, Lindsay Gow, and five General Managers. The Chief Executive and Deputy Chief Executive ensure that all policy development and actions link together cohesively, and that activities and outcomes are well defined, to ensure everything the Ministry does contributes to a healthy environment.

Central Government Policy

The Central Government Policy Group is led by Prue Densem. The primary focus for the group is to manage and coordinate many ‘whole of government’ work programmes and to lead policy for projects that have a larger national or international focus. The work of the group covers climate change policy, natural resources policy, infrastructure, urban issues, and hazardous substances and new organisms.

Other key work areas are providing support for the Bioethics Council; managing relationships with Ministers and other government agencies; and monitoring the performance of the Environmental Risk Management Authority (ERMA) and the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA).

Local Government

The Local Government Group is led by Sue Powell. The focus of the group is to provide national direction to local government and work collaboratively with councils to ensure a healthy environment. Its work includes developing national policy statements and national environmental standards under the Resource Management Act, and improving the performance of local government under the Resource Management Act. Other key work areas are land use, freshwater management and adaptation to climate change.

Sustainable Business

The Sustainable Business group is led by Rachel Depree. The focus of this group is to harnesses the power of business and the market to drive environmentally sustainable development by connecting people, business and government. Other key work areas are waste minimisation and management and leading government sustainability.

Reporting and Communications

The Reporting and Review group is led by Todd Krieble. It informs the government and the national/international community of the progress being made towards an environment that New Zealanders expect and deserve and environmental data which should be taken into account in decision making. The group is also responsible for the Ministry’s communications activities and our engagement with key stakeholders and the wider community.

Sustainable Households

The Sustainable Households Project reports to the Deputy Chief Executive, Lindsay Gow. The role of the project team is to raise awareness of the simple steps that householders can take to reduce the impact of climate change, improve energy efficiency, and reduce waste and water use.

Maruwhenua

The Maruwhenua team reports to the Chief Executive, Howard Fancy. Its principal role is to ensure that Maori issues are integrated into all aspects of the Ministry’s work. It also provides advice on Treaty of Waitangi claims related to natural resources.

Corporate and Community

The Corporate and Community Group is led by Fiona Morgan. The group is responsible for administration and management of funds that support action in the community. The Corporate and Community Group supports the Ministry’s activities through information management, legal advice, financial systems, organisational capability, human resources, and administrative support. It is also responsible for Ministry reporting and governance issues.