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The Board

Governance

RDAFN is governed by a Board of 10 members including the Chair and Deputy Chair. Board Members are appointed via an application process through the Commonwealth, State and Local Government Association. Board members are committed volunteers appointed from the region and represent the community, business and Local Government.

The Board meets on the third Thursday of each month with every second meeting being a Finance Meeting.

Members

Ms Jennifer Cleary
Chair

Jennifer holds the positions of Research Associate and Senior Research Development Manager within the Centre for Rural Health and Community Development at the University of South Australia. She is based at the Centre for Regional Engagement in Whyalla.

Prior to taking up her role with the University of SA, Jennifer led a national research project with the Desert Knowledge Cooperative Research Centre. Other roles have included a community development program leadership role in SA Government and as an education manager and lecturer in TAFE SA.

Jennifer has a passion for rural and remote community and economic development and the value it contributes to the rest of Australia. She has developed national and international networks in these fields. She is a member of the Outback Communities Alliance, International Rural Network, the International Food and Agribusiness Management Association, Scottish and Canadian rural networks and a number of other bodies and organisations. Jennifer lives with her family in Port Augusta.
jen.cleary@unisa.edu.au

Mr Andre Kuys
Deputy Chair

Andre holds the position of General Manager for the Augusta Power Stations. Andre is an engineer with particular expertise in power plant construction, commissioning, operations, maintenance and project development and management.

Andre was the Chair of the Northern Regional Development Board and is a former member of both the Port Augusta and the Northern and Far Western Regional Health Services Inc.
andre.kuys@bbpower.com

Board Members

Geoff Hood

Geoff has been Manager of Downer EDI Rail work shops in Port Augusta for the last 11 years; DEDIR is the second largest private employer in Port Augusta. He was a Board Member of NRDB for over 6 years, the last couple as Deputy Chair, Board member of Global Maintenance USG which included the position of Co Chair during it's initial founding and Chair for the last eight years. Geoff is also a Board Member of RESA who was invited by the State Government as the USG Industry representative; he is also a Member of the Polly Farmer – Partnership for Success Port Augusta advisory group.
geoff.hood@downeredirail.com.au

Kaye Doyle
Secretary

Kaye was born in WA; she has travelled and worked all over Australia over 30 years including 10 years living and working in Canada. Her work varied and included extensive administration work in the mining industry plus many local community economic development activities ranging from school community participation, youth centres and a local newspaper.

Kaye is currently employed by GHD (engineering company) as their Project Officer based in Roxby Downs. Kaye has a large involvement with community through her roles as Chair of the RoxFM Radio, Sports and Recreation Forum, the Charter President of Rotary Club of Roxby District and currently an Assistant Governor for Area 8. Kaye is also a Member of the Spencer Gulf Rural Health School Advisory Council and an Alumni member of the South Australia Rural Leadership Program 2008. Kaye is a passionate community member, concerned about regional development especially in our area of the Far North.
kaye.doyle@ghd.com.au

Malcolm McKenzie

Malcolm comes from the Adnyamathanha Urjita Tribe, Adnyamathanha reflects his Fathers Tribe who came from the Flinders Ranges and Lujrita refects his Mothers Tribe who came from the northern part of Australia. Born in Hawker in 1952, Malcolm lived on Wirrealpa Station until he was seven, in the late sixties he moved to Port Augusta living at the Umeewarra Mission which later became Davenport Community. Malcolm is very proud to say he has got where his is now through his own hard work, sheer persistence and commitment without relying on others.

Malcolm has had a diversity of roles throughout his career; he spent 20 years with the Railways, and then moved onto Pika Wiya, Davenport Community Council, and Aboriginal Prisoners Office of Support Services and currently with Exact Mining. Malcolm is proud to say that he works with two of his grandchildren who are also employed by Exact Mining, one as an Apprentice Boiler Maker and the other as an Apprentice Diesel Mechanic.

Malcolm is a very community minded person, he sat on the Port Augusta City Council’s Dry Zone Steering Committee, was voted by his peers to be their representative on the Port Augusta Aboriginal Advisory Committee, was Acting CEO of Davenport Community Council and was heavily involved with the establishment of the Lake View Short Term Accommodation facility and the Davenport ETSA Training Centre which gives Aboriginal young people a career path into ETSA. Malcolm is also a Director on the current Port Augusta Civil & Mining which is a joint venture between Exact Mining and Davenport.

Malcolm looks forward to working with RDAFN staff, fellow Board Members and local business in partnership with Aboriginal people to build their skills to contribute to our communities in a positive way and be part of the workforce. Malcolm is keen to assist the RDAFN to engage people on the Lands to consider and look at economic opportunities for the future of their Communities and individuals to look after their land.
malcolmmckenzie22@yahoo.com.au

Mark Sutton
(Local Government Representative)

Mark is the General Manager of the Outback Communities Authority, a State Government of South Australia Statutory Authority responsible for community development and limited “local government” function in the out-of-councils area of the state.

Mark has a deep seeded passion for the outback, developed over a period of eighteen years living and working in the region. Mark first arrived in the Outback in 1993 as a young Constable with the South Australia Police stationed at Leigh Creek Police Station. Over the ensuing nine years until 2002, he lived and/or worked at Marree, Innamincka, Marla and the Pitjantjatjara Lands, Coober Pedy, Woomera, Roxby Downs, Andamooka, William Creek and finally at Oodnadatta.

It was at Oodnadatta where his passion for the outback manifested into a more formal community development direction. Mark served as the Chair of the Oodnadatta Progress Association from 1999 until 2002, a position, likened to a town Mayor, which oversaw all municipal activity in the town. This position allowed Mark to work closely with the Outback Areas Community Development Trust (the predecessor to the Outback Communities Authority). When the opportunity to take up a new role with the Trust as a Community Development Officer, Mark resigned from the South Australia Police and moved to Port Augusta in 2002.

Initially employed as a Community Development Officer, the premature departure of the Trust’s Manager provided an opportunity for Mark to relieve and ultimately confirm himself in that position in 2003. Since that time Mark has overseen a significant increase in the local government function of the Trust brought about by significant change in economic, social and environmental activity in the region. These changes culminated in July 2010 with the creation of the Outback Communities Authority, of which Mark is the inaugural General Manager.

Mark’s knowledge of the region and its people is widely acknowledged and his input is widely sought in the development of regional policy ranging from economic development to drought response to infrastructure provision. Mark is the Chair of the Far North Emergency Management Committee, Member of the Far North Regional Coordination Network, Member of the Outback Bushfire Management Committee, Member of the Rangelands Drought Task Force and inaugural Member of the Outback SA Community Alliance.
mark.sutton@sa.gov.au

Richard Trevena

Richard was educated in Adelaide and left in 1969 to work in the pastoral industry. He has worked as a drover, stockman, jackeroo, overseer and manager. His last job on the land was as manager of the cattle project at Amata on the North West Aboriginal Reserve, now the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands. This was punctuated by a time as a soldier (National Service 1972/73).

After leaving the APY Lands he studied Wildlife and Park Management (working part time as an outdoor educator, tour guide/driver, forest ranger) then worked for the State Government (Department of Lands) on the West Coast at Ceduna.

Since 1986 he has worked in Indigenous affairs with the Northern Land Council, Department of Aboriginal Affairs (Commonwealth), the Aboriginal Development Commission, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission and subsequently in the mainstream agencies with Indigenous Co-ordination Centres. He has worked in Ceduna and Port Augusta (SA), Broome (WA), Queanbeyan (NSW) and Tasmania. He was a Government Business Manager with the Northern Territory Emergency Response and is currently working with the NTER again at Utopia temporarily. Richard was a Board Member of the NRDB.
richard.trevena@icc.gov.au

Rose Marie Berry

Rose is the presiding member for the Health Advisory Committee for Coober Pedy Hospital, Board Member of the Northern Regional Development Board in South Australia for 7 years, and continuing with the Regional Development Australia Far North Board.

Rose is interested in economic development and tourism in South Australia, her husband and her own three successful businesses.

Rose is a Special Justice with a passion for law, she is on the Premier's Office for Women’s Directory and has been honoured with recognition from His Excellency the Governor of South Australia for 30 years Justice Volunteer work and then more recently was awarded a place on the Women's Honor Roll in Government House.
rosie_berry@bigond.com

Steve Staines

Stephen has had a 15 year association with the Far North of South Australia having lived in Coober Pedy since 1995. He has skills and experience in project management, event management, budget preparation, grant writing, job creation and investment attraction. Stephen’s previous and current employment roles put him in contact with many businesses from throughout the region to produce meaningful outcomes.

He has a strong sense of community having served Far North SA on numerous committees and industry groups over the years with the majority bringing economic and/or social prosperity to the area. Stephen’s past employment includes local government and regional economic development roles.

He is currently employed by IMX Resources Ltd which provides the RDA Far North with a direct conduit into the emerging small to mid tier mining industry within the region.
sstaines@imxres.com.au

Tony Mitchell
(Local Government Representative)

Tony moved to Port Augusta in 1994 and after working for several businesses formed the company Crossroads Concepts Pty Ltd with Business partner Shane Packard, they purchased an existing business Rossigns and established Multi Print SA.

Tony has a background of 28 years in the printing trade and has seen many changes over the course of this time. This year is his 9th year in business. He purchased another sign writing business in Port Lincoln and ran that successfully for three years until recently selling it.

Soon after moving to Port Augusta he joined the Port Augusta Tourist Committee and saw the formation of Port Augusta Focus, which is now Business Port Augusta, a member based association that represents business in Port Augusta. He was a founding member of the Original Afghan Express Committee which successfully campaigned and raised funds for the extension of the Pichi Richi Railway line into Port Augusta.

For several years he was a Board Member of Global Maintenance Upper Spencer Gulf (GMUSG) as the representative for businesses with up to 10 employees. He was an Inaugural member, and then Chairperson, of the Upper Spencer Gulf Business Incubator Network (USGBIN). Tony has been a member on the newly formed Community Development Assessment Panels and has been deputy presiding member for the past year and is currently the Chairperson of the Port Augusta Council City Management Committee.

For the past two-terms he has been an Elected Member (Councillor) of the City of Port Augusta. He has a strong passion for economic development, tourism and small business and believes he gives good representation to Council on these issues.
tony@crossroadsconcepts.com.au