North Marine Parks Advisory Committee
The North Marine Parks Advisory Committee promotes the involvement, engagement and collaboration of marine park users, stakeholders and the community in the management of the eight marine parks in the region.
The Committee brings together a wealth of knowledge and expertise across a range of topics relevant to marine park management, including tourism, fishing, sea country, marine transport, science, conservation, governance, communications and engagement.
Committee members will work with Parks Australia staff to shape the management of Australian Marine Parks, providing advice on marine issues at a regional level and strengthening our understanding of park user interests and issues.
This collaborative approach to management is critical to achieving our vision of healthy, resilient and well-managed marine parks that deliver benefits for all Australians.
There will be a minimum of two meetings per year. The next meeting will be held in May 2022.
Members
Committee Members are appointed for a two year term. The current members are:

Jacqui Doyle (Chair)
Jacqui is the Director of the Marine Parks Management North section in the Marine Parks Branch at Parks Australia. She oversees management of the North Marine Parks Network which comprises eight marine parks, and the Ghost Nets Initiative.
Jacqui has a background in marine ecology and environmental law. She brings over 20 years of professional experience working on national environmental policy and program design, review and implementation, particularly in the field of protected area management.
Stakeholder engagement, problem solving and strategic thinking are some of Jacqui’s key strengths.

Ricky Archer
Ricky Archer is a Djungan man from the Western Tablelands region of North Qld.
Ricky has a strong network of on ground land and sea managers across northern Australia from which to draw from and has demonstrated an ability to connect on-ground work of Indigenous organisations with regional, state and commonwealth priorities.
In his current role, Ricky is the Chief Executive Officer of the North Australian Indigenous Land & Sea Management Alliance (NAILSMA). He is involved with numerous organisations and committees enabling strategic input across a diverse field at both state and national levels.
Ricky has a background in geographical information systems, Indigenous knowledge management, and natural & cultural resource management. He is passionate about the advancement and improvement of Indigenous livelihoods across the north.

Rachel Baird
Rachel is an experienced operational executive. She brings experience from a number of areas, including years of legal practice across diverse fields of work including government, the oil and gas industry, and not-for-profit sector.
Rachel has a particular interest in the sustainable use of marine natural resources, fuelled by her masters and doctoral studies focusing on the application of Australian offshore regulation of the marine environment, particularly in relation to illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in Commonwealth waters.
Rachel has held board positions in numerous sectors from education to sport and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, as well as a former long serving Royal Australian Air Force legal Officer with permanent and Specialist Reserve experience.

David Ciaravolo
David has significant experience in the recreational fisheries sector. He is currently Chief Executive Officer at the Amateur Fishermen’s Association of Northern Territory, the peak body representing recreational fishers in the Territory, and a board director at RecFish South Australia.
Passionate about fishing and representing the views of approximately 30,000 recreational fishers across the Territory, David brings a solid understanding of the diverse views of the recreational fishing community in the Top End. He has significant experience in aquatic resource management and is the current chair of the National Fish Habitat Network.
Having participated on a number of natural resource advisory committees, David has experience liaising with government and non-government organisations, leading strategy, and policy development.

Carol Conacher
Carol is marine scientist and currently works as an aquatic ecological consultant. Her research background is focused on the marine and estuarine environments of tropical north Australia, including in the Gulf of Carpentaria and Joseph Bonaparte Gulf.
Carol brings insight and understanding of the marine environment and commercial fishing industry, having previous experience working in state government fisheries management and with the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation.
Carol has extensive knowledge of the north region and the views of key stakeholders, including government and Traditional Owners. She is also a recreational and commercial diver, a trained mediator, and has strong management experience.
Carol is passionate about the role of science in environmental management and conservation of marine areas.

Peter Cox
Peter has been a recreational angler in the North Region for more than 20 years and has extensive knowledge of the recreational fishing, commercial fishing, and tourism industries.
Peter has represented recreational fishers at local, Northern Territory and National levels, including his previous participation as a Bioregional Advisory Panel Member for the Commonwealth Marine Reserves Review.
Peter is the current Chair of the IGFA Oceania Regional Council Development Committee. He is past Vice President of the Game Fishing Association Australia, and past President of the Northern Territory Game Fishing Association and Nhulunbuy Regional Sports Fishing Club. He brings with him a wealth of local knowledge and connections to the recreational fishing community in the Territory.

Robert Fish
Robert has worked in Northern Territory fisheries for over 15 years, including with the Territory’s larger offshore fisheries. The quota-managed fisheries target fish in offshore waters including within and adjacent to the North Marine Parks Network.
A Darwin local for over 10 years, Robert’s experience working in resource management and directly with industry, have provided him with a sound understanding of natural resource management, governance and administration, and associated practical applications for industry.
Robert has been an active board member on the Northern Territory Seafood Council (NTSC) as Chair for over eleven years and currently represents the Northern Territory Demersal Fishery. The NTSC is an organisation aimed at supporting the local seafood industry and licence holders across a range of fora, including through representation on government and regional Aboriginal fishery consultative committees.

Jason Fowler
Jason has a long and varied background in marine conservation in northern Australia.
As a long-term Broome resident and marine ecologist, Jason worked with stakeholders including Traditional Owners, the oil and gas, mining, commercial and recreational fishing, marine tourism, and conservation sectors to achieve collaborative outcomes during the creation of the Great Kimberley Marine Park in WA. More recently he was the Marine Campaign Manager for the Australian Marine Conservation Society in the Northern Territory and helped to establish the Limmen Bight Marine Park.
Now Jason is the Energy Campaigner with the Environment Centre NT, promoting a vision of the NT’s energy future that relies on renewable energy rather than offshore oil and gas. Jason is an avid fisherman and yachtsman and has led dozens of expeditions with scientists and filmmakers along the coast between Broome and Darwin.

John Glaister
Raised in the Northern Territory, John has extensive experience in natural resource management, including with the science and government sectors in Australia and New Zealand.
As previous Director General of the Queensland Department of National Parks, Recreation, Sport and Racing, John was responsible for managing terrestrial and marine parks and worked in conjunction with the Federal Government to implement the Great Barrier Reef Field Management Program.
Prior to that, John worked in fisheries management in the Territory, conducting monitoring surveys for a range of commercial fish species across areas off eastern Arnhem Land and in the Gulf of Carpentaria. John now runs his own consulting business.

Jackie Gould
Jackie is a post-doctoral fellow with Charles Darwin University and the Australian Institute of Marine Science, and has a PhD in anthropology from the Australian National University.
She previously worked with the Aboriginal Areas Protection Authority where she developed relationships with local communities, Traditional Owners and Indigenous land and sea management groups, including those with interests in and adjacent to marine parks in the North Marine Region.
Since then, Jackie has continued working with Traditional Owners and Indigenous ranger groups on Sea Country values mapping projects and the development of Sea Country Indigenous Protected Areas.
With 15 years of experience working on collaborative projects with coastal Indigenous groups in the Northern Territory, Jackie’s current research focuses on Indigenous knowledge of the marine environment and Indigenous Sea Country management strategies. Jackie is an avid recreational fisher and diver.

Ian Knuckey
Ian has many years’ experience working as a principal scientific investigator, designing and implementing independent surveys and scientific monitoring programs in coastal and marine fisheries.
In these roles, Ian has worked directly with seafood and fishing stakeholders, in Australia and overseas, to encourage and promote sustainable fishing practices. Previously, Ian was closely involved in the development of the Soouth-east Marine Park, particularly relating to fishery impact and risk assessments.
Ian has worked as an independent consultant for 20 years. His current relevant appointments include: Deputy Chair of Victoria’s new Marine and Coastal Council, Chair of the Torres Strait Rock Lobster Resource Assessment Group, and Chair of the Northern Prawn Fishery Resource Assessment Group.
He has expanded his interests to coastal and marine planning and management, incorporating input from both extractive and non-extractive user groups.

Christine Lamont
Christine is a marine ecologist with over 20 years of marine and coastal research, industry and regulatory experience.
She currently works for Australia’s offshore energy regulator NOPSEMA, who are responsible for the oversight of offshore oil and gas activities in Commonwealth waters. Christine’s role is focused on the environmental impact assessments and marine monitoring programs conducted by oil and gas companies to ensure sound environmental outcomes are achieved.
Christine has extensive experience in leading and assessing large environmental impact assessments and marine monitoring projects throughout the South-west, North-west and the North Marine Bioregions.
Having taken a leading role in stakeholder engagement and agency representation in her current and previous roles, Christine is keen to share her interest in marine environmental protection through the Advisory Committee.

Jade Ritchie
Jade is a Senior Executive Officer for the Department of the Chief Minister and Cabinet, having joined the Northern Territory Government in 2014 after 10 years’ service with Queensland Government. Jade has worked across areas focussed on business and economic development, youth justice and most recently Aboriginal affairs.
Jade, a Gooreng Gooreng woman, was raised in Bundaberg, Queensland on her Grandmother’s Country and now lives and works on Larrakia Country in Darwin, Northern Territory.
Jade has qualifications in Business and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, Project Management and is currently studying a Bachelor of Laws at Charles Darwin University.
Jade has a personal and professional goal to assist in increasing Indigenous participation in education, employment and all areas of economic development.
A member of the Indigenous Innovation Alliance Steering Committee, Jade advocates for innovative solutions that put Culture, land and sea management and social benefit in the forefront of all decision making whilst demonstrating commercial viability.
Learn more about what’s being discussed at committee meetings and related content.
Meeting Communiques
After every meeting, we’ll summarise discussion topics and important points in a meeting communique.
- Meeting seven: 23/24 June 2022
- Meeting six: 24 November 2021
- Meeting five: 24 June 2021
- Meeting four: 2 December 2020
- Meeting three: 26 May 2020
- Meeting two: 4 December 2019
- Meeting one: 12 June 2019
The inaugural meeting of the North Marine Parks Advisory Committee (NMPAC) marked the beginning of a two year term for the 13 newly appointed members. Individual members were selected from a large number of applicants who responded to a public expression of interest process open to all Australians last year.
Get in touch
Would you like to know more about the North Marine Parks Advisory Committee? Are you interested in presenting at a meeting, providing information about a relevant issue, event or project, or contacting a member?
For all these inquiries and more, please email the Committee Secretariat.
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