Linda Bowden - Chair

​Linda moved to French Island with her young family in 2009 after a successful career with a large multi-national investment bank in Melbourne. Prior to that she has fond memories of working in the Policy Section of the Victorian Farmers Federation at the time Heather Mitchell was President and the Landcare movement was evolving in the late 1980s. She currently runs her own small gardening/maintenance business and is a tour guide sharing the unique lifestyle and the extensive flora and fauna, rich history and the joys of living on French Island. She has also completed a Permaculture Design Certificate and has aimed to apply those principles living self-sufficiently and sustainably on a 50 acre, off-grid farming property. She is an active
volunteer within the French Island community, including the local CFA brigade, Secretary of the Community Association and Treasurer of the Community Hall. She is a member of the French Island Landcare Group.

Ric Oldham - vice chair

Ric first established his Bass Coast farming roots in Archies Creek in 1978.   Ric is an active community member within the Bass Coast as a CFA volunteer, co-founder of the Bass Coast Cycle Challenge and co-organiser the Crush Ice drug and alcohol community information and support program.  He has been a member of the Bass Valley Landcare Group since its inception and held the role of president of the group for 3 years.  As joint owner and operator of an Angus beef farm at Archies Creek for the past twenty years Ric and his wife Mez look to sustainably optimise their agricultural enterprise whilst protecting and enhancing their natural environment.
As a professional civil engineer with a career spanning four decades, Ric has delivered major projects within the public infrastructure, mining, transport and telecommunications sectors throughout Australia, New Zealand, Asia and North America. He is an experienced senior executive, recognised for values driven leadership, developing high performing collaborative teams and delivering exceptional innovative results. Ric hopes to translate his corporate skills and experience to further support likeminded passionate people doing great things to secure and enhance the natural, social and economic environment of the Bass Coast for generations to come.

Bill Irving - Secretary

Bill was raised on a dairy farm near Bena in the South Gippsland hills. After gaining an economics degree, a corporate career in the grain industry, and then financial markets followed. This was combined with a role offering risk management consulting to the grain industry. The home farm was purchased in the early 2000s and revegetation commenced soon after. Bill has been an active Landcare member since this time. The impact of Landcare's efforts to repair the physical environment and the positive impact of this work on both animal and human alike are what drew Bill to the organisation. His background in the corporate world adds to the managerial and advisory resource base the board provides to BCLN management.

ROGER LEE - Treasurer

​After departing the corporate world ten years ago Roger chose to buy a farm at Blackwood Forest and "retire?" as a sheep farmer.  Roger quickly recognised the benefits of adopting good land management practices and embarked on a plan to revegetate his property. So began an involvement with Landcare and a passion for working with others to build a sustainable future for Bass Coast.  With a background in accounting and business management Roger brings some valuable skills to his role on the board.  

DON CREED

Don moved with his family to Outtrim in South Gippsland 30 years ago attracted by the unspoiled country side and uncrowded coast. Now retired, he runs a small beef breeding enterprise, has been a member of Korumburra Landcare for many years and loves getting trees in the ground. Don brings skills from his working life where he was a FCPA working in Accounting, IT and Auditing. 

PAUL SPeiRS

Paul moved to Archies Creek in 1990 from Melbourne to have more room to make compost, grow veggies and beef, and three sons.  As a founding member of the Archies Creek Reforestation Group, he worked with his neighbours to eradicate weeds and recreate wildlife corridors linking Gorge creek with the Powlett River.  With the inception of the Powlett Project in 1996, Paul bought a catchment wide vision to revegetate streamsides, adjacent steep slopes and gullies, and since that time over 2 million plants have been established.  Paul's other Landcare involvements include, a long standing Board member of BCLN, a 3 Creeks Landcare Member, and winner of the West Gippsland Lyrebird Awards in 2010.  An elder of the 'bush doof' community, Paul was part of Tranceplant, delivering innovative tree planting parties in Victoria.  

NICK SIBLY

​Nick was born in Wonthaggi and raised on a dairy/beef farm in Woolamai. He works locally at Wonthaggi Secondary College as the campus manager. He and his wife Caroline run a small Angus beef herd and dabble in bee keeping and garlic growing. They have four beautiful teenage daughters who keep them on their toes. Nick has been a member of the 3 Creeks Landcare group for a number of years and was president from 2017 till 2020. Nick has always had a love for the bush and was able to help his father Barry when they started fencing off remnant trees in the early 1980s. Over the last 35 years the farm has been transformed as the trees, that have been planted and protected, have grown and matured. There is still much work to be done. Now that he and Caroline have their own piece of creek they have been able to fence off more of the creek that is part of the Bridge Creek Biolink. Nick has organised many planting days with the students at Wonthaggi Secondary College and plans to continue this invaluable work as it gives the students a chance to make a real difference in their community.

Ken Connor

Ken grew up on a dairy farm in North East Victoria. After graduating as a Civil Engineer he worked for the Dandenong Valley Authority in the developing south eastern suburbs of Melbounre. It was here he developed a passion for restoring and stabilising open waterways/creeks in residential and rural areas. Ken pioneered and championed so called ‘soft engineering’ techniques to help restore and develop degraded waterways. After 16 years he started his own company specialising in waterway management which included wetland development. This operated statewide for a further 15 years.
Along the way he and his business partner purchased a farm at Inverloch which is bordered by Screw Creek. They soon fenced off 10 hectares adjacent to the creek to restrict stock access and allow additional planting. Much of the area has remnant vegetation. This was supplemented with planting (tube-stock and direct seeding) and now forms an important wildlife corridor and riparian zone along the creek. 
Ken has belonged to Landcare since he bought the property in 1999. Caring for the land remains an important priority for him. 

Jeannie Coffey

Carolyn Atherton

Carolyn is relatively new to Australia, second generation, with both sides of her ancestry from England and Scotland, coming to a country offering opportunity.  
Her paternal grandparents started their married lives in Archies Creek, with her Grandfather working at the butter factory until he could buy a farm at Kilcunda covered in blackberries. Although he was told he had wasted his money, he would eventually remove the weeds and turn his dream into a reality, and this is where they would live the rest of their lives.
Carolyn's maternal grandfather came to mine coal.  His father came from Scotland first to settle then the family followed a short time later.  He worked in the mine from a very young age and went to night school to achieve further qualifications that would see him become the last mine manager for the Wonthaggi operation.
Being very fortunate growing up in a wonderful environment with such family diversity and now being part of the Landcare community, Carolyn's hope is that we can foster innovation and revegetation to this wonderful landscape and promote a nurturing environment for all in the community.  

"We encourage individuals and Community Groups to submit project applications, no matter how large or small, for consideration as part of the BCLN Public Fund”