Women of the Wetlands

By Geoff Nicholls

Where do we begin in showing the great influence women have had on the growth and development of the Hunter Wetlands Centre?

Perhaps with original founders such as Wilma Barden with her guidance given in establishing the site as a sanctuary for waterbirds? Or the early founders of community involvement, the SWANS (Shortland Wetlands Always Need Supporters), who hosted our “Breakfasts with the Birds”? Women such as Doreen Bull at the helm with her regular supporters providing light refreshments and guided walks. Diane Rogers springs to mind – a stalwart of the breakfasts, along with her mum, Thelma, and a consistent leader of walks and talks, introducing over a generation of visitors to the sights and sounds of our wetlands.

Diane also led bush regeneration and gardening tasks on site, as did Wilma when she established her first teams of crews dedicated to this purpose, creating a template for participation copied to this day. Doreen, herself, contributed a model for site maintenance by inviting scouting groups to perform working bees – a practice that evolved into our commissioning of Green Corps, Green Army, and even university students as willing workers drawn from external organisations. All of these groups have included, and many have been led by female operators, some of whom, like Stacy Mail, have continued with careers in Landcare and environmental management. A stand-out individual in the sphere of Landcare at Hunter Wetlands has been Jenny Castles, who has been involved in the area for over three decades. Jenny served as our volunteer coordinator, as well as running her own bush regeneration team.

Wetlands Education & Research:  inspiring the next generation

With the establishment of the Shortland Wetlands Consultancy, research scientists Sharryn Brown and Richelle (nee) Hughes were employed – acting with the team, for a period of time, as Hunter Wetlands’ primary bread-winners. Female scientists such as Peggy Svoboda and Sue Rostas were instrumental to the progress of our sister stakeholder, the Kooragang Wetlands Rehabilitation Project. While Sharon Vernon from the Catchment Management Authority negotiated asuccessful rehabilitation of Hexham Swamp with the re-opening of floodgates on Ironbark Creek. And Michelle Stockwell gained a PhD as a result of her research on the comparative effects of chytrid fungus on green and golden bell frogs in Shortland Wetlands and on Ash Island.

There are generations of Hunter citizens, and beyond, who have learned about wetlands ecology thanks to the pioneering Awabakal Field Studies Centre staffed by prominent educators, Christine Prietto and Carolyn Gillard. This valuable legacy has continued with the teaching staff now housed in a multi-purposeDepartment of Education building. Christine, along with Louise Duff (our CEO at the time) was instrumental in gaining Ramsar listing for our Hunter Wetlands Centre – and an international reputation for the classroom qualities of our site. Chris has represented Australia over many years as a Ramsar delegate and chaired our board of directors. While Louise has established a formidable identity as an environmental facilitator and consultant specialising in wetlands conservation. Carolyn has purposefully provided most of the text for our information booklets and signage, while also serving on our board of directors for many years. She was also responsible for significant landscaping designs on site (such as the bush-tucker garden and around the new education building) and still fronts as one of our most experienced guides. Along with these remarkable leaders in our scientific and educational community there have been numerous female companions in roles of administration and field work.

Community Engagement through nature-based tourism

As the Wetlands Centre grew as a tourist destination, attention was given to the features provided by the visitors centre. A thriving café arose at the hands of Pauline Price and Carol Brogan, emulating those in Darby and Beaumont Streets, yet equalling them in no time with the standard of wholesome meals and friendly customer service. Along with the drawcard of our menu and view, visitors centre managers, all of them women, have long created events, within the building and on the grounds, which bring the public’s attention to the values of our wetlands. Originally, Jen Ruming was behind such programmes as ‘jazz in the wetlands’, ‘opera in the wetlands’ and ‘buskers with the birds’. These grew to become our huge weekend extravaganzas in conjunction with the Australian Plants Society, Hunter Native Orchids, and the Society of Frogs and Reptiles. And who could forget the incredibly successful multiple seasons of “Wind in the Willows”, performed by the all-female cast of Shakespeare et al? Pauline left Café Jacana in the capable hands of the two Carols (Brogan and Killen), and took up the mantle of visitors centre manager from Tina Wilson and Clare Crock ford who preceded her. These days, Val Noake and Christine Judd are at the helm of creative uses of the site. Their ‘yarn bombings’, teddy bears picnics, bats and bees themed projects and school holiday activities have been highly popular. And Val has been pivotal in bringing us the ‘dinosaur spectaculars’, the likes of which have never been seen in the area before. Behind the scenes of these well organised events are troopers often not recognised because of their costumes. In past years, Marion Walker would dress as a giant egret, delighting many children on our open days. And in more recent times, Lianna Guo presents as a wonderful Easter bunny (Lianna along with Anne Chung also translates Hunter Wetlands’ documents into Mandarin).

In tandem with our cultural and educational events, the Centre’s buildings have been internally and externally decorated with a host of eye-catching, informative murals by local artists, all women. Tallulah Cunningham’s clever artwork can be found in our gift shop and is soon to be presented outside with her “Hidden House” project.

Site interpretation was originally in the position description for Anne-Maree Hunter, who took on that role in the burgeoning years of the organisation. Anne-Maree was responsible for the signage throughout the site, along with merchandise such as Wetlands Centre themed t-shirts. She also decorated our entrance area behind reception with a wall-length mural. Interpretation of our unique characteristics has, over the years, morphed into marketing and social media. Early marketing gurus such as Leanne Cherry and Anna Ryan put the Centre on the public’s map with consistent radio, print and television promotions, evolving into the social media arenas of today. Jess Jones expanded our online footprint through our website and related platforms. She also contributed professional design know-how to develop the Wetland Centre’s current signage, (although some of Anne-Maree’s work from over thirty years ago still stands). We are fortunate these days to benefit from the invaluable contribution made by Linda Rowan. With a background in media, Linda has produced memorable publications for our fortieth anniversary, revamped our social media presence, and curated eco-tourism experiences on our waterways.

Women protecting nature and biodiversity

Apart from the recreational attractions of the Hunter Wetlands, a good deal of site maintenance is needed to make these functions accessible. Sue Wright was our first employed grounds staff. Her working hours were primarily concerned with mowing the walking trails and picnic areas. Sue also shared responsibility for caring for our captive freckled ducks and rearing orphaned ducklings. On weekends, she took on the role of managing the visitors centre.

Displayed animals, showing examples of the variety of species found in the Hunter region, have been tended to in the visitors centre, animal house, and freckled duck enclosure since the early 1990s. Invaluable assistance was received by the guiding lights of the then Native Animal Trust Fund – Audrey Koosman and Margaret Howley – in the best ethical practices for keeping them. Through Margaret we received many hand-reared and released waterbirds – including the iconic ‘Archie’, a tame magpie goose. Much of this mindful work with captive animals has been continued by a good proportion of dedicated, particularly younger, females on weekends – and a maturer crew of handlers, in Rana Amos, Catherine Bremmell and Terrie White, throughout the week. Ashely Hanson, especially, has maintainedWilma Barden’s legacy of providing our freckled ducks with the best possible care.

Other community organisations that have helped guide the course of the Hunter Wetlands Centre as a natural habitat have been the founding partners of the Australian Plants Society (formerly SGAP) and Hunter Bird Observers Club. Stalwarts in the nursery such as Angela Speering and Barbara Bourke have propagated plants and provided advice that enhance our gardens and grounds. Nowadays, Marion Baldwin also provides valuable assistance with her horticultural knowledge.Elsewhere, HBOC luminaries like Ann Lindsey and Margaret Stewart have raised our awareness with the intelligence they provide on birdlife and habitat.

The Women behind-the-scenes keeping the wetlands running

The Hunter Wetlands’ story has been chronicled in the range of articles published in our “Wetlander” newsletter. This is a valuable archive of the prominent interests of our wetlands’ custodians. And the highly readable product we receive is due to the focussed efforts of the editors. Lenore Horvath has been mustering authors, collecting images, and collating pages for close to twenty years.

Alongside Lenore, the office desks are occupied over various days of the week by women who keep our accounts, make our bookings, register our volunteers and keep our data bases up to date. Maintaining financial records was initially done by paid staff such as Julie Banyard and Michelle Strathmore, however, with the Centre’s growing dependence on volunteers, workers like Marie Page and Christine Pozywio have kept our books in order. Similarly, room and excursion bookings are carried out by Frances Grandige, volunteer registers and inductions are performed by Marion Leete, and planting lists are filed away by Anne Chung.

The front desk, once a tourist information centre for National Parks, has a long history as the first point of contact for callers and visitors. Our rotation of primarily female volunteers in this position has become the face of the Wetlands Centre to the public and the voice of operations to the duty officers carrying radios.

Women leading wetlands restoration and conservation

Many of the women mentioned here have become prominent names in the business of wetlands conservation and management. Some have been professional CEOs, such as Tara O’Connell (Ure) and Louise Duff, who have given us a workplace culture and financial basis which in turn has attracted funding and secured us status in both the private and public sectors. Others have been dedicated spouses – Heather Maddock, “she who must been obeyed”, and Caryl Lightfoot, “a wetlands widow” – have been cited by their well-known partners as being willing participants in working bees, open days, bird counts, clubs, societies and committees.

Within our employed staff, indoors and outdoors, female operators have perpetuated our standing as a place of knowledge and access. Throughout our volunteer body, these standards have been maintained and developed to continue our role as a place of invitation, nurture, and leadership. Without doubt, the Hunter Wetlands Centre can thank the remarkable women who have put us on this course and keep us on it.

This International Women’s Day, we celebrate the women making a difference in wetlands conservation, recreation and education. Their dedication to protecting our fragile wetlands environments ensures these vital ecosystems thrive. You can JOIN US in supporting our work by Volunteering at the wetlands, becoming a member, visiting our wetlands or simply sharing our stories to inform and inspire others.

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