Natalie Davey
Chairperson
Natalie comes from Fitzroy Crossing. She is a content creator working with local organisations. For Baya Gawiy, the Children and Parenting Centre (CPC) and Early Childhood Learning Unit (ECLU), she is creating an educators’ resource system based around the local Aboriginal seasons. Natalie is a broadcaster at Wangki Radio, the local station and, with her father, presents a morning language program called ‘Danggujarra’. With Mangkaja Arts, Natalie is developing a jewellery collection inspired by Country. As part of the 2019 NAIDOC Week Speaker Series ‘Voice. Treaty. Truth.’ Natalie travelled with the Australian Consulate General and the founder and General Manager of Miromaa Aboriginal Language and Technology Centre (MALTC) to share knowledge about the conservation of language with many First Nations people of the United States. Natalie is dedicated to sharing the world around her and bringing people together through cultural understanding.
Craig Philips
Vice Chair
Craig moved his young family from Perth to the Kimberley in 1994 and started his own computer sales and service business, now also offering IT consultancy. His previous roles include Victorian sales manager of Columbus Mufflers, and West Australian sales manager of Lukey Mufflers. He is currently the Treasurer for the Community Resource Centre and has served on the boards of the Broome Chamber of Commerce and the Small Business Centre West Kimberley. Craig has been an EK member since 1996 and joined the EK committee in 1999, serving as Chair in 2005–06.
Laurel Sutcliffe
Treasurer
From Victoria, Laurel gained a Bachelor of Arts (BA) and a Diploma in Education from the University of Melbourne and taught at schools in Victoria and Papua New Guinea before moving to the Kimberley in 1986 to work in Aboriginal education. She lived at Yakanarra community near Fitzroy Crossing for 20 years as the school administrator and principal, while raising a young family. In 2006, she moved to Broome and teaches at Broome Senior High School.
Alexis Harper
Secretary
Lexi is passionate about health in a holistic sense and values local environments, food systems and communities and the roles they each play in individual wellbeing. Her academic background includes a BA in Naturopathy and a Master’s in Public Health. She has been a resident of northern Australia for over 10 years, having lived in Darwin for several years before moving to Fitzroy Crossing in 2016. Now based in Broome, Lexi is interested in creating local, sustainable food systems as well as ensuring the wild spaces of the Kimberley are preserved for future generations.
Kate Golson
Board Member
Born in Canberra, Kate first arrived in the Kimberley in 1992. She has worked with many community organisations as well as universities and government on projects ranging from community development and sustainable development through to native title, heritage protection and cultural and natural resource management. Kate has extensive experience in social research, community engagement, communications, and monitoring and evaluation. She holds a BA and Master of Arts in Anthropology from Sydney University.
Carmel Leahy
Board Member
Born in central western NSW, Carmel is a teacher, linguist and literacy specialist who has worked at various schools and institutions, including Yakanarra Community School in the 1990s, Broome Senior High School, Mabu Yawuru Ngan-ga language centre and Nyikina Mangala Community School. She is currently in a support role with Yiyili Aboriginal Community School. Carmel is an active member of the Society for Kimberley Indigenous Plants and Animals (SKIPA). She has a Bachelor of Education in Multicultural Education from Edith Cowan University, a Master’s degree in Applied Linguistics from CDU and Cert III in Conservation and Land Management.
Kat Taylor
Board Member
Kat arrived in the Kimberley in 2010. She is a researcher at the Water Justice Hub, based at the Australian National University (ANU), and is an adjunct with the Nulungu Research Institute at Notre Dame University. Kat completed a PhD in water policy at ANU in 2020 and holds a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Environmental Science (Hons) and a BSc in Conservation Biology from Murdoch University.
Sally Wilkinson
Board Member
Sally comes from Melbourne and in 2012 moved to Broome, where she has worked on native title matters as the future acts and heritage manager at Nyamba Buru Yawuru and as a writer and consultant for several local organisations. She has also worked in climate change policy and as a policy manager on the Victorian treaty process. Sally holds a BA (Hons) in German and a Bachelor of Laws (Hons) from the University of Melbourne and a Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice from ANU.