Dr Helen Blackie receives Excellence in Environmental Practice award

The award recognises outstanding practice by an individual and is intended to be an exemplar for all environmental practitioners.

Helen is an associate partner at Boffa Miskell, based in the Auckland office. She has over two decades' experience in conservation and pest management, with a focus on predator ecology. She is currently leading multiple research projects focused on innovations in pest control and surveillance, as well as the development of novel technologies to improve conservation management practices.

Her work extends to the preparation of conservation and offset strategies for assessments of environmental effects for development proposals. The outcome of these effects assessments must meet the approvals of not only decision-makers but also local communities and local Māori groups.

“Helen has engaged with stakeholders to achieve biodiversity offsets that will lead to considerable conservation benefits," says Dr Ian Boothroyd FEIANZ.

 “A real strength that Helen has is her ability to act at the ‘coalface’ with stakeholders, retain the integrity of science, and to develop higher level strategies for business and communities,” Ian continues. “This duality of purpose is not always easily achieved by scientists and Helen exemplifies this to an extremely high degree.”

The award citation noted:

Helen is a recognised leader as a practitioner in the field of conservation, biodiversity and biosecurity management, proven through her scientific expertise, her knowledge of animal behaviour, her vision of what is required to achieve New Zealand’s ‘Predator-Free 2050’ aspiration, her engagement at all levels with stakeholders, her ability to convey complex concepts to different audiences, and her knowledge of technology and its commercialisation.

The outcomes of Helen’s efforts are truly transformative and game-changing for conservation practice both nationally and internationally. Helen is an exemplar of the ‘trusted advisor’ and at all times demonstrates excellence in environmental practice.