Throughout the span of my career, I have been fortunate enough to work with businesses from all walks of life and from all corners of the globe. From India to Indonesia, the Middle East to Madang Province, I have learned much about the histories, cultures, challenges, opportunities and potential futures that uniquely colour each community. During my time at Austrade, Palladium and earlier, here at Pacific Trade Invest (PTI), I have spent over a decade considering how best to collaboratively grow diverse and nuanced economies.
Throughout all my experiences, one lesson has rung true across every context: that trust is an investment that yields endless returns. Above and beyond mandates, grand plans, pitches or promises, trust is the slow and steady foundation upon which all good work stands. In professional relationships, it fosters strong teams and partnerships, and opens invisible doors. And at a community level, it produces social licences, those unspoken agreements between entities and their stakeholders for ongoing support.
This year, I am delighted to be rejoining PTI Australia as Trade Commissioner. Having witnessed PTI Australia’s work both up close, as Executive Manager – Investment and Tourism between 2011 and 2014, and from afar more recently, I am aware of the extraordinary work conducted by the people in this office. Over the last 12 years, under the formidable leadership of Caleb Jarvis, PTI Australia has brought together a team of high-performing passionate individuals who produce record-breaking results, year on year.
Working with clients from big to small, established to emerging, it is evident that PTI Australia has earned and honoured the trust of Pacific businesses. I see it from the daily phone calls that take place across all desks, the frequent trips to Australian supermarkets proudly carrying new Pacific samples, and the ongoing outreach to potential investors, buyers, distributors and importers. PTI Australia knows Pacific businesses and champions them at every turn. Like all things, there is room for growth and as my leadership tenure begins, I have reflected on what I hope to bring to this role and the people of the Pacific.
The Pacific holds a special place for me. My family moved to Rabaul in Papua New Guinea (PNG) when I was a child. It was perhaps this coastal town that instilled an ethos of global curiosity within me, which persisted long after our return to Australia. My father went back to PNG in the 1990s, to work with Air Niugini and sat on the board of the Papua New Guinea Tourism Promotion Authority. Later, my brother, father and I walked the Kokoda track together, retracing the steps where my grandfather had fought in WW2. Sadly, my father passed away while we were climbing Mount Wilhelm together – a place that will forever hold a sacred significance for my family.
I was drawn back to the Blue Pacific early in my career to work with the World Bank Group to implement the Tourism Sector Diagnostic Tool in PNG, the Solomon Islands and Tonga. This role led to my first stint at PTI, where I managed the tourism and investment portfolios, launching the Pacific Islands Export Survey and the tourism website development program. It is fantastic to witness the evolution of both becoming cornerstones of PTI’s services. Following that, I moved to Austrade, taking on two postings as Trade Commissioner, in both India and Indonesia, where I strived to facilitate trade and investment, focusing on the agrifood, vocational training, and mining sectors. I went on to lead the team at Investment New South Wales responsible for engaging with India and the Middle East, including establishing the Australian Trade Commission in Mumbai.
However, no matter how far away my roles have taken me, and the vibrant experiences they bring, I continue to be inexplicably drawn back to the Pacific. In 2022, I joined Palladium at the Pacific Labour Facility, to work towards Pacific workers receiving higher-paying and higher-skilled roles in Australia’s care sectors. I once again found myself inspired by Pacific people, building relationships, and investing in the mutuality and trust on which our shared region relies.
As I step into the role of Trade Commissioner, my focus will be on deepening our engagement with the businesses we support, fortifying and diversifying our services, and boosting collaborative efforts. I am excited to develop and refine targeted and impactful export, tourism, investment, and business enabling initiatives that improve the livelihoods of Pacific people by enabling decent work and economic growth in the Blue Pacific, and look to continue to deliver on the shared objectives of the Pacific Island Forum (PIF) and our funders, Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs (DFAT), as our primary stakeholders.
Above all, I am committed to continuing to build trust. Not only in me, as I undertake this new leadership role, but in our team and network, as people entrust us with their business goals and aspirations, as well as between economies, so we can all work diligently towards shaping a prosperous Blue Pacific, and beyond.
