Speakers
KATIA NUSSBAUM
SAN POLINO MONTALCINO
Tuscany, Italy
Sponsored by Kete Ora Trust
In 1990, London-born Katia Nussbaum and her husband, Luigi, reclaimed a rustic farmhouse in southern Tuscany where they now produce their premium wine, San Polino Brunello di Montalcino.
A fervent believer in the power of regenerative viticulture, Katia uses her earlier training in social anthropology to critique our contemporary ways of seeing. Using her beloved vitiforestry project as a metaphor for the complexity of an interconnected universe, San Polino wines become pieces for performance art: unique expressions of territory in the context of time, nature and culture.
Her dream is to be a drop in an ocean of positive change.
RAJAT PARR
PHELAN FARMS
California, USA
Rajat Parr has cultivated a varied and distinguished career in wine. His first chapter was as a sommelier and wine director, beginning with his tutelage at San Francisco’s wine mecca Rubicon under the great sommelier Larry Stone and culminating years later as wine director for the Michael Mina group, where he was in charge of the wine programs in over 20 restaurants across the United States. During this time, he began to sow the seeds for his second chapter, as winemaker. Already a celebrated wine taster and explorer, Parr began to collaborate with other winemakers, notably the late Jim Clendenen of Au Bon Climat, to create his own small brand of wines. This experience led him to deepen his engagement with wine production through his ongoing collaboration in the vineyard and winery with winemaker Sashi Moorman and their successful brands Domaine de la Côte, Sandhi and Evening Land.
In recent years, Parr has continued to trace this trajectory to its natural terminus, becoming a winegrower himself. In recent years, he founded Phelan Farms of Cambria, California to farm and make the wine from their vineyards, focusing on regenerative agriculture and natural winemaking.
DR MIKE JOY
VICTORIA UNIVERSITY OF WELLINGTON
Paekakariki Beach, Aotearoa New Zealand
Mike Joy is an outspoken advocate for environmental protection in New Zealand. He has received a number of awards, including an Ecology in Action award from the NZ Ecological Society, an Old Blue award from Forest and Bird, Environmental New Zealander of the year according to North and South magazine (2009), Manawatu Evening Standard person of the year (2012), the Tertiary Education Union NZ Award of Excellence for academic freedom and contribution to public education (2013), the 2013 Charles Fleming Award for environmental work from the Royal Society of New Zealand, the Morgan Foundation inaugural River Voice Award (2015) and the inaugural NZ Universities Critic and Conscience award (2017).
JIM BOWSKILL
HUNTER'S WINES
Te Tauihu-o-te-waka-a-Māui Marlborough, Aotearoa NZ
After high school, Jim completed a bachelor’s degree in viticulture and oenology at Lincoln University, followed by the now-defunct Matador Estate graduate program, which sent him to Marlborough, South Australia and California over the course of two-and-a-bit years. After following vintages across hemispheres for a while, he got stuck in Marlborough, first at Odyssey Wines, then Jackson Estate, followed by Framingham Wines, and now at Hunter’s Wines since February 2025. He had a midlife crisis and did an MBA, finishing it in 2021.
DR ANDRÉ LEU, D.SC.
REGENERATION INTERNATIONAL
Daintree, Australia
Dr André Leu, D.Sc., has been the international director of Regeneration International since 2017. Regeneration International has 600 partners in 80 countries across every arable continent. It embraces various agricultural systems, including agroecology, organic farming, biodynamic agriculture, permaculture, ecological farming, holistic planned grazing, biological agriculture and agroforestry. From 2011 to 2017, André served as the President of IFOAM-Organics International, the only worldwide representative organisation for the organic sector.
André is an expert in nature-based ecological agricultural systems, having spent over 50 years as a regenerative organic farmer focused on agroecology. He has worked in and visited countries developing food and farming systems across Asia, the Pacific, Europe, North America, South America and Africa.
JOSEPH BRINKLEY
BONTERRA
Virginia, USA
Sponsored by Marlborough Wine
With a degree in horticulture, another in economics, and over 20 years in the field, Joseph Brinkley specialises in soil health, farming efficiencies, compost, cover crops, biodynamic farming and viticulture. He is committed to regenerative organic agriculture as a path towards increased vitality and resilience on the farm, as well as a means to climate change mitigation through carbon reintegration. He is currently Senior Director of Regenerative Organic Farming at Bonterra Organic Estates.
DR MARY RETALLACK
RETALLACK VITICULTURE
Adelaide, South Australia
Mary is the managing director of Retallack Viticulture Pty Ltd and the founder/manager of the EcoVineyards program, which promotes practical ecological solutions for a broad range of production systems. Her pioneering work on native insectary plants and associated fauna has been showcased on the ABC’s Gardening Australia program.
As an experienced board director, agricultural scientist, agroecologist and third-generation viticulturist, Mary holds a wide range of skills and experience from practical, research, teaching and consultancy roles. She is recognised internationally as a Chartered Agriculturalist (CAg). She has gathered these skills over the past 30 years, along with a PhD in viticulture and plant protection and tertiary qualifications in conservation and park management, natural resource management, education, viticulture and arbitration.
JEREMY HYLAND
THE WREKIN VINEYARD
Te Tauihu-o-te-waka-a-Māui Marlborough, Aotearoa NZ
Jeremy’s first ten years in the wine industry were in his home town of Gisborne with Corbans Wines.
A move to Marlborough in time for the 2001 vintage led to 15 years consulting to various wine companies and growers, spread across six different winegrowing regions of New Zealand. This period also included a few years as national viticultural manager for Kim Crawford Wines. For the past eight years Jeremy has been in the role of vigneron at The Wrekin, an organic-certified and biodynamically farmed vineyard in the Southern Valleys of Marlborough.
CASSANDRA CHARLICK
WINE WRITER AND COMMUNICATOR
Tasmania, Australia
Sponsored by Central Otago Wine Association
Cassandra Charlick is an award-winning wine and travel writer, critic, television presenter and MC. In 2024 she was honoured to receive the IWSC Emerging Wine Communicator of the Year trophy. In addition to her role as an Australian correspondent and critic for Decanter, she authors a national wine column for Delicious and a “Travel by the Glass” column for International Traveller. Other publications include Halliday magazine, Escape, and T magazine. Equally at home on the screen and stage, she’s a
regular food and wine presenter on Australian television and has MCed and hosted some of Australia’s most prestigious wine and culinary festivals, including The Good Food and Wine Show, Effervescence Festival, Pair’d Festival, Shore Leave Festival and Truffle Kerfuffle.
“Wine should, above all, be enjoyable and facilitate connection and understanding between people, place and self,” Cassandra says. “Sustainability and accessibility are two key values that drive my work in the world of wine.”
DR SARA LOEFFEN
HILL LABS
Kirikiriroa Hamilton, Aotearoa NZ
After completing a Bachelor of Science majoring in zoology and ecology, Sara completed her PhD in animal physiology at the University of Queensland, Australia. Trading warm sunny climes for the cold of Edinburgh, Sara spent eight years with SAC Consulting Veterinary Services (a division of
SRUC), where she was the senior method development scientist in the molecular diagnostics lab, developing and validating molecular test methods for the detection of major livestock pathogens. Returning to the Southern Hemisphere, Sara joined Hill Labs in 2018. In her current role as senior technologist in molecular biology, Sara is extending her skills into environmental and food testing. She was instrumental in the development of the Covid testing service offered by Hill Labs throughout the pandemic. With a focus in environmental DNA, recent projects include detection of earthworms in soil using quantitative real time PCR and the introduction of both short- and long-read sequencing to the molecular lab repertoire. Sara is excited to be part of the next generation of innovation at Hill Labs.
MIKE SAUNDERS
VOYAGER ESTATE
Margaret River, Australia
Mike started his career as a winegrower in the cellar, completing vintages for Esk Valley Estate in Hawke’s Bay and Mount Pleasant in the Hunter Valley, Australia. He returned to New Zealand to run the iconic Esk Valley Terraces Vineyard for Villa Maria, then completed stints as company viticulturist for Neudorf in Nelson and Greystone Wines in North Canterbury. Mike has recently taken the opportunity to shift to Margaret River in Western Australia as head of viticulture for Voyager Estate and is looking
forward to the chance to grow iconic Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. Until Mike left for Australia last year, he was the vice chair of Organic Winegrowers New Zealand.
SARAH MCFADDEN
KELMARNA COMMUNITY FARM
Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, Aotearoa NZ
Sarah McFadden is the general manager at Kelmarna Community Farm, a 1.7-hectare organic urban farm in central Tāmaki Makaurau. With over a decade of leadership experience in urban farming and community projects, Sarah is passionate about creating systems that reconnect people with food, the land and each other. At Kelmarna, Sarah leads a team working to demonstrate a regenerative local food system that supports climate change mitigation, urban resilience and community wellbeing. The farm grows organic produce, composts local food scraps, raises animals regeneratively and runs a wide range of community programmes – from school visits and workshops to therapeutic gardening and volunteer opportunities. Sarah will speak on the power and potential of urban farms like Kelmarna to foster sustainable, healthy communities in Aotearoa, and the critical role they play in building a more resilient and regenerative future.
DR PETER ESPIE
AGSCIENCE LIMITED
Otago, Aotearoa NZ
Peter is a scientist specialising in soil-plant relationships. After a B. Ag. Science (First Class Honours) and postgraduate study at the University of British Columbia in soil ecology, he completed a PhD on alternative phosphate fertiliser and grassland production at Lincoln as a Hellaby Fellow and was a University of Canterbury Senior Scholar. He worked as a government scientist at the Forest Research Institute and AgResearch before becoming a research fellow at Otago University, director of the Queen Elizabeth II National Conservation Trust and a Stapledon Fellow at the Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research in the UK. He is the managing director of a research company investigating biostimulants, biofertilisers and microbiome DNA. He lives with his wife on an organic lifestyle block in Otago.
BEN TRINICK
Nō te tairāwhiti, Paripari, Aotearoa NZ
Ben hails from the tribe of Te Whānau-a-Apanui on the East Coast, where his family has lived on the same land for over 900 years. This deep connection to whenua (land) helped inspire his winemaking journey, which began over a decade ago. After gaining experience in New Zealand, Australia, California and France, he spent 2018-2023 as assistant winemaker at Ata Rangi. In 2023, Ben pursued a long-held dream of learning te reo Māori to reconnect with his whakapapa (lineage) through full-time Māori language study. Since then, he has worked with winemaking groups committed to meaningfully weaving te ao Māori into the wine world. Today, Ben continues to craft wine, deepen his reo Māori and follow his passions for music and food.
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DR CHARLES MERFIELD
BHU FUTURE FARMING CENTRE
Ōtautahi Christchurch, Aotearoa NZ
Dr Charles ‘Merf’ Merfield is an agroecologist specialising in non-chemical weed management, soil ecology, health and nutrient management and biocontrol. He has over 30 years’ experience as both a grower and scientist in organic and ecological production systems. He is head of the BHU Future Farming Centre, Aotearoa’s only specialist agroecological research, extension and consulting organisation. He is increasingly working with the conventional horticultural and arable sectors, helping them transition to more sustainable production systems, as well as continuing to support the organic sector.
PROFESSOR JACK HEINEMANN FHEA
TE WHARE WĀNANGA O WAITAHA - UNIVERSITY OF CANTERBURY
Ōtautahi Christchurch, Aotearoa NZ
Professor Jack Heinemann FHEA grew up and went to school on land taken by the Treaty of St. Louis (1804) from the Chippewa, Ottawa, Potawatomi and the Ho-Chunk nation. He went to graduate school on the land of the Kalapuya tribes. He worked for NIH on the lands of the Sélish and Qlispé tribes. Jack now lives on the land of the first nation Māori people. He is a professor in the School of Biological Sciences, University of Canterbury. Previously he has held positions with the US National Institutes of Health, the UN Roster of Biosafety Experts (to 2009) and the Cartagena Protocol for Biosafety Ad Hoc Technical Expert Group (2009-2016, 2020). He was an author for the International Panel on Climate Change (sixth report) on biotechnology for climate change mitigation and an author for the UN International Assessment of Agricultural Science, Knowledge and Technology for Development. He has served as an expert witness to the court in South Africa, the India Supreme Court and the New Zealand High Court on gene technology issues.
DR MARK KRASNOW
THOUGHTFUL VITICULTURE
Te Tauihu-o-te-waka-a-Māui Marlborough, Aotearoa NZ
Dr Mark Krasnow (Kraz) is an academic, researcher and consultant based in New Zealand. He began study as a winemaker, but moved to viticulture because he realised the vineyard, not the cellar, was where wine quality was controlled. Kraz has done industry-funded research and work with individual clients to optimise organic and conventional vineyard management. He uses his scientific background in vine and berry physiology to help vineyard managers move forward on their sustainability and operational efficiency journeys. Kraz is a strong believer that with proper establishment, training and management, vineyards can become far more self-sufficient, economical and resilient.
JENS MERKLE
BABICH
Te Tauihu-o-te-waka-a-Māui Marlborough, Aotearoa NZ
Born and bred in Germany, Jens completed his first vintage in 1992 and fell in love with Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc after an overseas vintage in 2007. He moved to New Zealand with his wife to gain more experience with Sauvignon Blanc in 2008. (They told their family it would be only for two or three years.) Jens has worked for Delegat and Grove Mill, and in 2014 he became Marlborough winemaker for Babich Wines. Seventeen years and three kids later, he now calls Marlborough home.
MARTA MENDONCA
PORTO PROTOCOL
Porto, Portugal
Sponsored by New Zealand Winegrowers
At the helm of The Porto Protocol Foundation since 2019, Marta connects global wine producers and experts to advance collaborative climate action in viticulture. With a background spanning a variety of industries – including wine and spirits – she previously founded a consultancy to promote sustainability and climate advocacy. Marta holds degrees in international relations, marketing and corporate social responsibility, working at the intersection of climate, communication and regenerative winegrowing.
IAN TROUSDELL
FLOWFORM
Te Matau-a-Māui Hawke’s Bay, Aotearoa NZ
Ian Trousdell has dedicated his career to enhancing water quality through Flowform® eco-technology projects across the Pacific Rim and researching water’s energetic properties. As managing director of the Foundation for Water in Sussex, UK (2011-2018), he led a five-year study with Dr Benny Johansson and Prof Jan Capjon on quantum coherence in water, published in Prof Gerald Pollack’s journal, WATER. He now directs Flowform International Ltd, expanding this water treatment globally. A former Waldorf teacher, he pioneered Steiner schools in New Zealand, consulted in China and teaches intuitive knowing through international seminars. His work bridges science, education and environmental innovation.
OLIVER DE GROOT
MONAVALE BLUEBERRIES
Kemureti Cambridge, Aotearoa NZ
Oliver de Groot is an emerging leader in organic horticulture and orchard manager at Monavale Blueberries, Australasia’s largest certified organic blueberry orchard. Now guiding the third generation of this pioneering family business, Oliver combines deep horticultural expertise with a strategic focus on operational excellence, staff leadership and market-driven innovation. He manages 100,000 bushes across 46 varieties, leads seasonal teams of up to 150 staff and contributes to the business’ long-term planning and investment decisions. A graduate of Lincoln University, Oliver is passionate about authentic food systems, regenerative land care and building resilient, values-driven enterprises for the future.
OLAF SCHELEZKI
LINCOLN UNIVERSITY
Ōtautahi Christchurch, Aotearoa NZ
Olaf is a viticulturist and winemaker by trade, now lecturing and researching in this space. His area of expertise lies in vine and grape ripening physiology, grape secondary metabolites and wine alcohol management. He has also been active in the area of vineyard biodiversity, particularly with respect to soil health, as well as in evaluating rootstocks in the New Zealand context. His focus here lies in enhancing drought resistance in the climate change context.
LASMA RIVERS
NZIE (NEW ZEALAND INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION)
Papamoa, Aotearoa NZ
Lasma Rivers is a seasoned digital strategist, educator and AI consultant with over a decade of experience leading high-impact marketing initiatives across New Zealand, Australia, the UK, the USA, Southeast Asia and Europe. As a digital marketing and AI educator at NZIE, she combines expertise in SEM, data analytics and AI innovation to empower future talent and advise businesses on digital transformation. Passionate about shaping the workforce of tomorrow, Lasma empowers both individuals and organisations by combining education with strategic consultancy to accelerate growth, foster resilience and unlock opportunities in the evolving digital economy.
STEPHEN WONG MW
WINE WRITER & EDUCATOR
Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington, Aotearoa NZ
Malaysian-born Chinese, Stephen Wong MW moved from Borneo to Singapore and finally to New Zealand to read law at the University of Otago. After moving to Wellington to complete his barrister examinations, he subsequently retrained as a sommelier while learning on the job. Stephen moved into consulting in the mid-2000s, helping hospitality businesses in New Zealand and Singapore develop their wine programs. He first started writing about wine for trade and industry magazines in 2007 and more recently has written for Cuisine, World of Wine, Gourmet Traveller Wine and The Real Review.
CHARLOTTE TOMLINSON
MARLBOROUGH DISTRICT COUNCIL
Te Tauihu-o-te-waka-a-Māui Marlborough,
Aotearoa NZ
Charlotte Tomlinson is the environmental scientist in hydrology at the Marlborough District Council. Her focus is on surface water hydrology in the Marlborough region and understanding the causes and effects of trends in rainfall and river flows. Current projects include preparing and integrating water meter datasets to improve our understanding of water balances, and catchment hydrology investigations in Te Hoiere/Pelorus catchment.
PETER DAVIDSON
MARLBOROUGH DISTRICT COUNCIL
Te Tauihu-o-te-waka-a-Māui Marlborough, Aotearoa NZ
Peter Davidson works for Marlborough District Council as the senior environmental scientist for groundwater quantity and quality. He has spent most of his working career focused on understanding local groundwater hydrology, particularly the aquifers beneath the Wairau, which provide most of the water for drinking, irrigation and maintaining the springs. Current projects include refining sustainable limits in the Marlborough Environment Plan (MEP), understanding the drivers of trends in groundwater levels and integrated management across spheres.
NICK GILL
REGENERATIVE VITICULTURE FOUNDATION
Waitaha Canterbury, Aotearoa NZ
Nick Gill is the New Zealand representative for the Regenerative Viticulture Foundation and has 30 years of experience in the wine industries of New Zealand and Australia. He was instrumental in the development of Greystone Wines, leading the vineyard through its first decade before shifting focus to the broader business – overseeing winegrowing, production and sales for another 10 years. Today, as a regenerative business coach, Nick supports businesses in exploring and applying regenerative principles in ways that are meaningful and practical within their context.
TIFFANY TOMPKINS
ORGANICS AOTEAROA NZ
Te Tauihu-o-te-waka-a-Māui Marlborough,
Aotearoa NZ
Tiffany Tompkins is CEO of Organics Aotearoa New Zealand (OANZ), the national organic sector body.
Tiffany’s enthusiasm for organic brands stems from her extensive experience in the food and beverage
industries. She began her organic journey in the United States as an importer of organic Fairtrade
wine. With the motto ‘Drink Like You Give a Damn’, she sold wine to distributors and national retailers
like Whole Foods Market while educating the public on why this type of wine matters. In the USA, Tiffany became part-owner and COO of an online organic gift company, America’s Best Organics. Prior to that, she worked on brand engagement in the health and sustainability products market. She has also been involved in lobbying, including campaigns around GMO labelling and organic standards. Tiffany is a past member of the Organic Winegrowers New Zealand executive committee.
PAORA MACKIE
RANGITĀNE
Te Tauihu-o-te-waka-a-Māui Marlborough,
Aotearoa NZ
Ko Tapuae-o-Uenuku te Maunga
Ko Wairau Te Awa
Ko Kurahaupō te waka
Ko Omaka, Ko Tuamātene Ko Waikawa ngā marae
Ko Rangitāne, Te Atiawa, Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Kuia, Ngāti Apa ngā iwi
Ko Paora Mackie tōku ingoa
CLIVE DOUGALL
OWNZ CHAIR
Te Tauihu-o-te-waka-a-Māui Marlborough,
Aotearoa NZ
During three decades of involvement in the wine industry, Clive has placed a particular focus on low impact viticulture and winemaking. A commitment to working organically has forced him to push the boundaries, removing unnecessary additions to wines while simultaneously improving the quality and integrity of those products. Since making the first certified organic wine from Marlborough in 2007, Clive has worked exclusively in the organic space. Clive spent 12 years as senior winemaker at biodynamic producer Seresin Estate, where he had the opportunity to hone his craft and understand the effects of addition reduction in winemaking. In 2018 he started an organic winegrowing consultancy, and a year later formed an organic wine label – Deep Down, with his business partner Peter Lorimer. Clive has been on the OWNZ Executive Committee for nine years and has held the position of chair of the committee for the past four years. He also represents the organic wine industry in his role on MPI’s Organic Sector Advisory Council.
A group of panelists and our day MCs are not listed here
