elizabeth@heaohou.org.nz

Born and raised in North Dunedin, Elizabeth attended Leith Playcentre, George Street Normal School, Dunedin North Intermediate, Logan Park High School and Otago University. She is an experienced executive with a strong background in the social service and humanitarian sectors having supported organisations in Burma, Thailand, Australia and Aotearoa to thrive. She specialises in organisational development, community building, policy, and advocacy. Liz is committed to evolving, modern workplaces that help people grow and prepare them for the future. She has collaborated with various levels of government in both Aotearoa and Australia to promote diversity, inclusion and welcoming.

Liz is a passionate community volunteer, serving as a caregiver for rangatahi in foster care, and holding positions on not-for-profit boards and committees. She is a Justice of the Peace for Aotearoa and is dedicated to promoting civic participation for all. Her values of social justice, human rights, equality, and equity drive her kaupapa for working with vulnerable communities and displaced people. She currently serves as the Chair of the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network’s (APRRN) Australia New Zealand and the Pacific Working Group. For Liz, this work is a calling, not just a career, and she is excited to have recently moved home to Dunedin to bring her knowledge and mahi to her own community.

Kua hua te marama - a cycle is complete

Liz feels that leaving her home in Ōtepoti, gathering knowledge and learning from other cultures and whenua, and returning to her kainga of North Dunedin was a cycle in her life that has now been completed.