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About Us

Who Are We?

Friends of the Australian Bush Heritage Fund is a US-based nonprofit organization dedicated to conserving Australia’s biodiversity.

We help protect native Australian plants and animals on millions of acres of Australia’s most ecologically important landscapes by supporting the acquisition and management of land of outstanding conservation value, and partnerships with Aboriginal groups and other private landowners.

To achieve our conservation goals we partner primarily with Bush Heritage Australia, a leading Australian nonprofit conservation organization.

Meet Our Team

Our day-to-day operations are handled by our small but mighty core team. With extensive backgrounds in the nonprofit space, they keep the wheels running so we can maximize our impact for Australia. 

Staff

Jennifer Smith Grubb

Executive Director
& President Emeritus

Santa Cruz, California, USA

Throughout her life, Jennifer has dedicated herself to the care and healing of our planet. Inspired by the unique treasures of the Australian bush, Jennifer has become a champion for the conservation of Australia’s natural and cultural heritage.  

She has invited Australian conservation scientists and Indigenous leaders to the US to share both innovative and traditional approaches to protect the continent’s precious biodiversity, manage risks due to fire and climate change, and nurture plant and animal species for future generations.

Through her work on the Ecology Action Board, as founding Executive Director of Sustainable Silicon Valley, and as Founder of the Los Angeles Regional Collaborative for Climate Action and Sustainability, Jennifer has brought people together across disciplines in large scale collaborations to solve significant environmental challenges.

Jennifer has been recognized for her leadership by Ecology Action, the Multi-State Working Group on Environmental Performance and the Pacific Industrial Business Association, and presented the Governor’s Environment and Economic Leadership Award, the Climate All Stars Award and the US Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Award for Outstanding Achievement.

Virginia Burns

Development Manager

San Francisco, CA, USA

Virginia joined the Friends of the Australian Bush Heritage Fund team in October 2022, upon relocating from the U.S. to Sydney. Quickly, Virginia established a passion for Australia’s distinctive landscapes and unique beauty. As of October 2023, Virginia conducts our operations from the US. 

She comes to us with experience at a nonprofit fundraising and marketing agency and supports our Board of Directors in all areas, from administration to donor relations. If you’d like to connect on any of our work, or learn how you can make an impact, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Virginia directly at virginia@friendsofbushheritage.org.

Meet Our Leadership

We are led by a passionate volunteer Board of Directors, comprised of conservation and philanthropy professionals who have dedicated much their lives to improving our world. Their combined expertise allows us to make informed decisions about projects and partnerships, and maximize our organizational impact.

Board of Directors

Sabine Johnson-Reiser

President

Melbourne, Victoria, AUS

After graduating from UC Berkeley with a BS in Environmental Economic and Policy, Sabine spent several years working in the environment and climate change sector in the US and China. 

In 2013, she moved to Australia, where she fell in love with the continent’s unique wildlife and breath-taking landscapes. She has lived in Australia, and worked to preserve and protect its biodiversity, ever since. From 2013 to 2020, Sabine wore multiple hats as a member of the Major Gifts and Philanthropy team at Bush Heritage Australia. In 2020, she completed a Master of Liberal Arts in Sustainability Studies at Harvard University Extension School.

Since October of 2021, Sabine has been Head of Philanthropic Partnerships at Oxfam Australia.

Chris Doherty

Secretary

Portland, Oregon, USA

Chris currently works as a Director of Business Operations for an international legal services and consulting company. Prior to this role, he worked for over 15 years in the climate change, conservation and sustainability fields both with NGOs and in corporate consulting.

His experience ranges from establishing forest restoration and community development projects in South East Asia, to developing biodiverse forest carbon sequestration projects in Western Australia, to consulting to leading global companies on climate change and sustainability risk management and reporting in Australia and the US. He has a Masters Degree in Sustainable Development and, while currently based in Portland, Oregon, is originally from Wagga Wagga in NSW, Australia – Wiradjuri country.

Dr. Gary Tabor

Past President

Bozeman, Montana, USA

Gary is Founder and Executive Director of the Center for Large Landscape Conservation. Gary’s conservation achievements include the establishment of Kibale National Park in Uganda and pioneering the field of Conservation Medicine and Eco-Health. In the West, he co-designed the Western Governors’ Association Wildlife Corridors Initiative, and co-founded the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative, the Roundtable of the Crown of the Continent, and the Practitioners’ Network for Large Landscape Conservation.

He is a Henry Luce Scholar and a 2013-2014 recipient of an Australian American Fulbright Scholar award in Climate Change and Clean Energy. Gary is an Honorary Associate Professor at the University of Queensland, Centre of Excellence in Environmental Decisions.

Dr. R. Pamela Reid

Miami, Florida, USA

Pam is Professor of Marine Geosciences at the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami. Specializing in studies of tropical, shallow marine sediments and reefs, she has written approximately 100 publications in scientific journals.

A particular focus of Pam’s research is stromatolites, Earth’s earliest reefs, which were built by microbes rather than corals. Dominating the fossil record for 80% of Earth history, stromatolites are found in only a few locations on Earth today. One of the most spectacular occurrences of living stromatolites is Hamelin Pool, in the Shark Bay World Heritage Site of Western Australia. Pam is conducting stromatolite research in Hamelin Pool, the Bahamas, and Atacama Desert of northern Chile. Pam also founded and is executive director of the non-profit organization Bahamas Marine EcoCentre.

Doug Humann

Melbourne, Victoria, AUS

Doug has more than 30 years leadership experience in the NGO “for purpose” sector, working with environmental NGOs (including as Bush Heritage Australia’s inaugural CEO), Australian First Nation communities, and natural resource management authorities.

Doug runs his own consulting business and also currently serves as director and Chairman of Landcare Australia and as a Board Member of the Australian Land Conservation Alliance along with other board roles. Doug was made a Member (AM) in the General Division of the Order of Australia, for significant service to conservation and environment in 2014.

Kent Wommack

Yarmouth, Maine, USA

Kent is the Executive Director of the Liz Claiborne & Art Ortenberg Foundation (LCAOF) in New York City, a global conservation grant maker. The Foundation supports wildlife and community-based conservation initiatives in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the northern Rocky Mountains region. 

Prior to joining LCAOF in 2016, Kent worked for 34 years with The Nature Conservancy (TNC). Kent led three of TNC’s most successful state and country programs — in Maine, Australia and Canada. His other positions included serving as the first Managing Director of TNC’s Global Lands Program, which oversaw the organization’s work with Indigenous Peoples.   

Kent’s love of Australia started with a sabbatical that he took with Australian Bush Heritage Fund (now known as Bush Heritage Australia), when he worked with Executive Director Doug Humann during their acquisition of Carnarvon Station in Queensland. He returned to Australia several years later as TNC’s first in-country Executive Director.  

Peggy Brannigan

San Jose, California, USA

Peggy Brannigan is a sustainability leader, advisor, board member, public speaker, and mentor. She is chair of the board of the Business Council on Climate Change and a member of the board of Acterra.  As Director of Global Environmental Sustainability for LinkedIn, Peggy drove progress toward LinkedIn’s 2030 climate commitments for carbon negative, water positive and zero waste datacenter and workplace operations, and invested in green innovations for LinkedIn’s workplaces and datacenters.  To scale impact externally, she collaborated with the Product and Engineering teams to develop LinkedIn products that connect people to green skill-building, green jobs and green products and services. Peggy guided LinkedIn grantmaking to support environmental equity and her team mobilized 2000+ LinkedIn Go Green employees. 

Prior to LinkedIn, she worked in Europe for 12 years advancing sustainability at the US Department of State and the International School of Amsterdam. Earlier in her career, she helped launch Apple’s retail channels in Latin America, Europe and Asia, and was a corporate lending officer at Wells Fargo Bank.  Peggy earned an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business with a Public Management certificate, and an undergraduate degree in International Relations from George Washington University.  She lives and works in Silicon Valley, California.

We also extend our thanks to our Board Alumni who helped shape our history, and led us to where we are today.  

Interested in making a bigger impact?

Contact our team directly at info@friendsofbushheritage.org to inquire about joining our Board of Directors or volunteering with us!