General News
17 November, 2024
Caring for our planet
WITH a fresh vision and community angle, CAFNEC’s new director Bronwyn Opie is looking to continue to build on the solid foundations of the not-for-profit, promote growth and work closely with Traditional Owners and the FNQ community.
The Cairns and Far North Environment Centre (CAFNEC) is a regional non-government environmental organisation for Far North Queensland which voices community concerns through campaigns and advocacy.
Having started as a climate organiser and campaign coordinator for CAFNEC three years ago, Ms Opie is taking over from Lucy Graham after five years of service and is looking to continue to grow and improve the system imposed by her predecessor.
“Lucy has been the longest serving director in CAFNEC history and she has left a lasting impact,” Ms Opie said.
“She has implemented so many structures and systems into our day-to-day operations that have given us a strong framework that we can continue to grow from. She also contributed to growth of the organisation, both in staff capacity and in our ability to get independent funding that has enabled us to do more work and reach more people and places in the FNQ region.
“Observing Lucy as director has opened my eyes to how my skills can really suit this role, and primarily my love for people and working with people, because CAFNEC is nothing without the supporters and communities we work with.
“Heading into the next few years, it’s increasingly important that we work closely with Traditional Owners in the northern parts of the region to fight the threats that exist across Northern Australia.
“It takes a lot of resourcing to go out to remote areas in FNQ, so it’ll be one of my key goals to grow our resourcing and capacity to be able to do that work effectively and work alongside those communities that are fighting for the environment already.”
Ms Opie said she hoped CAFNEC could reach out more in the future to continue to protect FNQ’s ecosystems.
“People love this region, the lifestyle and they want to see our environment protected,” she said.
“I hope that CAFNEC can continue to be a place where people can come and learn how they can contribute to protecting our environment and natural places because, at the end of the day, the environment is the food we eat, the air we breathe, the water we drink and I think the sooner we work together to ensure that those resources are protected and well maintained the better off we’ll be as communities.”
