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Meet Rosie Newman: Our New Project Officer in South Australia

We’re thrilled to welcome Rosie to the Conservation Volunteers Australia team as our newest Project Officer in South Australia.

With a passion for protecting natural places and a background rooted in environmental studies, Rosie brings fresh energy and dedication to her new role.

To get to know her better and hear about her background, passions, and what she’s most excited about in her role, we asked her a few questions.

Can you tell us a little about your background and what led you to work in conservation?

“I grew up in the Adelaide Hills right near Belair National Park, so I’ve always had a love for nature and wanted to work in a role where I could conserve natural areas. I followed this passion through to uni, where I recently graduated in Environmental Policy and Management.

During uni, I started volunteering with CVA and loved getting outside and getting my hands dirty — now I’m lucky enough to be working here!”

What excites you most about joining CVA as a Project Officer?

“I’m excited to meet all of our great volunteers and to get creative with planning fun events for people to come along to!”

What types of projects will you be working on in your role?

“My project focuses on two significant wetland sites north of Adelaide — Magazine Creek and Barker Inlet. I’ll be doing revegetation, clean-ups, and weeding in these areas to improve the habitat for all the important species that live there, including many migratory birds that visit.”

What do you see as the biggest environmental challenge facing Australia right now?

“Unfortunately, there’s a growing list of challenges facing our beautiful environment here in Australia, and it’s hard to pick just one. I think urbanisation and development are threatening many habitats right now, and of course, I’m always thinking about climate change and how species will respond to changing temperatures and more frequent natural disasters.”

Why do you think community involvement is so important for conservation?

“I think it’s so great to get the community involved so that people build their own connection to nature and want to look after it. It’s so important that there are opportunities, like CVA events, where they can make a difference in their local environment.”

Do you have a fun fact about yourself you’d like to share with the team?

“I enjoy spending time on arts and crafts, and one of my favourite new hobbies is finger painting! I painted a flower on a huge canvas, which was so fun and freeing — you can get super messy and mix the paint around on the canvas.”

If you could give one piece of advice to someone who wants to get involved in conservation, what would it be?

“I would say get involved in volunteering — whether it’s a Friends of Parks group, or CVA, anything in your local area where you can meet lots of people and learn new skills. And you never know, you might get a job from it!”

We’re so excited to have Rosie on board and can’t wait to see the positive impact she’ll create in South Australia. If you’d like to join Rosie at one of her upcoming projects, keep an eye on our volunteer opportunities.