Forestry Australia Directors and Staff
Forestry Australia is a registered non-profit company limited by guarantee, run by a skills-based Board of Directors. Board positions are honorary and Directors hold office for a period of 3 years. The Board is responsible for setting the strategic direction for the Institute, providing oversight of the corporate, business and financial affairs of the Institute. The Board have at least one face-to-face meeting each year and meet by telephone conference at other times.
Dr Michelle Freeman – President
Dr Michelle Freeman is a forester with a passion for native forest management. She has a double degree in Science (Ecology) and Forestry, and a PhD from the University of Melbourne. Her PhD was in partnership with CSIRO Darwin looking at savanna fire and tree dynamics of northern Australia, as part of the Tiwi Carbon Study. She has worked in timber harvesting operations, planning, forest fire management and regulation in Victoria and NSW and is currently a forest science and management consultant.
Dr Lyndall Bull – Vice President
Anne Chuter, Director
Leon Holt, Director
Dr Bill Jackson – Vice President
Bill Jackson is an adjunct Professor with the Tropical Forest and People Research Centre of the University of the Sunshine Coast and an independent consultant with over 40 years’ experience in forest conservation and management, protected area management and community development.
Bill was the chief author for the Australia State of Environment Report 2016, and he held the positions of Chief Executive of Parks Victoria and Director of National Parks from late 2010 until mid-2015. Prior to his appointment to Parks Victoria, he was Deputy Director General of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). During his 13 years with the IUCN, he helped establish the organisation’s overall strategy and worked on a wide range of conservation issues in Africa, Asia, the Pacific and Latin America. Earlier in his career he worked on community forestry in Nepal and forest and fire management in New South Wales. His PhD focused on community forestry in Nepal.
He is currently working on Global Environment Facility projects in Papua New Guinea and Bhutan.
Matt de Jongh – Director
Matt is the Sustainability Manager for Responsible Wood and holds a Bachelor of Science (Forestry), ANU and a Graduate Certificate in Business Management, UNE. Matt is a forester with over 20 years’ experience in both operational and policy roles. As an operational forester for about 11 years, Matt managed both native and plantation forests, with Forestry Corporation of NSW, in various locations throughout regional NSW, also spending time on a secondment to the NSW Natural Resources Commission to assist with the management of the state wide NSW Forest Monitoring and Improvement Program. In forestry policy Matt has worked for both the Australian Government and the Australian Forest Products Association. Matt has developed strong stakeholder engagement skills, not only as a forester, but also in the six years spent as Local Area Manager for the NSW Local Land Services, working closely with a variety of stakeholders including Landcare groups, landholders and the agricultural industry. Matt is passionate about promoting and communicating sustainable forest management and advocating for the environmental, social and economic benefits associated with forestry.
Prof Rod Keenan – Director
Rod is an Honorary Professorial Fellow, and former Chair of Forest and Ecosystem Sciences, at the University of Melbourne. He graduated with a B. Sc. (Forestry) from the ANU and a PhD in forest ecology from University of British Columbia. He has research interests in sustainable forest management, forests and climate change, ecosystem services and forest policy. He has worked across Australia, in Canada, Papua New Guinea and Southeast Asia. From 2009-14 he was Director of the Victorian Centre for Climate Change Adaptation Research. He was a member of the UN-FAO Advisory Group for the Global Forest Resource Assessment from 2003 to 2015. He is currently a non-executive director of Sustainable Timber Tasmania and Chair of the Research Advisory Committee for Australian Forest and Wood Innovations.
Dr Sam Van Holsbeeck – Board Observer
Dr Sam Van Holsbeeck is a forest scientist with expertise in forest health, silviculture, and sustainable biomass utilisation. He holds a PhD in Forestry Studies from the University of the Sunshine Coast and a Master’s in Bioscience Engineering from Ghent University. Sam has led national research programs in Australia focused on herbicide use, pest management, and the use of forestry residues for bioenergy. He currently serves as a Research Fellow at UniSC’s Forest Research Institute and coordinates the Forest Pest Management Research Consortium. Sam is passionate about bridging applied research and industry to support evidence-based forest management.
Jacquie Martin – CEO
Jacquie Martin was appointed CEO of Forestry Australia in 2019 and has since led the organisation through a period of significant transformation and growth. With a strong focus on strategy and member engagement, Jacquie has overseen the introduction of new member benefits, the expansion of professional development offerings, and a substantial increase in both membership growth and member satisfaction.
Under her leadership, Forestry Australia has strengthened its role as the peak professional body for forest scientists, managers, and growers, advocating for sustainable forest management and evidence-based decision making.
Jacquie brings more than two decades of experience in not-for-profit leadership, event management and stakeholder engagement and holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA). Her passion for supporting professionals and building strong, purpose-driven organisations continues to drive Forestry Australia’s mission to serve its members and promote healthy, resilient forests for all Australians.
Sue Bruce – Finance Manager
Sue is Fellow CPA, an experienced financial manager, accountant and HR professional. With over 30 years’ experience and qualifications in accounting, management, teaching and governance, Sue takes pride in providing top-class service to Forestry Australia’s members, staff, suppliers and stakeholders.
As our Finance Manager, she also enjoys seeing a balanced balance sheet! A career highlight was the reconciliation of expenditure for a $640 million project spanning 14 years across 3 financial systems. Away from the spreadsheets, Sue has two adult children and two grandchildren who love spending time with their Nanna Sue.
Andrea Diem – Webinar and Branch Officer
Andrea is a communications and events professional with a Master’s in Marketing and a strong background in membership-based and not-for-profit organisations. As Forestry Australia’s Webinar and Branch Officer, Andrea brings valuable expertise in coordinating webinars, online events, working with branch committees to help deliver branch events, and supporting member engagement. She originally joined Forestry Australia in 2020, where she played a key role in building the national webinar program. After gaining additional experience at the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP), Andrea returned to Forestry Australia in February 2025.
Dr Mohammad Ghaffariyan – Managing Editor Australian Forestry Journal
Mohammad has over two decades of research and teaching experience in forestry, specializing in forest operations, timber harvesting, and biomass utilisation. He began his career in Iran (2002–2005), leading forest operation projects in native forests, before moving to BOKU Vienna University (2005–2010) as a Research Assistant and Postdoctoral Fellow, where he studied the efficiency and costs of forest biomass use in Austria. In 2010, he was appointed Research Fellow at the University of Tasmania to lead projects on forest operations and biomass harvesting. Since 2012, he has been a researcher at the University of the Sunshine Coast, focusing on efficient and sustainable timber harvesting systems and biomass utilisation, delivering both economic and environmental benefits to the Australian forest industry. He has authored more than 150 scientific publications and industry reports, serves as a reviewer/editor for international forestry journals, and teaches courses in forest operations, research methods, and statistics.
Lauren Hayward – Administration and Membership Officer
Lauren Hayward brings a wealth of expertise in administration, personal assistance, and teaching. With a successful history as a business owner, she has honed her skills in leadership, problem-solving, and management. Lauren is also deeply committed to community service, volunteering for numerous charities and not-for-profits, where she applies her proactive, hardworking, and reliable nature to make a positive impact.
Beth Martin – Major Events Manager
Beth is a highly skilled communicator, administrator, and trusted executive advisor with extensive experience across educational, not-for-profit, and member-based organisations. Holding a Bachelor’s degree in Communications (Journalism), she brings a strong foundation in strategic communication and event management. Beyond her leadership roles, Beth is the co-founder of a not-for-profit organisation that delivers emergency food relief to hundreds of families annually. Her commitment to social impact extends to her previous service as a board member for several social enterprises, where she helped drive innovation and sustainable growth.
Rhiannon Mazza – Bookkeeper & Finance Officer
Rhiannon is the Bookkeeper & Finance Officer at Forestry Australia, responsible for managing accounts payable and receivable, account coding, and payroll processing. She plays a key role in supporting the smooth day-to-day financial administration of the organisation.
With more than seven years of experience in administration and office management, including working as a practice manager, Rhiannon brings strong organisational skills, attention to detail and a commitment to efficient processes. She enjoys working collaboratively to support staff and members and ensuring financial tasks are handled accurately and on time.
Rhiannon is proud to be part of Forestry Australia and to contribute to an organisation dedicated to supporting forestry professionals and sustainable forest management. Outside of work, Rhiannon loves to spend time with her two children, her husband, friends and family, and volunteering in her local community.
Dr Lachie McCaw – Science Policy Officer
Dr Lachie McCaw is a Registered Forestry Professional (RFP). He has worked in forestry since 1980 and has experience in many aspects of native forest management including regeneration systems, thinning of regrowth stands, ecosystem monitoring and bushfire science. His research interests include fire behaviour, climate and weather, and the role planned fire in sustainable land management.
Lachie is also a private forest grower and manages a 15 ha family forest near Manjimup in southwestern Australia with plantings for pine sawlog, short rotation pulpwood and amenity values.
Lachie has a Bachelors degree in Forest Science and a PhD in bushfire science.
Jason Ross – Marketing & Communications
Jason is a marketing and communications professional with eight years’ experience in Australian and New Zealand forestry. He supports Forestry Australia with strategic communications and engagement and draws on a background as Managing Publisher of Wood Central and previously, led marketing and communication for Responsible Wood in Australia and New Zealand.
Jason also works with Timber Construct, the Australian Timber Design Awards and a range of organisations across the timber value chain, providing marketing, communication and public relations expertise.