Meet our people
Office Crew
Michael Maahs
General Manager021 143 6791
Michael has resided on Waiheke Island since 2010. Originally from Detroit Michigan USA, Michael spent a number of years in the states gaining a bachelor’s degree in Urban Planning and working for State Government before settling on Waiheke. While in New Zealand Michael also attended the University of Auckland and graduated with a Masters in planning practice.
Michael has specialised in not-for-profit organisations and has worked in this sector in Auckland since 2010, as the national project manager at the Problem Gambling Foundation of New Zealand and now as the general manager at the Waiheke Resources Trust.
Michael has helped create organisations on Waiheke, serving as a founding member of the Waiheke Community Housing Trust. He has also had instumental roles in the creation of the Waiheke Collective, Island Waste Collective, and Te Korowai O Waiheke.
Michael lives with his family on the island and practices and supports sustainable initiatives on Waiheke.
Kristin Busher
Partnerships Manager027 386 1125
Originally from Waiatarua in the Waitakere Ranges Kristin moved to Waiheke in 2001. Her experience in the community sector began in 2010 as Waiheke Playgroup's Coordinator. Her passion for environmental sustainability & waste reduction then stemmed from her previous role as Assistant Manager & Funding Administrator of New Hope Shop & Timber.
As a mother of 2 young children who is passionate about her community , working with and supporting grass roots community projects and initiatives is important to Kristin and the work she does.
Beth Rose
Communications ManagerBeth joined WRT at the beginning of 2021. She is a relative newcomer to the island having only moved here in 2018. Two little children have fast-tracked her into the community and now she’s involved in all sorts of things from volunteering for Te Huruhi School to raising money for pottery equipment at the Catherine Mitchell Arts Centre.
Working at WRT sees Beth returning to environmental communications, which is where her career began in London. She brings nearly two decades of experience in marketing, journalism and communications with government, non-profits, large corporates, small start-ups and UK national media.
Laura Lynch
AdministratorOriginally from the land of thatched stone cottages in the Cotswolds, Laura has been on an epic adventure across the heights of Europe's snow-capped mountains to the vast blue of the Pacific Ocean, to find her way to Waiheke back in 2017. She brings a colourful sweetshop of experiences into her work here at WRT.
As a mother to a young daughter Laura is passionate about sustainability and building a bright future for her family and the amazing community, they share it with.
Livné Ore
Grants & Operations CoordinatorAn alumna of Victoria University of Wellington | Te Herenga Waka, Livné moved to Waiheke in 2018 after travelling post-degree.
Her previous volunteering experience, interest in sustainability and eagerness to be involved with her new community led to a three month internship at WRT, after which she stayed involved through grant writing, baking at Kai Conscious Café and working alongside Kristin for the then-called Project Little Oneroa.
In February 2020, she started working full time as WRT's new Grants and Operations Coordinator.
Kayleigh Appleton
Zero Waste Events Coordinator & ComposterKayleigh grew up on the wind-blasted Orkney Isles of Scotland and followed the sun to Aotearoa in January of 2018. She has always been a child of nature and is passionate about trying to life as zero waste as possible. She views working as the Zero Waste Events Coordinator for Waiheke as primarily an educational role and a wonderful chance to vibe with people about where they are at on their waste-awareness journey. Based at the Waiheke Resources Trust on Waiheke she also works as the WasteWise Facilitator for Kai Conscious, a composter on the Compost Co. hot composting facility and as part of the Love Our Wetlands restoration team.
Nathalya Larson
Waiheke Waterways Project CoordinatorOriginally from São Paulo, Brazil, Nathalya decided to spend a weekend on Waiheke and instantly fell in love with it. The short weekend trip turned into 7 years and she now calls Aotearoa home.
Growing up in São Paulo, she saw first hand the impacts pollution has on our waterways and rivers. Her father has worked for over 38 years in several water treatment projects around South America, so they would talk about the different projects he was working on and how important they were.
She loves being a part of our amazing community and working towards making it a better place for our tamariki.
Haley Wilson
BookkeeperHaley is based in the Mangawhai, Northland, where she now lives with her family after moving from Waiheke Island.
Prior to starting up her own business, My Two Cents, in 2014, Haley worked for Kiwibank for 8 years, and then in various accounts roles working with a multitude of software's and systems. She is currently studying for a Bachelor of Accountancy at Massey University.
Haley is also an award winning bookkeeper - taking out ICNZB's Bookkeeper in a Small Practice award in 2019.
Jan Ramp
Mapping SpecialistGraphic designer, map maker and landscape architect Jan Ramp helps us tackle the increasingly complex challenges around our maps and plans. His experience with layout software improves our skills and efficiency, and his focus on getting the most out of our GIS mapping software sets us up for improved work flows between field and office staff.
Jan has lived on Waiheke since 1994 and has an intimate knowledge of the island. He has been instrumental in the creation of the Te Ara Hura walkway, and has supported many ecological restoration programmes on the island with his customised maps. His business, Snapper Graphics, is well-known as a supplier of interpretation design around the Auckland region and beyond.
