Meet us
Nic Edmonds, Director
Ben Sheeran, Director
Donna Haynes, Web consultant / Project coordinator
Phil Barlow, GIS specialist / Project coordinator
Nic Edmonds
Director
e nic@recreationsolutions.co.nz
p 021 808 485
In total Nic has had over 16 years of involvement with the recreation management sector. He has spent time with the Department of Conservation, as an outdoor recreation instructor, guide, risk and crisis analyst, park ranger and recreation planner. He has been involved with the industry at a number of levels including project management, consenting officer, application coordination, industry representative and the developer of policy and planning frameworks. He is actively involved with many related industries including those of events, tourism and the screen production.
Nic has over ten years experience in Local Government, specialising in recreation and open space planning. During his time with local government he designed and implemented interactive systems, processes and supporting policies to assist with managing screen production, events, tourism and structured activities. Nic has also been the project manager of a wide range of open space infrastructure development and for the last four years being heavily involved in the design and implementation of web based recreation and open space system development.
Nic’s experience and background in guiding and instructing outdoor recreation activities ensures he has a good understanding of what it takes for planning and concept design to be applied successfully.
His background in recreation planning and policy, also allows him to provide services in relation to integrating approaches developed in statutory and non statutory plans, particularly those related to recreation, creative industries, and community facilities.
A holder of numerous field related certificates, Nic is also trained in a variety of consultation methods, PRINCE2 Practitioner, and member of the New Zealand Recreation Association (NZRA), He also has a degree in Sport and Recreation Management and Business Studies, as well as a diploma in Outdoor Recreation Leadership.
When not in working in the field or the office (or still trying to convince Ben to teach him to surf), Nic will be mountain biking, canyoning, tramping, or caving.
Ben Sheeran
Director
e ben@recreationsolutions.co.nz
p 021 462 777
Ben has 10 years experience in the practical application of sustainability. With the use of economic instruments and planning/policy principles, he is an experienced resource management policy planner, environmental economist and project manager.
Ben has worked for and with central and local government in New Zealand, and overseas as a consultant for two central London boroughs. He has been involved in assessments of environmental effects, policy development under legislation including the Resource Management Act 1991, drafting and auditing resource consent applications, facilitating workshops for consultation programmes, and presenting expert planning evidence at hearings.
Ben has environmental economic expertise in cost benefit analysis, non market valuation of the environment, and use of economic instruments in environmental management. This includes undertaking Community Benefit Surveys (Contingent Valuation Method) to estimate the value of environmental improvements, and applying a Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) framework to community wellbeing derived from Council output areas to assist in the production of LTCCPs.
Ben’s ability to inform and review processes has been used in the role of a project coordinator; ensuring projects are progressed according to process guidance notes and legislation (including the RMA First Schedule process).
Qualifications include a post-graduate degree in Resource Management, as well as degrees in economics and geography. Ben has a professional affiliation to the New Zealand Planning Institute, holding a National Council seat in 2001-03 and current graduate membership.
When Ben finds time to escape from work he is often found where the best swell is, tramping New Zealand’s back country or playing guitar.
Donna Haynes
Web consultant / Project coordinator
e donna@recreationsolutions.co.nz
p 021 483 989
Committed to the environment, Donna blends her 10 years of experience with web development and content management systems with her passion for making the world a better place.
As well as time spent with the development teams at Straker and Southern Cross, Donna was principal internet architect at the Auckland Regional Council and was behind development to maximise public interaction with park information including online track and site information and real time availability calendars.
A knowledgeable developer in Coldfusion and PHP, Donna’s experience across a wide range of customers ensures she can provide the most relevant solutions for clients and their customers.
When not immersed in code and design Donna is bending at the Yoga Academy and supporting the Innercredits project.
Phil Barlow
GIS specialist / Project coordinator
e phil@recreationsolutions.co.nz
p 021 488 993
Phil has 24 years experience in Local Government in New Zealand focussing on Geographic Information Systems (GIS) since 1995. From 2005 until 2010 he managed of the Auckland Regional Councils ARC GIS team, and was a member of the Auckland regions GIS managers group (ALGGi), and was also a local government representative on the Geospatial Advisory Committee reporting to the New Zealand Geospatial Office.
His exposure to spatial information is vast, and projects include preparing the first web-based mapping services for the ARC, managing and preparing the mapping for the various regional plans, and enabling various departments to capture, analyse, and prepare information to support their work.
An early interest in cartography has grown from hand drawn maps in the early days of his career through Computer Aided Design (CAD) to GIS and the capabilities available from these systems.
Outside the office, Phil can often be found on the golf course soaking up the park-like surroundings and hoping to shoot a good score. In his earlier days, he was a keen rugby league, triathlon, mountain biking and tennis dude, but he’s getting on a bit now.