|  As Manager and Senior Consultant with Marsden Jacob Associates, Jim is a resource economist who really only gets interested in economics when markets are clearly failing. Jim applies economic principles and analytical techniques to environmental problems in order to find workable and efficient solutions.
Jim has 15 years experience in natural resource and environmental economics. Since beginning his consulting career in 2006, he has undertaken over 50 projects across a range of issues including water quantity and quality management, sustainable agriculture, biodiversity and broader catchment management. Much of Jim’s recent work has focused on the use of market-like approaches to improve environmental outcomes for clients including NGOs, state and local governments, the Australian Government and the OECD.
 Anne has worked in NGO and government positions in Australia and overseas. Currently the Manager of Native Vegetation Programs for the Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment, Anne is responsible for native vegetation data and information, statewide reporting on Victoria's goal of a net gain in native vegetation, and the development and implementation of market-based programs for conservation—particularly related to native vegetation and habitat.
Anne has been involved with MBI since 2004 and currently leads the BushTender and BushBroker programs in Victoria.
 Emma Burns is an Assistant Director with the Environmental Stewardship Program. She is responsible for the management of scientific information and its incorporation into the Environmental Stewardship Program. This enables an evidence-based approach to program design that seeks to achieve improved conservation outcomes. Primarily, this involves the design of scientific monitoring, reverse-auction tenders and conservation value metrics.
Emma has worked in various roles with a focus on conservation management and ecology for a number of years, including positions in research, consul¬tancy and government.  Michelle Butler has worked for the Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) for the last two and a half years. In her role as ecoMarkets Implementation Coordinator, she is responsible for the completion of DSE’s EcoTender trials, through which over $4 million has been allocated to on-ground restoration and conservation work.
Michelle is an environmental science practitioner with 20 years field experience. The diversity of her roles in government has resulted in many captivating wildlife and plant encounters—through surveys, release programs and accidental finds—and many challenging hours trekking through bushland and swamps in all manner of conditions. Michelle also counts the enthusiastic paddock discussions with landholders, practical research and revegetation activities as highlights of her career to date.
 The National MBI Capacity Building Program, branded Designer Carrots, was established to address a recognised need for a national program to assist regional natural resource management (NRM) bodies and catchment management authorities and state and Commonwealth agencies to build capacity in the area of MBI design and application.
The Designer Carrots program aims to increase stakeholder knowledge and awareness of how MBI can be used to complement existing policy processes to achieve environmental goals and NRM outcomes.
The Regional NRM Programs team in the Queensland Department of Environment and Resource Management maintains the Designer Carrots program on behalf of the Australian and state and territory governments, including a website and a bi-monthly e-newsletter, The MBI Incentive. The team includes Kirstin Kenyon (Social and Economic Team Leader), Niromi Naranpanawa (Economist), Stephen Danckert (Senior Project Officer, Communications), Derec Davies (Senior Project Officer, Knowledge Management) and Adam Reece (Communications Team Leader).
 Julian has worked for Charles Darwin University in the Northern Territory for the last 12 years and has a botany and resource management background. During this time he has been involved in research related to wildlife management and the use of wildlife as an enterprise development option for Aboriginal people.
In addition to investigating the opportunities and barriers that exist in Indigenous use of wildlife, for the last four years Julian has been seconded to the Northern Land Council to assist Indigenous communities to develop enterprises in this area. An integral component of this work is ensuring ecological, economic, social and cultural considerations are taken into account. Julian is interested in participatory planning techniques and models to progress Indigenous livelihoods and land management that are more community-driven and focused.
 Tom Grosskopf is the Director of the Landscapes and Ecosystems Conservation Branch of the New South Wales Office of Environment and Heritage, Department of Premier and Cabinet. In this role, Tom and his team are responsible for innovative programs for improving the assessment of biodiversity assets (such as Biobanking) and policy development for native vegetation and threatened species issues. Other programs include engaging Aboriginal communities in biodiversity management programs and working with private land managers to protect and enhance important environmental assets.
Tom has more than 20 years experience in the public sector. During this time, Tom has worked in primary industries, natural resources and environment management agencies.
 Darren is an environmental scientist with a particular interest in the ecology of Australia’s wildlife. As General Manager for Biodiversity and Carbon at Ecofund Queensland, Darren leads a specialised team providing a range of land-based offset services and advice to government clients and the private sector. He was a key contributor to the strategic development and establishment of Ecofund Queensland.
Before Ecofund commenced in 2009, Darren worked on the development of environmental offset policies for both the Queensland and Australian governments. Darren has more than 10 years experience in environmental impact assessment and developing environmental and water policies.
Linda is the Program Coordinator, Sustainable Agriculture with NQ Dry Tropics, the regional natural resource management (NRM) body for the Burdekin Dry Tropics NRM region in Queensland.
In her five years in the role she has acquired extensive experience coordinating sustainable agriculture projects in the Burdekin Dry Tropics NRM region. Prior to joining NQ Dry Tropics, Linda was an agricultural consultant with the University of Melbourne’s Mackinnon Project and worked with sheep and cattle producers in south-eastern Australia. 
Robert Moir is the Program Manager, Catchment Operations for the Wimmera Catchment Management Authority, where he has worked since 2005. In that time he has developed a highly successful MBI mechanism, focussing primarily on on-ground works on farms.
Robert's projects include 14 rounds of MBI projects to date, including Catchment Tender, River Tender, Habitat Tender and Buloke Tender. Robert has recently redesigned all on-ground works programs including grants and landcare support mechansims.  Eliza is the Director of Land Sector Policy at the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency. Her role involves designing the Carbon Farming Initiative, with a focus on minimising the risk of adverse impacts, maximising opportunities for biodiversity and community co-benefits, and developing methodologies to estimate the carbon benefit from vegetation projects.
Upon finishing her undergraduate studies in ecology at The University of Melbourne, Eliza began a tour of the country, intending to work on environmental issues in each of the eight states and territories. After brief stints working with wombats at Parks Victoria, invasive species at the Victorian Department of Primary Industries, koalas on Kangaroo Island in South Australia, and heritage at Kakadu, Eliza stalled at the halfway mark and settled in Canberra.
Since 2007 Eliza has worked in the Australian Government environment and climate change departments on issues including climate change adaptation, Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards and biodiversity conservation. She will soon complete the Master of Climate Change degree at The Australian National University and is enjoying a role that combines her two policy passions— biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation in the land sector.  Dr Patrick O’Connor is an experienced natural resource management consultant and a visiting research fellow at the University of Adelaide. Patrick has technical expertise in soil, water and biodiversity conservation, with research interests in monitoring change in natural resource condition. Patrick has excellent knowledge and practical experience of MBI design, implementation, evaluation and knowledge transfer. His group have designed and implemented 13 rounds of auctions for biodiversity conservation, soil conservation and multiple benefits from revegetation. Patrick is currently working on a conservation auction for biodiversity protection in southern China.
Patrick has a strong record as a facilitator and adult educator, facilitating dozens of NRM workshops, planning exercises and discussion forums, including learning exercises as part of MBI design and implementation.
His well-developed understanding of current MBI thinking and projects in Australia will be invaluable in leading this important forum.  Philip is currently employed as a Senior Economist in the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES). He is completing a PhD in resource economics through the Fenner School of Environment and Society at The Australian National University.
Philip has previously worked on investigating the multiple environmental and industry policies underpinning plantation forestry and the native forest sector in Australia, with an emphasis on the combined effects of tax, water, carbon sequestration, environmental services and infrastructure policies on land use. Philip’s research into potential markets for environmental services includes assessing options for achieving the recovery of salinised catchments in Western Australia. Philip’s current research focuses on identifying and quantifying the barriers and drivers of native vegetation management on farm land by exploring the role of legislation and market-based instruments in guiding these decisions.
 Dr Stuart Whitten leads a team researching markets, incentives and institutions designed to protect and enhance ecosystem services and sustainable resource use and management. He also manages CSIRO’s policy oriented biodiversity research portfolio. Dr Whitten is focused on delivering science to support the practical application of natural resources policy.
He has led a range of high-profile projects for government, catchment management authorities, and non-profit organisations at a range of levels across Australia, has coordinated two national symposia—‘New Horizons in Market Based Instruments’ and ‘Market Based Tools for Environmental Management’—and is widely published. Dr Whitten also has extensive experience in environmental market design, water quality policy, non-market valuation, the not-for-profit conservation sector and cost-benefit analyses and related techniques.
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