ECG is a boutique consultancy firm that is 100% Pacific owned and based in Auckland and Christchurch, New Zealand. We specialise in strategy, evaluation and engagement work and have extensive experience in New Zealand and across the region.
We are a team of 7 qualified professionals who represent a cross-section of different industries including Law, Business, Economic Development, Media and Communications, Sports, Research and Evaluation.
ECG innovates practical, sustainabe and bespoke solutions for various clients using a multi- disciplinary model of critical assessment that is centered on an indigenous Pacific world view.
Project Manager with more than 8 years of experience in the education sector as a secondary school teacher, more than 2 years of experience in the business development sector as a business manager in development banking and more than 10 years in the field of environment, climate change and disaster risks management and resilience building working with donors, development partners and stakeholders. I have over 10 years experience in project management working in 15 countries in the Pacific region. These experiences includes capacity building, business developments, disaster risk management/reduction and climate change adaptation, mitigation and finance, climate science information, biodiversity and land degradation.
I have represented Nauru, Fiji and SPREP at the UNFCCC Conference of the Parties (COP) and familiar with the UNFCCC processes and procedures in coordination, monitoring and reporting to the UNFCCC secretariat. In addition, I was the development of the Third National Communication Coordinator for Fiji and experience with building capacity by mainstreaming multilateral environment agreement (UNFCCC, UNCBD and UNCCD) into inter-ministerial structures and mechanisms across Fiji Government and non-government organizations.
Co-founder of Takutea O Kiva Ltd (TOK Consulting), a Cook Islands based consultancy company that works exclusively on projects occurring in the pacific, with a team wholly comprised of indigenous pacific based professionals.
Positions held include CEO of the Cook Islands Chamber of Commerce, Business Operations Manager for Avaroa Cable Limited Cook Islands, Business Improvement Manager for Southern Cross Health Society NZ, and Project Manager for Vodafone NZ.
Passionate about climate change, disaster risk management, business mentoring, and the holistic involvement of indigenous communities in Country planning activities. Advocate at heart for openly sharing knowledge and forming new connections.
James Lewis, Director of Intercoastal Consulting, is a certified practicing civil engineer with over 15 years of experience specialising in coastal engineering throughout Australasia and across the Pacific. He has a broad knowledge of coastal protection design, integrated coastal management and surf amenity. James’s skills extend outside the office where he has led large-scale metocean deployments, analysing the data captured in the field to calibrate numerical models used to inform coastal design.
He has focussed the last 10 years of his career on working in Small Island Developing States (SIDs) in climate change adaptation, concerned primarily with developing climate-resilient coastal protection. James aspires to see the design phase through to implementation; having supported procurement, and contracting and undertaken construction supervision on large projects in remote locations. He aims to provide value and support through the complete project lifecycle including the social, financial and institutional aspects of these projects, endeavoring to understand the administrative, governmental and funding mechanisms specific to each country and community and their relation to the delivery of a successful project.
Using his knowledge of coastal engineering, the ocean and the environment, James’ primary endeavor is to assist coastal communities most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.
- 4 years in the finance industry
- Large scale project management change projects/programmes across diverse sectors and industry such as education, organisational change, social development, corruption, gender, equality, disability, social inclusion, equity, and Pacific development
- Capability development expertise - training and development proven experience in human centred design and train the trainer concepts.
- Masters in Advanced Leadership Practice (Massey University NZ)
- Specialise in building high performing teams by living ones vision, mission and culture
I Spend 9 years in a national government on the political, environment and climate change, governance and education sector space before venturing into new academic and professional challenges. In 2021 I was hired by a US based consulting and management firm Social Impact Inc. as their Data Lead in the evaluation of two US projects in the Pacific region - Climate Ready and ISSAC. Currently I was hired by UNDP as the Political & Parliamentary Project Coordinator Consultant for Kiribati Parliament.
Leanne has 25 years of experience designing and coordinating the successful delivery of projects all over the world in the Pacific, Caribbean, and Southeast Asia, including tracking the implementation of projects to drive successful outcomes. She has a background in natural resource management (community-based conservation and livelihoods), disaster risk management, and adaptation and resilience.
Leanne has worked with a range of government, multi-lateral donor, regional development, local government, and non-government organizations. She has worked as a strategic and reserves planner for the New Zealand Department of Conservation; a Community Development Officer in the Preah Sihanouk UNDP national park project in Cambodia; and spent half her working life working with the UNDP Global Environment Facility (GEF) on the large and Small Grants Programmes (SGP). Initially with the SGP in the Eastern Caribbean, later in the Pacific with co-financing from NZ MFAT and Australia DFAT, and subsequently managing the introduction and implementation of climate change adaptation funding for all SIDS eligible for SGP grants. Leanne has also worked as part of the three-person project management unit for the GEF/SOPAC Integrated Water Resource Management programme in the Pacific. She has also worked on the EU-funded Caribbean Regional Environment Programme establishing amenity areas including design and participatory monitoring frameworks as well as conducting regular monitoring during implementation.
As Senior International Programmes Manager for Disaster Risk Management, Climate Change Adaptation & Humanitarian Response in the Pacific and South Asia, administered by Save the Children New Zealand (SCNZ), Leanne co-designed projects, co-developed monitoring frameworks, conducted regular monitoring and reporting, and facilitated mid-term reviews and external evaluations for SCNZ’s resilience programming. She represented SCNZ on the National Disaster Relief Forum (2016 & 2020); represented SCNZ on the SC International Global DRR technical working group; Pacific DRR technical working group; Asia Regional Office Climate Change DRR technical working group; and the MFAT NZ DRR Working Group. She currently leads monitoring and evaluation for the MFAT Africa Geothermal Facility to ensure the Facility meets targets and advises sub-contractors on developing aligned impact measurement frameworks.
Her experience in the Pacific includes work in Fiji, Tuvalu, Nauru, Kiribati, Samoa, Niue, and the Cook Islands, among others. She has worked from the policy/government to the NGO, CSO and community level and is an advocate of approaches that build local capability and foster local leadership and engagement at all levels.
Leanne has experience in the local context of climate change on Tuvalu: she served as the lead consultant in the Early Warning Early Action project by the IFRC Climate Center 2021 - 2022, conducting research, working with local research teams (remotely), and producing final reports for Tuvalu and Palau. She has also supported Tuvalu counterparts in her regional coordination roles on the GEF IWRM project, GEF SGP, and MFAT Pacific Environment Fund. Leanne understands the reality of human resource limitations within the Tuvalu government, the critical role NGO stakeholders play in resilience and adaptation in Tuvalu, as well as the challenges of communication and travel to the outer islands. Leanne will bring her skills in successfully implementing and tracking programmes, her experience in the Pacific and her many years of experience in international development to support the team in the development of Tuvalu’s National Adaptation Plan.
Ruth is a climate change, environment and international development professional, with a particular focus on climate resilience, adaptation planning, and climate finance readiness. She has 9 years’ experience providing policy research, analysis, implementation and project/programme management in these fields, working extensively with a range of donors/international development partners and national governments worldwide. Ruth's recent assignments have included supporting countries with INDCs, capacity building support, contributing to the evaluation of EU adaptation strategy implementation and leading inputs to the EU’s 7th national communications.
Prior to joining Ricardo, Ruth was Climate Finance Adviser for the Commonwealth, where she designed and led a work programme on climate finance readiness and resilience, focusing on improving the access, use and delivery of climate finance for small and vulnerable member states, including the Commonwealth Climate Finance Skills Hub proposal.
I have a degree in Engineering and Computing, a Masters in Business Administration and am currently undertaking a Juris Doctor in Law at Monash University. I have significant experience managing projects in oceanography, climatology and technology, as well as, experience in procurement, logistics and asset management. I have successfully undertaken international stakeholder liaison for the provision of operational scientific services to both public and private sectors in the Pacific. I worked in the Australian Bureau of Meteorology for 15 years in diverse roles such as National Oceanographic Manager, National Climate and Ocean Manager, Observing Infrastructure and Equipment Manager etc. I am now a Director for Pacific Science Solutions, a newly formed science consultancy service based in Suva, Fiji.
I am the Managing Director for the Pacific Science Solutions, a science consultancy service based in Suva, Fiji. I have a major in climatology (Bachelor of Science) from Macquarie University, Australia and my first job was as a scientific officer at the Fiji Meteorological Services in January 1993. I was heading the Fiji Climate Service Division by the time I left the service in 2001 and I moved to the Australian Bureau of Meteorology. In January 2004, I became the Team Leader for an Australian Government funded project titled Pacific Islands Climate Prediction Project (PICPP). I continued managing the project until February 2012 when I moved onto to managing a much larger Australian funded (AUD 33.3M) program known Climate and Ocean Support Program in the Pacific (COSPPac).
Both projects involved at least 10 Pacific Islands. I have co-authored several WMO publications, and have been a member of a WMO working groups. I have been recognised as a regional expert on climate services.
