Board

Richard Leggat

Richard joined The Kiwi Trust as Trustee and Chairperson in April 2019.   Richard has extensive governance and leadership experience, particularly with public sector and not for profit entities.  He currently holds board roles with Panuku Development Auckland, Warren and Mahoney Ltd, Snowsports NZ, Cycling NZ, Winter Games NZ and he is chair of NZ Cycle Trail Inc.  He was previously deputy chairman of Tourism NZ for eight years and on the board of NZ Post for six years.

He is excited to lend his varied skills to the noble cause of growing the kiwi population.

Richard is a keen cyclist, skier and a generally active, outdoors person. He can often be found exploring different regions of New Zealand with recent trips including the Nelson Lakes and the Ruapehu/Whanganui River. When relaxing at home, you’ll find him with his wife and one/some of his now three adult kids, enjoying a fine bottle of NZ wine, perhaps with some David Byrne playing in the background.  His botany cum geography, headmaster father ingrained an interest and love of New Zealand’s flora and fauna which is one of the main reasons he finds this role so exciting and attractive.   With much time spent at the family bach at Lake Brunner he can differentiate a rimu from a kaihikatea and a weka from a kiwi!

Evan Williams

Evan Williams is a former Chairman of the law firm Chapman Tripp, and former Chair of the Auckland City Mission Board of Trustees.

Evan studied and lectured in law at Victoria University of Wellington before practicing as a lawyer, specialising in domestic and international commercial law. He has significant experience advising on strategy, negotiation, and implementation for large projects in the energy and electricity sectors.

For the last 10 years, Evan has focused on property developments in New Zealand and other investments, with a strong focus on building local partnerships, and on preserving the conservation and heritage values of large coastal properties.

Evan’s recreational interests include literature, the arts, heritage and conservation, walking, and farming.

Kate Graeme

Kate Graeme has deep experience with community conservation as well as a past life working in government policy. She is a long-standing board member for the Royal Forest & Bird Protection Society (currently serving as Deputy Chair) and provides The Kiwi Trust with a valuable link to this great organisation. Kate is a lawyer by training and
has applied her knowledge and skills in various governance roles within the conservation arena. She’s highly excited to participate in the kiwi journey and
provides a great level of understanding and a strong voice for community-based involvement in our work.

John McLennan QSM

John has worked with kiwi for more than 25 years,

His studies began with a small remnant population of kiwi in Hawkes Bay in 1982, and in 2002 he completed his long-term Lake Waikaremoana study.  Part of this research confirmed that at least 90% of juvenile kiwi on the mainland fail to reach adulthood in the wild, and that stoats are the main cause of kiwi decline.

As well as studying kiwi, John works as a kiwi advocate and is often called on to share his expertise. This includes working with private community groups involved in kiwi restoration, and joining with the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society to push for kiwi zones which received significant Government funding in 2000.

John is widely published on the subject of kiwi conservation.  The media also call on his expertise, including the makers of two documentaries about kiwi, and the authors of features in National Geographic, New Zealand Geographic, Time Magazine and the Readers Digest.

In 2004, John was awarded the Queens Service Medal (Q.S.M.) in recognition of his services to kiwi and the community.

Peter Cullinane

Peter Cullinane is the founder and Chair of Lewis Road Creamery.
Previously he was a founder of Assignment Group and the Chief
Operating Officer of Saatchi and Saatchi Worldwide.

Peter is a board director of listed companies, APN, NZME and WPPAUNZ
and a trustee of SkyCity Auckland Community Trust.

Tim MacAvoy

Tim MacAvoy is a corporate partner at Kensington Swan with over 40 years experience in all areas of trust law.

Tim brings a wealth of knowledge to The Kiwi Trust, with his practice covering all aspects of trust law including the establishment of trusts for estate and wealth planning purposes, establishment of foreign trusts, trading trusts, and charitable trusts.

He is experienced in estate administration and all aspects of estate planning and holds a Trust and Estate Practitioner (TEP) qualification from the UK Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. Tim has served on various not-for-profit Boards and is a former chairman of the Auckland Theatre Company.

Tim is also experienced in general commercial law and acts for various onshore and offshore clients with regard to their New Zealand business establishment and operation, shareholder agreements, and related company issues.

Ruud Kleinpaste

Ruud Kleinpaste is a familiar face to television viewers in New Zealand and around the world.

Known affectionately as ‘The Bugman’, he is a vocal advocate for insects, and has been a regular guest on television and radio shows, as well as writing articles and books.

While possibly best known for his crusade for small critters, Ruud’s background is silviculture, animal ecology and conservation. Since immigrating to New Zealand from the Netherlands in 1978, he has worked in a number of jobs, including 18-months studying the ecology of the brown kiwi in Waitangi State Forest.

Today Ruud’s working life is a mosaic of national and international speaking engagements, media projects, research and consultancy work, mostly on topics of environmental importance. He also frequently travels to little bits of paradise all over the world.

Among that busy schedule, Ruud is a trustee of the Kiwi Trust, the Air New Zealand Environmental Trust, Project Crimson, the Little Barrier Island (Hauturu) Supporters Trust, and patron for both Keep New Zealand Beautiful and Trees for Survival.