Valerie is the Director, Transformation at Hutt City Council. Prior to this she was a management consulting partner at PwC. Over the past 25 years she has been supporting organisations to strengthen their performance.

Highlights of her work in health and social services include modernising the regulation of health practitioners in an overseas jurisdiction; supporting the NZ Ministry of Health, Te Aka Whai Ora, and Te Hau Ora O Ngāpuhi (THOON) to develop and implement operating models; and serving as board chair of Jessie's Centre for Teenagers in Toronto, an NGO providing comprehensive wrap around support for teenage parents and their children.

She has worked in Canada, the UK, the Middle East, and Aotearoa as a management consultant. She also worked at the NZ Treasury for five years.

She holds an MBA from the University of Toronto and is a Chartered Member of the Institute of Directors New Zealand.

Anita grew up in Nelson and has called Ōtautahi Christchurch home for more than 20 years. Her career has spanned justice and statutory social work, followed by many years practising as a family and defence lawyer. Through this diverse professional background, she has developed a strong commitment to supporting people and communities facing complex challenges.

Anita's connection to harm reduction is deeply personal. A family member with lived experience of injecting drug use was a regular user of services provided by the Rodger Wright Centre. This experience gave Anita firsthand insight into the vital role harm reduction services play in supporting people with dignity, compassion, and practical care, and ultimately inspired her to join the Board.

As a Board member, Anita is proud to support the Rodger Wright Harm Reduction Network's mission and contribute to the important work it does for communities across Aotearoa.

Outside of her governance role, Anita enjoys gardening, running, travelling, festivals, road trips, and spending time with her dogs. She is also currently learning to play the piano.

Rose is a Senior Lecturer in the Dept. of Public Health, at the University of Otago (Christchurch campus). She completed her PhD at the University of Melbourne on harm arising from inhalant misuse, and then worked at Monash University and Penington Institute doing population health research on drugs and alcohol, and drug policy advocacy.

Her area of research is on understanding and preventing drug harm from a public health perspective and is interested in how harm data can inform evidence-based drug policy. She collaborates with harm reduction organisations and with clinical colleagues in Psychological Medicine and Emergency Medicine. She has worked with the NZ Ministry of Health, Te Whatu Ora, Ministry of Justice, and Police on research-policy translation.

See staff profile here

See staff profile here

See staff profile here

See staff profile here