Grew up in the Pacific Northwest of the United States, and has lived in the middle east, former Soviet Union, Te Waka o Maui, before coming to Te-Whanganui-a-Tara over a decade ago. Ruth has always has different sides to her work. Her PhD in policy implementation built a foundation of system thinking and big picture perspective. But one of Ruth’s earliest roles was as a forest firefighter, working in pressure situations with teams of people on work that needed to be done precisely to avoid injury to life and limb. This work harnessed her ability to quickly assess a situation, identify pathways forward and work constructively with others to get the job done. This passion for momentum is part of Ruth’s brand in all she does (she has since worked in ski instructing, teaching, aged-care, academia, local government, public sector, and not-for-profits). She can bring this bias-towards-action to your organisation, to help you build momentum towards your key goals. Beyond paid work, Ruth is an artist, a jock, and a lover of nature.