Team
Our Team
Staff & Volunteers
James Nikitine - Executive Director (contractor)
James is French/British citizen from the French Alps region. As Founder of Blue Cradle in 2020, James is the main driving force behind the nonprofit. From administration, to accounting, branding, strategy, legal, communications and fundraising, James is responsible for all daily management aspects of the Foundation. He has extensive experience working in the nonprofit sectors in Geneva and Oxford, in peace-building and ocean related organisations. He is Dad to two boys, with whom he spends most of his free time, hiking, cooking, and having fun in Te Waipounamu (South Island of NZ).
Christina Buckland - Impact & Sustainability Lead (volunteer)
Christina, a Kiwi raised on the stunning beaches of Queensland, Australia, is the co-founder of an award-winning charity dedicated to supporting mothers with sick children. Her impactful work has earned her several accolades, including the Westfield Local Heroes Award and the Christchurch City Council Emerging Leader Award.
Passionate about fostering community connections and turning ambitious dreams into reality, Christina is currently pursuing her studies in Event Management part-time. She is also a proud mother of two wonderful children. In her spare time, Christina enjoys hiking, cooking, writing, and cherishing the company of great friends. Christina is thrilled to be a part of the Blue Cradle team, and is eager to contribute to Blue Cradle’s vital missions
Tuialepa Tumama Tu'ulua
Tumama is an expert events and projects manager and has delivered several projects, working for and with the Pacific community. With a background in student support in tertiary and secondary education, he has vast service delivery and development experience. He is passionate about working with people and ensuring that people, whanau, and community are at the centre of all we do, especially the solutions created for them
Kalameli Tu'ulua
Meli brings 9 years of experience in the travel industry, with a deep expertise in the airline sector. She combines strong leadership skills with a proven track record in project management and holds a Master’s in Business. As a proud daughter of the Pacific, Meli is passionate about creating inclusive, welcoming environments where people can truly be themselves, with a strong focus on hospitality.
Matt Bateman - Education Lead (volunteer)
Ngāti Waewae, Kai Tahu, Matt has 17 years of experience as Burnside Primary School Principal. Matt is passionate about environmental education, life, learning, family and adventure. Since early 2023, Matt has been supporting the development of Blue Cradle’s Ocean Literacy curriculum and Blue Schools Network. Through his knowledge of Māori and Pasifika culture, and his expertise in teaching and learning, Matt is committed to bringing opportunities for young people in Christchurch and beyond, merging STEM with humanities, special field trips, all in a unique Oceania narrative centred around Pacific history and legacy.
Sarah Bishop - Education (volunteer)
Sarah has 23 years of experience teaching Science and Biology worldwide. She spent 15 years in the UK, Mozambique, and Australia, leading Biology departments in high-performing London and Melbourne schools. In 2012 she founded the Marine Megafauna Foundation’s flagship Ocean Guardians education programme in Mozambique. Sarah returned home to Ōtautahi in 2017 and spent five years as a teacher and dean at St Andrew’s College before joining Blue Cradle. Sarah believes in working daily to connect with ourselves and nature.
Natasha S. McIntosh - Coordination (volunteer/contractor)
Natasha McIntosh is an American expatriate who has spent over a decade in Australia and Aotearoa. After completing her Master’s in Environmental Science from James Cook University, Natasha worked with a variety of stakeholders in Australia to understand community connection to the environment. Natasha has worked with Indigenous, Commercial and Recreational fishery stakeholders with additional experience in community outreach and education. At home her goals are getting her children as dirty as possible and photographing their adventures.
Antony Vavia - Pacific Advisor (volunteer)
Antony Vavia is a Cook Islands and Fijian based in Auckland. He holds a PhD from Auckland University of Technology in Pacific Island coastal reef fisheries. Due to the lack of published scientific marine data in the South Pacific, Antony is currently exploring how to ensure long-term sustainability of coral reef fisheries in the Cook Islands by doing a case study on the island of Mitiaro. The focus of this research is on the ecological integrity of coral reef ecosystems which are intrinsically linked to the nutritional and cultural wellbeing of Pacific Islanders surrounding ocean-dependence, and ecological and cultural sustenance in the Pacific. is also a co-founder for Te Ngaru Tu O Nukuroa, a new NGO that aims to develop the island of Mitiaro through improved environmental conservation and rehabilitation efforts
Phillipe Gerbeaux - Gobies Lead
Philippe has been a key member of central government programmes to effectively protect, manage and monitor New Zealand wetlands. He has served on technical advisory groups, science advisory panels and was the Oceania representative on the Science and Technical Review Panel of the Ramsar Convention for two terms. He chaired the steering committee for the organisation of the 11th INTECOL Wetlands Conference held in Christchurch in October 2021. He also played a central role in setting up the IUCN Regional Office for Oceania in Suva, Fiji where between 2006 and 2009, he was seconded as Chief Technical Advisor. Since 1983, he has regularly been involved in surveys of freshwater fauna throughout the Pacific Islands in collaboration with the Paris-based French National Natural History Museum. Before joining the Department of Conservation in 1995, Philippe worked for DSIR Hydrology Centre and NIWA (as a periphyton ecologist). He has been a member of several professional organisations, including the New Zealand Freshwater Sciences Society, the French Ichthyological Society, and the Society of Wetland Scientists.
Gabriella Wina - volunteer
Gabriella is a Masters student from Jakarta, Indonesia, taking her course in sustainable practice in Ōtautahi, Christchurch. She’s had concerns about the environmental crisis since she was young, especially since she’s always loved and valued the reef systems of her hometown. Gabriella took a few volunteer roles in grassroots organizations and worked with local communities in Indonesia on sustainability campaigns and habitat restoration programs. She has a background in marketing and communications and believes in collective action as the most effective method of restoring our planet. Now in Aotearoa, she aims to do more work in the field of marine conservation, to create real change with Blue Cradle’s campaigns and projects.
Megan Olive - volunteer
Kia Ora! My name is Megan Olive, I am a recent Marine Science graduate from the University of Otago. Throughout my life I have always had a strong sense of justice for climate issues, and have been passionate about the ocean and environment, often growing up in and around it with family. This led me down the path of marine science as a choice of study. During my time at Otago I gained a vast range of knowledge, with my final year research topic being based on assessing the efficacy of annual Undaria pinnatifida (Asian Seaweed) removal in Purakaunui Inlet, Otago. I am now excited to start my professional career, and continue to volunteer within Blue Cradle to spread awareness around the ocean, and use my knowledge for a good cause.
Leonardo Bolstad (Reo Aoki) - volunteer
Leonardo Bolstad (Reo Aoki) is a Japanese Kiwi who grew up in Kyoto, attending the Lycée Français International de Kyoto. Seeking to reconnect with his Kiwi roots, he moved to Aotearoa and is currently pursuing Electrical and Humanitarian Engineering. Leonardo is an advocate of clean and renewable energy and is currently focused on New Zealand’s policies on hydrogen transport, following his achievement as a finalist at the Global Hydrogen Case Competition. A dedicated advocate for youth engagement, Leonardo was the sole delegate from Aotearoa at the United Nations ECOSOC Youth Forum, where he advocated for the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals including SDG 14 Life Beyond Water.
Sharon Wilson - volunteer
My name is Sharon Wilson, I’m a student at the University of Canterbury and while it’s not my course of study, I’ve been involved with Environmental and Ocean Conservation since a young age as I’m lucky to have always grown up near the ocean or coast. I’m passionate about working on conservation projects in the Marlborough Sounds, leading beach audit surveys as a lead citizen scientist with Sustainable Coastlines or in simply advocating awareness. Being a part of Blue Cradle has been an honour, and I look forward to my future involvement there.
Jesse Ninnes - volunteer
Originally from West Auckland, I come from a beach loving family. I moved to Christchurch to study environmental science and geography at UC. My interest is in how changes in environmental processes connects with human influence and its impacts. I gained a passion for the environment from my childhood, where I spent a lot of time in the outdoors and on the ocean with my family. This helped me to appreciate the fragile environment of the ocean. Sustainability of the ocean is important to the overall climate of our world. I believe it is essential to maintain its complexity and beauty through research, education, and proactive conservation efforts
Henry Hastings - volunteer
Hi, I’m Henry! I have recently graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Psychology, and I am currently pursuing an honours year in applied mathematics, specializing in image processing in neuroscience. Outside of academia, I am a passionate tramper and love exploring the amazing nature around the Canterbury region. This in turn has given me a great love for the variety of often unique ecosystems surrounding New Zealand, including our oceans, making it a pleasure to work with Blue Cradle.
You?
We are recruiting new volunteers,for various tasks, including writing, events, media and communications. If you are interested, please get in touch at: contact@bluecradle.org
Contractors
These are some of the companies we hire occasionally or regularly for different administrative, legal, accounting, film and design tasks. We highly trust them and strongly recommend their work and are grateful for their support of our organization.
Steven Moe - Lawyer
Steven Moe is a Partner at Parry Field Lawyers with a focus on “for purpose” organisations but his father is a marine biologist whose job meant Steven grew up by the ocean in Chile, the United States and New Zealand. That is why he was thrilled to help set up Blue Cradle as a charity – a full circle moment for him to see amazing work done to preserve the ocean that his childhood revolved around. He has worked as a lawyer for 23 years and hosts theseeds.nz which has a focus on people doing inspiring things which has 400+ episodes (including with James Nikitine) and another on governance for the Institute of Directors called Board Matters.
Cécile Berthe - Project Coordinator (Tahiti)
As a scientific mediator for over 10 years, I organise scientific and/or artistic events (seminars, exhibitions, contests, conferences, workshops) to promote a better understanding of coral reefs, these incredible yet fragile ecosystems. I previously worked with Blue Cradle and found myself in line with its objectives. I am thrilled to contribute to its mission of fostering sustainable and equitable marine ecosystems through research, education, and collaboration. I am particularly drawn to its commitment to addressing the most pressing challenges facing our oceans through a combination of science and community engagement.
Mehdi Balamissa - Filmmaker
Mehdi Balamissa is a Franco-Moroccan filmmaker with a background in management from HEC Paris and documentary filmmaking from Université Paris Cité and the University of Southern California. He directed the short documentary The Boss (2019), which was acclaimed at over a dozen visual anthropology festivals worldwide. Mehdi also directed Start Up for a Reason (2022), an award-winning reportage on impact-driven entrepreneurship across four developing regions. His filmmaking practice focuses on addressing some of the most urgent social and environmental issues of our time. With a particular interest in marine conservation and literacy, Mehdi has been collaborating with the Blue Cradle Foundation on the editing of several documentary projects, including Unwanted Passengers (2023) and The Ina’a: Protecting a Polynesian Treasure (2023).
Anthony Rohan - Accountant
As a certified B-Corp, Fairground is passionate about supporting organisations who are making a positive social and environmental impact on the planet. It’s an honour to support Blue Cradle’s kaupapa with accounting services, especially with its focus on SDG 14 (Life Below Water) – which is so critical to a sustainable and flourishing future for all of the earth.
Dylan Gerschwitz - Videographer
Dylan Gerschwitz is a documentary and adventure filmmaker who grew up in a coastal fishing town in rural Australia. Now based in New Zealand he works around the world producing adventure documentaries. The ocean and soil are the often forgotten base that our whole world depends on, and he is passionate about sharing stories that inspire others to better look after the world.
