STUART WATERS

Developing sustainable solutions

BSc (Hons) MA (Journ)

I work with clients and stakeholders to support the development of sustainable solutions. Sustainable solutions are better informed, better understood, more implementable, and reflect the environmental, economic and social/cultural context.

My approach combines my solid technical/scientific background with a love of communication. I bring these skills together when engaging stakeholders on the complex "wicked" problems our clients and communities face.

I achieve sustainable solutions by helping stakeholders to become informed, to share perspectives, to explore values and to build lasting relationships. This ensures that decisions are based on the broadest possible range of input. They are understood by those who will be affected by them, and they have the greatest chance of being put into action. The effort needed to make changes will be sustained and valued by all. This process builds solutions that are systemic and long-term rather than simply quick, easy or politically expedient.

My style is relaxed and appreciative, but founded on rigorous planning and clear goal-setting.

I am passionate about working with clients and their stakeholders to facilitate the shared creation of a better, more sustainable world.

Professional Memberships: Member, International Association for Public Participation, Australasian Chapter
Member, Australasian Evaluation Society

Stuart joined Twyford Consulting in July 2004 as a Senior Consultant. He has a particular interest in the critical role of decision making in sustainable development, and believes that a good decision making process leads to sustainable decisions. He is an experienced facilitator and communicator, with a particular interest in building organisational and stakeholder capacity for creating a sustainable future. In particular, Stuart is interested in creating sustainable decisions in the context of water and energy, environment, transport, urban planning, and the technical/scientific issues that affect us all.

In his role as the consultant manager of a charitable foundation Stuart creates sustainable communities by working with community groups to design, deliver and report on community capacity-building projects.

Stuart has worked in the strategic planning area of local government where he supported the design and delivery of major community consultation projects.

Stuart worked for five years as a research consultant with the Institute for Sustainable Futures on a wide variety of projects relating to sustainable development, particularly as it relates to water and energy use.

He has also worked as a science journalist and in this role he has developed ideas, researched and written short and feature-length science-based articles for a wide variety of publications. He was journalist/editor for four years with the University of Wollongong Alumni Magazine which involved editing, writing and working with designers and printers to produce a quarterly magazine going to 30,000 alumni of the University all over the world.