Rottnest Island Authority Members
Our Board
Members of the Rottnest Island Authority are appointed to oversee the management and control of Rottnest Island.
Meet the Board
Laurie O'Meara AM - Chairman – appointment expires on 30 June 2012 Laurie was appointed in June 2000 and took over the Chair in April 2004. Laurie operated of the Emerald Hotel in Perth for twenty years and is a past president of Tourism Council Western Australia and champion of the Tourism Accreditation Program. He was the inaugural President of the Australian Tourism Accreditation Association. From 2002 until 2008 Laurie was the Deputy Chair of Tourism Western Australia. In the 2007 Queen’s Birthday Honours list he was honoured as a member of the Order of Australia (AM) for his services to tourism accreditation, tourism, heritage and the arts.
John Driscoll - Deputy Chairman – appointment expires on 30 November 2012 John was appointed in 2010. He is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Marketforce. John is also Chair to the Senior Advisory Panel of Marketing for the Curtin Business School, past Chairman of the Communications Council of Western Australia, Board Member of Trinity College and Chairman of Crime Stoppers Western Australia. John has been holidaying at Rottnest for almost 50 years and is an active member of Rottnest’s boating community. He is a past Committee Member of the Rottnest Channel Swim Association and is a regular competitor in this event.
Robert (Rob) McDonald – Member – appointment expires 30 June 2013; Chairman, Rottnest Island Authority Finance and Audit Committee Rob was appointed in 2011. He works as a private consultant specialising in financial and organisational review of Government organisations. He has broad commercial experience in finance, human resources, policy development and information technology. Rob has worked in senior management level with the Western Australian Police and as Chief Executive Officer of the State Supply Commission. Additionally, Rob has been a Director at the Department of Treasury and Finance and undertaken a number of secondments and acting roles in respect to major public sector organisational projects.
Suzanne (Suzie) Hunt – Member- appointment expires 30 April 2012 Suzie was appointed in 2010. Suzie is an architect with over 25 years experience and is principal of a boutique architectural and interior design practice. Suzie has experience in architectural design, documentation, contract administration and strategic management on contemporary and heritage developments in all sectors. Suzie has been involved with architectural conservation and adaptive reuse on the refurbishment of listed industrial buildings into residential apartments. She has worked as the Project Architect for the Fremantle Prison Conservation and Future Use Projects and a Project Leader for the Supreme Court Building and Parliament House studies in Perth.
Sally Hollis – Member – appointment expires - 30 November 2012 Sally was appointed in 2010. Sally has worked in tourism, hospitality and event management industries in Western Australia and the United Kingdom. She was a founding director of the Australian Tourism Accreditation Association and the Executive Officer of Tourism Council of Western Australia. She is currently the National Project Manager of the Australian Tourism Accreditation Program and Projects Manager with the Tourism Council. Sally has worked with the Department of Environment and Conservation and the Western Australian Indigenous Tourism Operators Committee. She is a regular participant of the Rottnest Channel Swim.
Peter Hick – Member – appointment expires 31 July 2013 Peter was appointed to the in 2011. He is a retired CSIRO Environmental Geoscientist, who specialised in spectral and biophysical research for terrestrial and aquatic environments. He has specialist skills in the understanding of the environmental effects of resource extraction, mining and agriculture and has more than 140 publications. His PhD was awarded in the field of Marine Physics and his recent research has concentrated on the statistics of localised effects of climate. Peter is a yachtsman, keen diver and surfer and enjoys fishing and has published books on sailing and maritime history.