Meet the team: Keeley Hartzer, Natural Capital Associate.
September 20, 2023
News & Insights
Niche’s new Natural Capital team member
We are delighted to introduce our newest Natural Capital team member Keeley. She has dedicated her career to making a meaningful impact on Australia’s environmental landscape. Keeley’s expertise spans diverse areas within the environmental sector, making her a versatile and valuable contributor.
Keeley at the Biodiversity Stewardship site.
Get to know Keeley
Keeley’s professional passions include environmental economics, energy supply and demand, carbon trading, and biodiversity offsets. These intricate facets of the environmental field have captivated her due to their immense potential and increasing importance, especially in the Australian context.
Over nearly a decade, her professional journey has encompassed mine site rehabilitation, large-scale revegetation projects, carbon trading, and biodiversity offsets while she was an offsets advisor at Australian Rail track Corporations (ARTC). At Inland Rail Keeley assisted with delivering a multi-million dollar offset program through undertaking strategic planning and the implementation of suitability assessments of biodiversity stewardship sites on landholder properties, property acquisitions to establish company-owned stewardship sites, negotiating and facilitating credit market purchases, and engagement with industry and relevant state and federal departments.
Beyond her professional life, Keeley is an accomplished long-distance open water swimmer, with her sights set on conquering the English Channel. She’s also a published author, co-writing “The Cheapest Electricity on Earth” in 2018, a testament to her dedication to environmental sustainability. In her downtime, Keeley finds solace in reading, immersing herself in the world of literature.
Sustainable energy solutions
Keeley holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental science from Bond University, with an Honours degree from Griffith University. Her career journey into Natural Capital began during her undergraduate years, and she delved deeper during her honours research, focusing on carbon offsetting and renewable energy implementation. This research aimed to address supply and demand requirements in rural and remote areas of Australia, a testament to her commitment to sustainable energy solutions. Keeley continues to specialise in these areas, channelling her expertise in biodiversity offsets and environmental economics towards project success, client satisfaction, and robust and sustainable outcomes for people and nature.
Life at Niche
Keeley’s decision to join Niche’ Natural Capital team stems from her desire to work in a positive, healthy workplace. Niche’s reputation for its caring culture and commitment to empowering people to create a sustainable future resonated deeply with her. She saw an opportunity to be part of a team with the potential to create a positive impact on the environment.
Since joining, Keeley has found Niche to be a welcoming, collaborative, progressive, determined, and realistic workplace, where she has received unwavering support from her colleagues and mentors.
“In the ever-evolving landscape of environmental conservation, professionals like Keeley embody the dedication and expertise required to make a difference,” said Simon Tweed, Manager – Natural Capital Strategy. “Keeley’s focus on Natural Capital and her commitment to Niche’s mission make her an invaluable asset to our growing team – and for our clients – as we deliver strategic advice to design powerful and impactful nature-orientated strategies.”
