Come behind the scenes and into the jobs, the challenges, the highlights, and the personalities of the people who work at the Department of Conservation (DOC).
Today we profile Rebecca (Bec) Rush, Community Ranger in Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland.
An inspirational work photo of me at my desk! Do I need a better work story?
Some things I do in my job include…
Anything related to permits. In Auckland that is mostly Wildlife Act permits, translocations, filming permits and permits for events, including my favourite, wedding permits (we have to issue permits for these up here because of old bylaws still in place for the Hauraki Gulf Maritime Park). A big component of this work is making sure iwi are aware of all these applications and have a chance to provide comments on them.
This helps achieve DOC’s vision by…
Getting people to connect with DOC’s awesome places – from the brides having their special day at Fort Takapuna, to competitors running or mountain biking on Rangitoto and Motutapu – hopefully in a way that does not impact on the places we are looking after.
The best bit about my job is…
The times I get to escape from the office (few and far between at the moment – sob sob)! Getting out to Tiritiri Matangi or one of the other islands in the Hauraki Gulf and seeing the restored landscapes and birdlife makes me remember why I like working here!
The strangest DOC moment I’ve had so far is…
Flying over to Aotea/Great Barrier for the day (I can’t even remember why I was going there) only to sit at the top of the hill between Okiwi and Port Fitzroy for the entire day because of a tsumami warning! It was after the terrible Boxing Day tsunami in 2004, when tsunami warnings started to be taken seriously. I think a very small wave (measuring just centimetres) was recorded that day.
The DOC (or previous DOC) employee that inspires or enthuses me most is…
John Galilee. He’s been at DOC so long he knows everything and puts up with me asking constant questions (probably the same ones over and over again) without ever getting grumpy! Thanks John!
On a personal note…
The gotta have tourist shot – me, my sister Emma and now brother-in-law Pete in front of the pyramid, Cairo, Egypt.
My happy place is…
At the moment it is sitting down with a glass of wine on Monday night and watching Game of Thrones!
The thing I’m most looking forward to in the next six months is…
Taking my kids to the snow. My dad was a keen skier so me and my sisters were on skis before we were at school. We tried to go skiing for a weekend a year or two ago, but the weather was so awful the ski fields were all closed!
In my spare time I…
Like to sew clothes, not that I have a lot of spare time these days! Before I started working at DOC, I made and sold clothes at a shop on K Road. But then I got a mortgage and needed a more regular income.
My favourite quote is…
I don’t really have one! But just Googled famous quotes and I quite like this one: “You can do anything, but not everything” (David Allen). I never get to the end of my to do list at work or at home. If I think of this quote, it might make me feel better about that!
My kids India and Jasper at Kitekite Falls, Piha.
The best piece of advice I’ve ever been given is…
Don’t worry about the stuff you can’t change.
In work and life I am motivated by…
My family. My mum is one of four girls who have all had such varied careers and achieved (and are still achieving) amazing things, as well as raising (awesome!) kids along the way.
My conservation advice to New Zealanders is…
Follow your kids’ example. It’s so great how much focus our schools put on looking after the environment and how stuff I have to consciously think about is just second nature for kids.
Thanks for sharing! Awesome to hear from other rangers working with permits / concessions!