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 Roland Pomana, Business Analyst for DOC based in Gisborne.
Roland with Tame Horomona-Rehe memorial statue on the Chatham Islands
At work
Some things I do in my job include…telling the Nga Whenua Rahui story. Simply sharing the story of an organisation that had the humblest of beginnings, to reach out and hopefully inspire other communities and indigenous cultures to try to achieve the same.
This helps achieve DOC’s vision by…strengthening and supporting communities to take ownership of conservation issues.
The best bit about my job is…the people I work with, followed closely by some of the people I get to meet and the places I get to see.
The awesome-est DOC moment I’ve had so far is…watching the Tauira Kaitiaki Taiao Cadets strut their stuff at the Asia Pacific ESRI User Conference 2012.
The DOC (or previous DOC) employee that inspires or enthuses me most is… Mike Mohi. If you want to know why then simply meet the man – it will be clearly obvious after five minutes.
Yep that is a full size roasting dish that it’s sitting in
On a personal note…
Most people don’t know that I… also have a second job; it’s “Assistant Manager” to five children.…Oh yeah, and I have a massive, massive…(did I say massive) love of seafood.
The song that always cheers me up is… oh my God, there’s so many, but first would have to be I Need Your Love – Golden Harvest…the guitar mastery of the Kaukau boys, it’s just a timeless piece of NZ music history.
Second is Bennie and the Jets – Elton John, something about the lyric “She’s got electric boots, a mohair suit” just makes me laugh and then finally Beck Reimagines David Bowie’s “Sound and Vision”, it’s just such an awesome arrangement of a classic.
Go on, take some time and click on the links… hopefully they cheer you up as well.
If I could trade places with any other person for a week—famous or not famous, living or dead, real or fictional—it would be… Han Solo, and just spend the whole week trying to do the Kessel Run in less than “10” parsecs.
In my spare time I… usually…hang on, what spare time!
My secret indulgence is… spending time with my four year old son, Cohen. How often do you get to be a hunter, a pirate, a ninja, a zombie and a hero…all before lunchtime.
Roland’s son Cohen with his dog Shade
Deep and meaningful…
My favourite quote is… “To know a thing well, know its limits. Only when pushed beyond its tolerances will true nature be seen” – The Amtal Rule
The best piece of advice I’ve ever been given is… firstly, from my father “Work hard, be good to your mum,” and then more recently from Jack Dangermond “It’s clear you are trying to make a difference, why don’t you strive to make it a big one?”
In work and life I am motivated by… my family, especially our children and their childish unbridled enthusiasm for just about everything…except cauliflower and broccoli.
My conservation advice to New Zealanders is… don’t think conservation is easy, don’t think you can do it on your own and don’t think it will happen quickly.
Roland’s daughters on an early morning pig hunt
Question of the week…
You have been granted a magical wish to bring back an extinct species, what would it be and why?’ (hmmm, and where would you put it!) Nothing. We need to accept the past, learn from it and move forward. Even magic can’t undo or put right the wrongs we have done.
