Our Partnership comprises business and community members from across Barwon who care passionately about the future of our region.
They are joined on the Partnership by the CEOs of our Local Government Areas and the TAFE, as well as a representative of Regional Development Australia (ensuring Australian Government involvement with the Partnership) and a representative from the Victorian Government.
Members
Business and community members
Tracey Slatter – Chair
Tracey is a respected community leader. She values diverse perspectives, good governance, and high performance, aiming to deliver the best possible outcomes for her organisations, the region and Victoria.
Tracey is the CEO of the Transport Accident Commission, was previously the Managing Director of Barwon Water for 6 years, has been a CEO of 2 Councils and held senior executive roles in health and community services. Tracey has postgraduate qualifications in business leadership, a Master of Commerce, is a National Fellow of the Institute of Public Administration, a graduate of Australian Institute of Company Directors, and a level 2 IECL coach.
Nat Anson – Deputy Chair
With an extensive career in urban and regional planning, Nat leads the Geelong office for urban advisory firm, Urbis. He contributes to Geelong-based committees for G21 Geelong Region Alliance (Chair), Property Council of Australia (Chair) and Committee for Geelong.
At Urbis, Nat leads major projects throughout the region on behalf of private and government clients. He has previously held senior roles at the City of Greater Geelong and the Victorian Planning Authority. Nat advocates for smart planning, sustainable development and economic opportunities that benefit the community and environment. He holds a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Urban Planning.
Lisa Kingman
Lisa is a highly respected advisor to corporates, foundations, and for-purpose organisations in Australia. She was awarded the Order of the Medal of Australia (OAM) for over 30 years of work connecting businesses and charities and was named one of Australia’s 100 Women of Influence in 2019.
Lisa’s initiatives span education, Indigenous affairs, arts, and social enterprises nationwide. She co-founded EdConnect and Housing All Australians. A proud Geelong resident, Lisa is dedicated to addressing major social challenges in the Barwon region and promoting sustainable growth for future generations and is the CEO at Tanarra Social Purpose.
Frances Diver
Frances is a respected healthcare leader in Victoria with over 20 years of senior leadership experience. Initially trained as a nurse and midwife, she has worked in hospitals in New Zealand and Australia.
Frances served as Deputy Secretary, Hospital and Health Service Performance at the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services until 2016 and led the Country Fire Authority (CFA) until 2019. She chairs the Barwon South West Region Health Service CEO Council and holds multiple board and advisory positions, including G21, Health Round Table, and Deakin University. In 2020, Frances was appointed Adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Health at Deakin University and is the current CEO at Barwon Health..
Tracy Carter
Tracy Carter brings over 20 years of experience in growing the visitor economy in Geelong and The Bellarine and is the Executive Director of the Regional Tourism Board – Tourism Greater Geelong and The Bellarine. She is experienced in strategic leadership, manages relationships between the organisations, government partners, and the tourism industry, and implements programs aligned with regional goals.
Tracy’s expertise includes communication, negotiation, stakeholder engagement, and data-driven decision-making.
Michael Johnston
Michael is an experienced senior executive in policy creation, strategy development, and stakeholder management across government, and sport sectors. He leverages his leadership experience to work with members in creating a vision for the city and advocating for it. Michael understands complex operating environments and fosters effective collaboration to achieve meaningful outcomes.
Michael has played a central role in significant governance reforms within Australian sport, contributed to the development and implementation of match-fixing policy, and successfully built an integrity function at Hockey Australia. Michael is the current CEO of the Committee for Geelong.
Corrina Eccles
Wadawurrung Woman Corrina Eccles lives and works on Wadawurrung country and has 23 years of employment experience in Aboriginal organisations and community engagement.
She actively contributes to various advisory and committee groups and on many regional Boards. Corrina has undertaken board governance training and brings knowledge of Wadawurrung and First Peoples culture, perspectives and values to see growth, recognition and self determination.
Thys Heyns
Thys is the deputy chair of the Geelong Manufacturing Council, a company director and a consultant. With has 35 years’ experience in the oil and gas industry, most recently with Viva Energy as Chief Operating Officer, Thys is a globally experienced Industry leader, with a recognized ability to inspire teams to great performance through the values of excellence, collaboration and respect. Prior to joining Viva Energy and moving to Geelong in February 2015, Thys was with BP for 28 years in an international career across 4 continents that covered Supply Chain, Oil Trading and Refining.
Thys now calls Geelong and the Barwon region home and is excited to be able to use his skills and experience in service of industry and his community.
Meg Price
With 18 years in government and non-profits, including 12 years in leadership, 3 years as a Board Director, and 3 months as Acting CEO at Give Where You Live, Meg has extensive experience in strategy, stakeholder engagement, governance, policy, and program management. She specialises in social procurement, inclusive employment, food security, disability, public health, multicultural issues, community development, and gender.
Meg is a values-driven leader committed to continuous professional development and leading teams to achieve social impact and sustainable systems change, something she lives everyday as the Head of Social Impact at Give Where You Live Foundation.
Shaun Cumming
With 7 years of executive leadership experience and the current Managing Director of Barwon Water, Shaun has regional knowledge and a focus on community development. Shaun has implemented transformative initiatives aligned with the Barwon Regional Partnerships vision of good growth.
His leadership has led to pioneering strategies in affordability, circular economy, and infrastructure delivery.