Chair

Ian is Executive Chair of Applied International Pty Ltd (a private investment group based in Melbourne), Chair of the George Hicks Foundation and in June, 2021 was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia in recognition of his community and philanthropic work. Ian has a strong interest in the arts, is a major supporter of the Australian Ballet and an enthusiastic collector of Australian art and sculpture. He has a vineyard, avocado farm and sculpture park on the Mornington Peninsula in Shoreham. Ian holds a Bachelor of Economics.

Deputy Chair

Andrew Fairley AM, LLB (Melb), Hon Doc (Deakin), is a commercial and equity lawyer at Hall & Wilcox in Melbourne.  He has a deep involvement in the philanthropic sector as Chair of the Sir Andrew Fairley Foundation and former Chair of the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education. He is an Industry Director of the Australian Financial Complaints Authority and a Director of Qualitas Securities Pty Ltd.  He is a former Chair of Equip Super, an Industry Superannuation Fund managing $30b.  He also formerly Chaired Parks Victoria and is the former Deputy Chair of Tourism Australia.

Director

Elina is a Co-Founder and Director of SALT Catalyst – a private company established in 2018 to manage the investments and philanthropic activities of her family. SALT Catalyst operates with the ethos of using intellectual, social and financial capital to catalyse a more just, kind and compassionate world. Prior to establishing SALT Catalyst, Elina had a long career in brand and corporate marketing spanning across her native Finland, several European countries and Australia. Elina is passionate about education, especially early childhood and language development. Other areas of interest for Elina are socio-economic, gender and indigenous equality, mental health, empathy and environmental sustainability. Elina currently serves on the Zoos Victoria Foundation Advisory Board, Wolf Foundation board and several advisory boards of privately held companies. Elina holds a M Sc. in Economics and Business Administration.

Director

Sarah has an extensive sales and digital marketing career spanning over 20 years in the corporate and education sectors. Having worked with News Limited, Australian Consolidated Press and Murdoch Magazines, Sarah led sales for some of Australia’s leading publishing brands including donna hay, madison magazine, Harpers BAZAAR and INSIDEout. In the last 8 years Sarah has advised to the Peninsula’s leading educational institutions including Chisholm TAFE, Chisholm Online and Monash University, Peninsula campus where she was instrumental in developing campus led strategy to raise awareness of the education opportunities within the area by engaging the local community. Sarah is particularly passionate about the importance of education for all.

Director

Andrew is Chair of Sentinel Foundation, and has had a long and successful career in the financial services industry. As the creator of both Lonsdale Ltd and Lonsec Ltd, he provides research integrated client software, and share broking services to Accountants and Financial Planners. Andrew is active as a philanthropic donor and close supporter of a number of not for profit organisations. He is a resident of Mt Martha. 

Brett is a Peninsula local, currently residing in Mount Martha and brings to the MPF strong business knowledge and experience in leadership, complex problem solving and technology innovation. With a history starting as a research scientist with the Alfred Hospital, Brett has had roles in product, strategy, digital and technology across financial services and consulting, leading to his current position as a Partner at KPMG where he is currently the Banking lead for Advisory.

Georgia Dawson is a Lecturer and Research Fellow at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education, Centre for Program Evaluation. She has extensive skills in quantitative data analysis including item response theory, structural equation modelling and path analysis.

Director

Professor Frank Oberklaid, OAM, MD, FRACP, DCH, was the Foundation Director of the Centre for Community Child Health at The Royal Children’s Hospital – Melbourne for over 25 years. He is currently Co-Group Leader of Child Health Policy, Equity and Translation at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute and an Honorary Professor of Paediatrics at the University of Melbourne. Professor Oberklaid is an internationally recognised researcher, author, lecturer and consultant, and has written two books and over 200 scientific publications on various aspects of paediatrics. His work has been acknowledged in the form of a number of prestigious awards and many invited international lectureships and visiting professorships.

Executive Director

Stephanie is the Executive Director of the Mornington Peninsula Foundation. Since 2017, she has led the organisation’s growth and transformation with her pioneering approach to systemic change led by local community. With a unique combination of personal engagement, targeted support, data analysis, government partnership and community empowerment, Stephanie’s approach to place-based philanthropy provides people experiencing disadvantage with relief from short-term crisis, then access to networks that foster long-term, systemic change. Stephanie has built this approach over a 15-year career in philanthropy, where she has worked with marginalised populations, grass-roots organisations and major donors in metropolitan Melbourne and around regional Victoria, in roles with Igniting Change, the Sir Andrew and Lady Fairley Foundation, the Reichstein Foundation, and MPF’s antecedent, the George Hicks Foundation. In her earlier music and arts administration careers, Stephanie has held positions in four of Australia’s six symphony orchestras, and remains an active and passionate cellist.

Chief Financial Officer

Gitz is Chief Financial Officer of MPF and has been working for the past 9 years within Ian Hicks Family Office – Applied International.  A passionate accountant and Chief Financial Officer with 20 years experience in Finance and Accounting. She started her carrier in public accounting and prior to this, she served as a Chief Financial Officer in Retail Industry and in IT Tech firm.  She has a strong background in Finance and Tax with her Masters degree in Taxation and is a fellow of CPA Australia and Tax Institute of Australia and a graduate member of AICD.

Honourary Strategy Advisor

Dr Genevieve Timmons is Honourary Strategy Adviser with MPF. As one of Australia’s most experienced philanthropic executives, Genevieve was a founding director of the Mornington Peninsula Foundation with Ian Hicks AO and Andrew Fairley AM and helped lay the fundamental principles upon which the work has rapidly developed. We are grateful for the wisdom, vision, expertise and wonderful commitment from a leader in the sector.

Ivy is a Financial Accountant at MPF. She has a strong background in finance and accounting having completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting and Master’s degree in Professional and Practicing Accounting. She is an associate member of CPA Australia and is a passionate accountant who has worked in various industries.

Nikki has over 25 years of experience working in media and communications. As a journalist Nikki was a regular contributor to ‘The Age’ for over a decade.

Nikki completed a Bachelor of Arts in Women’s Studies and a Graduate Diploma in Adolescent Health and Welfare. Her studies provided her with research and writing skills as well as knowledge of social systems, in particular the systemic disadvantage vulnerable women and children face, and knowledge of protective factors for health and well-being for women, children, and adolescents.

Nikki has lived on the Mornington Peninsula for 17 years with her husband, they have two teenage sons. She is passionate about social change and excited to support the work of MPF using her well-honed communication skills.