Brent Eastwood

Network Director

Brent.Eastwood@rstnetwork.org.nz

Brent has been the Pou Herea/Director of the RST Network since December 2023, bringing with him significant knowledge and experience of RSTs. Prior to this role he was the Chief Executive of Sport Northland for 25 years, after starting his working career in the fledgling fitness industry in Auckland.

He gained a Bachelor of Physical Education from the University of Otago and is also an experienced governor, having served on many national, regional, and local sporting/community boards.

Chloe Wilkinson

Network Administrator

admin@rstnetwork.org.nz

Debbie Curgenven

Geographical Priority Communities Lead

Debbie.curgenven@rstnetwork.org.nz

Debbie has more than 20 years’ experience working in the sport and recreation sector, having spent time working in England, the USA and New Zealand. Prior to arriving in New Zealand, Debbie was Head of Sport for a local authority and also spent time developing sports lottery projects on behalf of Sport England and local government. Whilst in New Zealand, Debbie has worked for a Regional Sports Trust, had experience working in local government and, immediately prior to joining Aktive, with Sport New Zealand.

Manu Pihama

Māori Lead

Manu.pihama@rstnetwork.org.nz

Manu is of Tainui, Patuharakeke Ngāti Pākehā descent, and joins the RST network from Aktive with a focus on the Māori patnerships. He also brings a broad background of relationships and experience across Private sector, Central and Local Government. He has worked at KPMG, Auckland Council and the Ministry of Social Development in management and strategic leadership roles including collaborative sessions between Central and Local Government, Iwi and Non-Government Organisations in Tāmaki Makaurau and Te Tai Tokerau.

​Manu is passionate about partnering to achieving positive outcomes for our communities and whanau through sport and active recreation.

Megan Harlick

Organisational Capability Lead

Megan.harlick@rstnetwork.org.nz

Megan is the Sector Support Manager at Sport Canterbury, having joined the organisation in October 2022. Megan has over 25 years’ experience in the sector, including governance roles on both local and national boards across sport, recreation and education. Megan understands the importance of a capable workforce in ensuring sustainable and viable organisations, and is passionate about the role of physical activity in health and wellbeing.

Jason Shoebridge

Chair

Jason is currently Chair of the RST Network Steering Group, as well as being Chair of Aktive, the Regional Sports Trust for the Auckland region. Prior to his involvement with Aktive, Jason was Deputy Chair and Chair of the Audit, Finance and Risk Committee of Sport New Zealand.

Jason’s executive role is Chief Executive of the NZ Institute of Economic Research (NZIER). Prior to that role, Jason was CEO of Kantar Insight New Zealand. As well as having responsibility for Kantar’s operations in New Zealand, Jason led Kantar's Analytics Practice for 12 markets within the Asia Pacific region.

Over a consulting career of more than 20 years, Jason has led assignments for high profile corporate and public sector clients across a diverse range of industries and disciplines in New Zealand and overseas. Before his consulting career, Jason held senior commercial and financial management roles in large corporates in New Zealand and the United Kingdom and roles within an international chartered accounting firm.

Jason has an MBA and Bachelor of Commerce, majoring in Economics and Finance from the University of Auckland, and is a Chartered Accountant and a member of the Institute of Directors

Vanessa Hughey-Pol

Chief Executive – Active Southland

Vanessa has held the Chief Executive role at Active Southland since December 2022, with a focus and passion for building leadership both within the organisation and in the wider Southland community.

Vanessa has held previous roles as Chief Executive of The Y Southland, General Manager of Serpentine Jarrahdale Community Recreation Centre, WA, and Regional Manager, Graeme Dingle Foundation. She is also no stranger to governance holding numerous board member roles on national and local boards with a focus on recreation and sport.

Kelly Shanks

Chief Executive of Sport Manawatū

Kelly Shanks has been the CEO of Sport Manawatū for almost 2 years. She is an award-winning leader with a track record of driving transformative change across health, business, community engagement, and sports management. With a career spanning over two decades across Health and Sports Kelly understands the balance and importance of keeping people active throughout their lives as well as the economic benefits of sport and events in society. She has a BSC Majoring in Psychology and minoring in Sociology and Social Policy. Kelly's journey to leadership began early in her career, where she made history as the youngest-ever General Manager for YMCA Palmerston North. Her entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to excellence were evident in her role as Director at KMI Consulting, where she leveraged her expertise to drive change and innovation across a range of businesses, leading to successes including several business awards. At Sport Manawatū, where she also served as General Manager, Kelly spearheaded initiatives such as the Whānau Tri program, which won a Health Award for its innovative and collaborative approach to increasing Māori participation in physical activity. As the Director of Strategy, Planning, and Accountability at MidCentral District Health Board (MDHB), Kelly played a pivotal role in shaping the organisation's strategic direction and working towards an integrated model to drive systemic change. As CEO of Sport Manawatū, Kelly continues to champion the power of sport and community engagement to drive positive change, leveraging commercial opportunities where possible.

Ryan Hambleton

Chief Executive of Sport Hawke’s Bay

I have a passion for community sport and physical activity and see the value it can bring to our communities through social cohesion, pride, and health benefits. I have seen these benefits through my roles with Sport Hawke’s Bay and in the numerous of senior management roles I have held at the Hawke’s Bay Regional Sports Park, Sport Wellington, and Wellington Zoo. I have also held various governance roles in education and sport and am proud of the organisations I have been able to have a positive contribution towards. I hope to use my experience and involvement in the RST Network to be able to support existing and new opportunities for people across the motu to improve physical activity, health and wellbeing outcomes for themselves and their whānau.

Heidi Lichtwark

Chief Executive of Sport Bay of Plenty

I have an MBA in Sport Management and have been in senior leadership roles in Sport & Recreation for over 20 years. Governance experience with 11 years on the NZ AIMS board, previous Ministerial appointments to conservation boards and as aa appointments panel member to NSO boards. As a widow and sole parent to a teenager, think I have an insight into the challenges of keeping our communities active. Excited about the opportunity to support the Network progress by being involved in the board.

Brandon Manuel – Sport Canterbury

Kaiwhakaauaha Pūnaha | Māori Systems Innovator

Brandon has whakapapa connections to Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Ranginui, Te Arawa, Scotland and Spain. He and his wife Bayley have two children who also whakapapa to Ngāi Tahu. They are committed to ensuring the best future for their children, as inspired by the Ngāi Tahu proverb “mō kā uri ā muri ake nei – for our children after us.”

As part of the Healthy Families Team at Sport Canterbury, Brandon is passionate about improving community health in Ōtautahi. With a background in health and physical education, he brings valuable expertise.

Relatively new to governance, Brandon looks forward to learning from the Network Steering Group members and contributing through a te ao Māori worldview.

Brandon has a MEd endorsed in e-Learning and Digital Technologies from the University of Canterbury and Bachelor of Physical Education, majoring in Exercise Prescription and Professional Studies from the University of Otago.