Founder / Co-Director

As the founder of Wild Urban Green, Jo’s family heritage greatly informs her approach and mindset; her father and his parents instilled in her the pleasure of using what you have available to create what you need, while her grandmother infused a great love of gardening. As a result, Jo is boldly creative, resourceful and driven by an ethos of working sustainably.

She loves creating new gardens for people to enjoy. Her own garden is her sanctuary to escape into, experiment with and care for, and she understands first hand the way a living lush environment can be restorative, bring balance and make a positive impact.

Jo is passionate about community gardening as a way of collectively making the world better. She worked as a gardener in the Little Sprouts program, teaching kids to love and care for the environment. She’s also involved in gardening projects along Moonee Ponds Creek and at her local primary school.

Jo holds a PhD in medical biology from the University of Melbourne. Her 15+ years spent as a researcher mean she brings self-drive, complex problem-solving skills and a love of team work to Wild Urban Green.

Co-Director

Nicky loves the opportunity to think creatively and work with people towards a shared vision, whether that’s an intricate native display, a hands on productive fruit and vegetable experience, a perennial cottage style garden that will thrive in our hot summers or an eclectic mix of all of the above.

She loves creating garden spaces that leave room for observation and imagination - different textures and foliage, colour and restful places, places for kids to play, spaces for adults to enjoy. An experienced botanist, Nicky’s plant knowledge, along with her planning prowess and expert project management skills, sets her apart.

Nicky has spent the last 10 years growing and improving her own garden, complete with an orchard, vegetable garden, frog pond, trees and flowers, all on a generous suburban block in Melbourne’s inner north west.

Nicky has a Bachelor of Applied Science (Natural Resource Management) from the University of Melbourne. She brings extensive professional experience to Wild Urban Green, including 2 years of river restoration project management and 5 years’ ecological consulting for Biosis.