The Environmental Defenders Office (EDO) is delighted to announce the addition of former Queensland Supreme Court judge the Hon. Alan Wilson to the EDO Board and the appointment of existing Director, Brent Wallace as Chair.
Alan Wilson is a distinguished former judge, having served on the bench of the Queensland Supreme Court, and as President of the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
Brent Wallace has been an EDO Board member since 2020 and brings to his new role a wealth of experience, including chairing ASX listed company Blackmores and sitting on the Board of WWF Australia. He has more than 40 years’ experience in consumer-led advocacy firms, including leading a multi-national advertising agency, establishing a brand development and strategy insights business, and co-creating a consulting firm that services blue-chip companies in Australia and South-East Asia.
Retiring Board Chair Dr Bronwyn Darlington has stepped down after 10 years on the Board, including seven as Chair, to focus on family and business interests. Her tenure as Chair saw significant organisational and social change, helping the organisation navigate the merger of six state and territory EDOs into a national body in 2019, and the COVID-19 pandemic.
The amalgamated EDO is now the largest public interest environmental law charity in the Australia-Pacific region. Its formation has marked a significant enhancement in public access to environmental justice. EDO now provides legal and advisory services to more than 2000 clients annually.
As an accredited community legal centre, EDO’s public interest environmental lawyers have served people and communities across Australia for nearly 40 years. The organisation provides a vital community service. EDO’s clients are grandparents concerned for younger generations, environmental charities acting for nature, community groups defending their local patch, and First Nations people protecting Country and culture. Without EDO, many of these people and groups would be denied access to the legal system and environmental justice.
Dr Bronwyn Darlington said: “I thank the Board for having given me the opportunity to Chair this great organisation. It was an honour to be part of EDO’s coming together as a national body and to see how its impact has grown in Australia and beyond. At a time when private interests dominate the public discourse, often to the detriment of the greater good, EDO’s work has never been more important. Our legal system gives individuals a voice to expose, question, and contest issues and the EDO provides extraordinarily important access to this forum for all. I look forward to supporting EDO, albiet from outside the board room, in its pursuit of a world where nature thrives.”
Brent Wallace said: “It’s an honour to lead the Board of EDO as we continue to provide access to justice, empower communities, and drive the systems change necessary to achieve a world where nature thrives. The world needs strong not-for-profit public-interest organisations like the EDO to protect people, nature and our climate through the law.”
EDO CEO David Morris said: “Dr Darlington has been a tireless Chair and has made an extraordinary contribution to the EDO over a very long period. As the inaugural Chair of the merged Australia Pasifika EDO, she has played a pivotal role guiding the organisation through its first five years. We sincerely thank Bronwyn for her service to EDO and look forward to building on the strong foundations she has helped lay at EDO”
MEDIA CONTACT: James Tremain | 0419 272 254
