Ever wondered who keeps things ticking over at Green Adelaide? Come behind the scenes with us and get to know the team working towards a cooler, greener and wilder Adelaide. Not only a communication guru but host of the Green Adelaide podcast, which recently hit over 3000 listens, Mel Martin loves strategy and creativity – a perfect combo for success.
Read on to find out about Mel’s vast experience, what led her to working in the environment sector and why she is passionate about what she does.
‘In an urban context, building in more green and making nature not just a ‘nice to have’ but a ‘must have’ is essential for the city to safeguard liveability for all.
As the Team Leader of Communication, my role involves building Green Adelaide’s visibility and reputation by demonstrating the agency’s value to the local community, so they trust our work and are encouraged to connect with nature.
I’ve worked in the environmental industry for about 8 years now across media relations, crisis management, and overall communication team management and strategy development and delivery. I also spent a little bit of time in the environment minister’s office.
Outside of the environmental industry, I’ve work in the communication field across other sectors such as development, transport and education.
The fun of the communication field is that your days are always different but its about being consistent – from core tasks of building relationships, curating a messages/stories, looking after my team and developing a strategy, to project management. All the tasks are different but consistency across all is what results in successful communication.
My favourite part of my job is a tie between the satisfaction of clear strategy development and the creativity of good content creation!
I always thought the environment would be fun to cover as a communication professional – and it definitely is a fun topic with lots of diversity, facts and cultural expectations!
The coolest thing that has happened since working at Green Adelaide is probably my team winning the 2023 Government Team of the Year award from our national industry body Communication and Public Relations Australia (CPRA).
A recent highlight is the successful launch and uptake of the Green Adelaide Podcast – in a year the podcast has had more than 3000 listens and is a growing avenue to help people get to know the sector and learn from others in the sector.
I am passionate about best practice communication and this field is so important to help safeguard the environment – plants, animals, rivers and trees – with the people of metropolitan Adelaide.
Everyone has a role to play. We all live in the environment; we all reap the benefits or the failures of it if it’s not looked after. So, we all have a role and of course government does, but individuals do as well.
My favourite native animal is absolutely the red-tailed black cockatoo! Or really, any black cockatoo. I am always amazed when I spot one, here in Adelaide, or interstate. I could watch them for hours – snacking, gliding from tree to tree, scratching, preening, and clowning around.
They are such a good-looking parrot.'
Want to work in the environment sector? Join Mel on our podcast – an enviro-exclusive on the people, projects, and news of metro SA.