Katie Mathison

Katie has been a senior manager for 12 years, working in a range of government and non-government organisations, most recently as Director Communications with the New Zealand Food Safety Authority for two years until it was rolled into MAF.

For five years Katie was Manager Community for the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority, growing its household insulation funding operation. Before that she was Manager Public Relations at Meat and Wool New Zealand (now Beef + Lamb New Zealand) where she won a PRiNZ award for managing communications for the first ever farmer vote for the meat levy, and re-branded the organisation on the merger of Meat New Zealand and the Wool Board.

Her career has also included managing the relationship with select committees for the Department of Conservation, analysing mergers, acquisitions and anti-competitive behaviour for the Commerce Commission, regulation of television advertisements for the UK Independent Television Commission, and public affairs journalism for Which? magazine, the UK Consumers' Association's flagship publication.

Katie was recently made a Fellow of the Public Relations Institute of New Zealand (PRiNZ), and holds the APR qualification (accredited in public relations). Her qualifications include an MBA with distinction from Massey, and an honours Bachelor of Science degree in agricultural biochemistry and nutrition from University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Katie has also recently completed the first year of a law degree.

Most weekends Katie helms a Bavaria 38 in races in Wellington harbour and offshore with Royal Port Nicholson and Lowry Bay Yacht Clubs.