Board of Directors
Central Desert Native Title Services Limited (Central Desert) was incorporated on 16 April 2007 and commenced operations on 1 July 2007. The Board’s role is to decide the strategic direction of Central Desert and to ensure that Central Desert acts in accordance with funding conditions.
MR TERENCE (TERRY) GROSE – Chairperson
Appointed 14 December 2012
Terry Grose has a strong commercial background gained through his experience as a merchant banker, senior executive and business consultant in Australia and overseas. He has gained extensive experience working with Aboriginal organisations over the past ten years. Terry joined the board of Central Desert Native Title Services in 2012 and was appointed Chair in 2013. He is also Chair of Desert Support Services and Native Title Services Goldfields.
Terry has been on the board of Yirra Yaakin Aboriginal Theatre Company for a decade. He is an Ambassador for Community First Development (formerly known as Indigenous Community Volunteers) and has carried out assignments for them in the Kimberley and Gascoyne regions and in Arnhem Land.
Earlier in his career Terry spent time as a merchant banker before joining Wesfarmers where he worked for a decade in a range of senior management positions, before moving to Hong Kong where he was CFO of an innovative computer software company for three years before establishing Grose International, a commercial and financial consultancy operating in Hong Kong and through Asia.
DR CAROLYN TAN
Appointed 14 December 2012
Carolyn Tan has been an In-house Legal Counsel at Yamatji Marlpa Aboriginal Corporation since 2003 where she has provided native title advice and appeared in the Federal Court, High Court and before the National Native Title Tribunal and the Mining Warden. Prior to that she was a litigation partner at Dwyer Durack for 15 years and headed up their Native Title Department as well as being engaged in a range of commercial, administrative and other civil and industrial litigation. In 2019, Carolyn became a director of Native Title Services Goldfields. Carolyn has been a Deputy President of the WA Equal Opportunity Tribunal and has served on numerous legal and social justice committees. She holds a PhD for her research on a topic related to Indigenous heritage and religious freedom laws in Australia, New Zealand, USA and Canada.
MS SHANEANE WELDON
Appointed August 2022
Shaneane Weldon is a Wangkatja woman raised in the North Eastern Goldfields home/country of her mother and grandparents. Shaneane has a degree in Community Management and Development, as well as a Bachelor of Education. She has over 25 years experience in dealing with Aboriginal politics and has held leadership positions in various Aboriginal Corporations. At present Shaneane is the Deputy President of the Shire of Laverton where she has been a Shire Councillor for the past 16 years. Included in her various Community commitments, Shaneane is also a Justice of Peace a role she has held for the past 24 years.
She is also an active board member of several not-for-profit organisations and Native Title bodies, including more recently the Yilka Talitji Aboriginal Prescribed Body Corporate where she is a Traditional Owner under her father’s side of the family.
Shaneane is passionate about Aboriginal languages and the preservation of it. She believes that education is the key to success, and was one of the reasons she became a Teacher so that she can influence and be a role model to her Aboriginal students.
MS HELEN COOK
Appointed February 2022
Helen is a former KPMG Partner leading the firms Energy and Natural Resources Group and has accumulated over 20 years experience as a Director and Chair on numerous organisations in the commercial, government and NFP sectors.
She is currently Deputy Chairman of the Minerals Research Institute of WA, Councillor of the National Gallery of Australia, WA Divisional Councillor of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, a member of Australia Council’s Finance and Governance Panel for all its Multi Year Partnerships and Advisory Panel member for UWA’s Centre for Energy and Natural Resources Law and a Director of Juniper. Her work for these organisations includes substantial Committee responsibilities including Chairing audit and risk Committees and serving on the national Corporate Governance Committee of the AICD.
Helen’s former board roles include Director of RACWA Holdings, RAC Insurance and RAC Finance Ltd, Chair of the Art Gallery of Western Australia, Deputy Chair of Fremantle Ports, Director of Perth Theatre Trust, Chairman of the Chamber of Arts & Culture WA, Chairman of the Creative and Leisure Industries Training Council, Director of the Energy Policy Institute and Director of the Cruthers Art Foundation (now the Sheila Foundation).
Helen is a member of the Central Desert Audit and Risk Committee and was appointed to the Boards of Desert Accounting and Business Support Pty Ltd (DABS) and Rockhole Funds Management (RFM) in September 2022.
DR DUNCAN MONRO
Appointed February 2022
Dr Monro has over 30 years’ experience as a chartered accountant and business advisor in Australia and internationally. He recently retired as a Principal in the Corporate Finance division of RSM Australia Pty Ltd. He previously worked for the large accounting firms KPMG and Crowe Horwath. He has also worked as the CFO for a small listed company APA Financial Services in Australia.
Duncan has worked in a diverse selection of industries with a particular focus in mining, manufacturing, government, not-for-profit, property, transport, retail and primary producer sectors. His experience covers a wide range of areas including business valuations, due diligence, business planning, financial mentoring and advisory services for Indigenous entities. Duncan has provided short-term assistance to the Tjuntjuntjara community in Spinifex country totalling about 14 weeks, since December 2020.
He was a Board Member of the Esperance Tjaltjraak Native Title Aboriginal Corporation from 2016 to 2018. He has been a Board member of the Autism Association of Western Australia for many years. Since December 2020, he has been a director on the Board of South Coast Natural Resource Management Inc, and Chair of their Audit Committee since May 2021.
Duncan is Chair of the Central Desert Group Audit and Risk Committee and was appointed to the Board of Desert Accounting and Business Support Pty Ltd (DABS) in September 2022.
DR GUY SINGLETON
Appointed May 2023
Guy is an experienced multidisciplinary leader and strategic thinker with practical applications across Indigenous people’s development, natural resource management, political engagement, and the resources sector. He brings 20 years of professional experience across academic, not for profit and corporate sectors.
Prior to his international roles, Guy worked for a decade with and for a range of Aboriginal corporations on community development projects across remote Australia, and as a university researcher. He has a PhD in Indigenous people’s development and a first-class Honours degree in biological science from Curtin University. Guy has previously held director roles at Central Desert Native Title Services, Desert Support Services, and the Gold Industry Group.
Guy is currently the Chief External Affairs Officer at DEVELOP (ASX:DVP), leading the sustainability, Indigenous peoples, environment, and external relations functions. He is also the managing director of a consultancy company that specialises in developing and maintaining meaningful and ethical partnerships between land use proponents and Traditional Owners, and a non-executive director of Asthma WA.
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Our People
Central Desert has more than 25 experienced and dedicated team members who have a vast knowledge and commitment to the provision of native title services.
Officers for the organisation include:
Ms Johanna Ramsay – Chief Executive Officer
Mr Malcolm O’Dell – Principal Lawyer
Mr Ruwan Silva – Chief Financial Officer and Company Secretary
The Chief Executive Officer is supported by a management team:
Ms Felicity Noonan – Legal Services | Lawyer
Ms Sarah Hobson – Operational Support
Ms Karine Flematti – HR & Organisational Support
Organisational Chart
Please click here to view our Organisational Chart.
