Leading the Way, Every Step of the Journey!
Community Gardens Australia is run by Volunteers
a national Board of Directors
State and Regional Representatives who provide advice and support to local community gardens
volunteers who play a number of roles, including maintaining CGA’s website and social media presence
CGA Board Directors
Our Directors are volunteers who give their time to help grow community gardening around Australia.
Courtney Mathew
Director
Courtney Mathew is a governance, community engagement and communications professional with a passion for connecting people, places, and ideas through inclusive and creative initiatives.
Based in regional Victoria, she has worked across corporate and community organisations to deliver events, campaigns, and programs that strengthen community connection and participation.
Courtney has a strong interest in sustainable living and the role community gardens play in fostering resilience, wellbeing, and environmental stewardship. She’s been involved with the Warrnambool Community Garden since 2019, where she has served on the committee and as convenor.
Through her work starting local initiatives like Fruit Rescue and supporting volunteer networks, she has seen firsthand how shared green spaces can bring people together, build skills, and create lasting social impact.
Mohamed Elmasri
Treasurer
Serving as Treasurer, Mohamed (Mo) oversees the financial health and strategic governance of our organisation. Drawing on experience as an executive and board member for several other NFPs, Mo is committed to efficient resource management. This work aligns perfectly with his love of volunteering and deep appreciation for gardens and Indigenous respect for the land.
Jane Mowbray
Membership Coordinator
Jane Mowbray has been a community gardener and seed saver for a couple of decades. She joined her local community garden in Sydney hoping to find or recruit more seed savers but instead, she became a dedicated community gardener. Jane believes there is nothing that provides a better sense of belonging to a community and to the wonders of the natural world than being part of a community garden.
Naomi Lacey
Director
Naomi is a permaculturalist who is passionate about promoting healthy food systems, sustainable lifestyles, and cultivating community. She helped to establish the first community garden in the satellite city of Palmerston near Darwin and from there became involved with CGA in 2015 then took on the role of President from 2019 to 2025.
Naomi believes that community gardens have a pivotal role to play in ensuring better health outcomes for Australians, building community, addressing the climate crisis, reducing waste, and educating people.
Awarded a Churchill Fellowship in 2019 to learn from community garden networks around the world, Naomi’s vision for CGA is to build the organisation into one that supports the growth and needs of community gardens around Australia, providing them with education, support, resources, and sustenance to continue their work and therefore their positive impact on the communities they reside in.
