Apanie believes that the best way she can contribute to addressing the massive social and environmental challenges we are faced with today is by bringing people together to empower meaningful change. In her role at Melbourne Water, Apanie supports this collaboration by working with her team and external partners to deliver waterway health improvements throughout the North West region of greater Melbourne. She is an ecologist with more than 12 years experience in aquatic ecosystem research and natural resource management. Recently, Apanie has focused on waterway management in Victoria and Queensland, where she has initiated and managed the delivery of riparian and wetland health maintenance and improvement projects. Apanie's previous research experience focused on wetlands and waterways in northern Australia and the Pacific Islands, where she completed ecosystem health assessments, long term condition monitoring programs, and worked with communities and traditional owners to assess and manage their tidal wetland habitats.