It has been almost a decade since Carli Davis, the 2011 Deputy Head Girl, graduated from Saint Kentigern. In that time, Carli has embarked on many interesting ventures and thanks Saint Kentigern for the foundation she was given towards her achieving her goals.
Carli currently works as an analyst at Calm The Farm, an organisation committed to helping farmers transition to regenerative agriculture. She believes that regenerative agriculture is crucial to both farmer financial resilience and environmental restoration, which is why her team are on a mission to help 30% of New Zealand farmers transition to regenerative practices by 2025.
‘We’re failing to put a healthy natural environment at the centre of our economic future, but it doesn’t have to be this way. We’re seeing a global shift away from an extractive to a more regenerative economy.’
Prior to Calm The Farm, Carli worked in the Management Consulting team for PwC in Auckland. In three years there she co-founded the Sustainability Committee and collaborated with stakeholders across the business and externally to reduce their environmental impact, purchase carbon offsets and drive efficiencies.
Preceding PwC, Carli gained a sports scholarship for tennis and spent five years at Rollins College in Florida, USA, where she studied a BA in Environmental Studies and followed on with an MBA. The goal being to combine the BA with an MBA in Entrepreneurship and Management to create an environment where business and nature thrive together.
During her time at Rollins she was appointed to the board of Mead Botanical Gardens in Winter Park, Florida and helped to initiate vegetable gardens on campus for use in the cafeteria. She says her five years at university were the best years of her life and encourages Saint Kentigern athletes to consider this pathway if they are contemplating studies and pursuing sporting interests in the USA.
Beyond work life, Carli spends time with family and friends enjoying nature and the great outdoors (growing food, hiking, permaculture). She believes there is a great disconnect between people and nature and says, ‘people need to take responsibility for our diminishing resources, understand where our food is sourced and develop a greater appreciation for our land.’ The separation of production and consumption is one of the most detrimental legacies of consumerism that has contributed to the environmental predicament we face today.
Carli would like to see Saint Kentigern students become more aware of the natural environment, perhaps through an environmental studies class.
‘Fostered by a strong and caring community, Saint Kentigern could attract students who encompass an ecological and sustainable mindset that connects them to the land and the responsibility we have to look after it.’
She says the business world depends on nature and if we don’t have a deep respect and understanding for our ecosystem, then we are on a slippery downhill slope.
‘Saint Kentigern has a unique community culture that I’ve rarely seen in my 26 years. To find a college in which everyone feels as though they belong, is unique. I’m forever grateful for my education at Saint Kentigern, where I was given the best opportunity to pursue my goals and understand what it means to be part of special community.’
