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Lindsay has left the building
Lindsay with Prince Charles at the launch of the Ministry's
Urban Design Protocol.
The Ministry for the Environment's Deputy Secretary, Lindsay Gow, has bowed out of service after more than 21 years of dedicated work for the Ministry.
When he first started fresh from the Ministry of Works in 1986, he was appointed Deputy Secretary of Policy. That was when the Environment Act 1986 first established both the Ministry for the Environment and the Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment.
Lindsay says back then the Ministry was situated in the Grand Annex Building on Boulcott Street in Wellington.
“It was a policy agency of 60 people but with a small operational function as well. That is the same concept that is now being revisited,” he says.
Since he began work in the 1980s, Lindsay has noticed a huge shift in public understanding of environmental issues.
“In the ‘80s environmental issues were at the fringe in comparison with economic development. Now most people realise that a central component of our economic export future is tied to our biological base. Tourism, vineyards, fishing, farming and forestry – these industries are moving to, or know they need to move to, sustainable production.”
Over the years Lindsay has led a wide range of policy areas – he helped establish the Environmental Risk Management Authority in the 1990s. He also helped to establish the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority once it was legislated in the House. Amongst other things, Lindsay led work on Oceans Policy, the development of the Climate Change Office, and on the Urban Design Protocol.
Lindsay in Beijing learning first hand about the city's
infrastructure and environmental management.
More recently he led the Sustainable Households project and was responsible for the Land Use Carbon Analysis System (LUCAS) programme. He also represented the Government in establishing a strategy to protect Lake Taupo from nutrient in-flows in 2004.
But Lindsay believes his biggest accomplishment at the Ministry was in leading the development, introduction and implementation of the Resource Management Act. He also led the Ministry’s interests in the Local Government reform of the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. “That took a large chunk of my time and the biggest gain out of that was the development of regional councils, which are a vital and too often under recognised ingredient in New Zealand’s sustainable resource management,” he says.
He has also been widely involved at international fora representing New Zealand at the OECD in Paris, in Australia, and in various other environmental and resource management fora and events in both developed and developing countries.
“I have always been interested in human behaviour. The only way environmental policy works is by influencing people. There is an assumption you can direct and regulate people to do things, but most people, and especially Kiwis, resist that as the first or only mechanism. We need to put more incentives in the mix to help people make smarter choices by providing respected and objective environmental and resource use information.
Lindsay addresses Ministry
staff for the last time at
his farwell.
Lindsay has a big passion for urban design. “Not all issues are rural issues – when it comes to the environment, many of the big issues are urban issues. How we design viable living environments will be crucial to our future. To attract and retain the knowledge workers that every country needs, we will need to ensure that we have a quality built environment to deliver quality lifestyle opportunities.”
Lindsay says the Ministry now has to ensure its place in the resource policy world and show that it has the capability to give top quality advice and use the growing environmental evidence base to ensure policy is built off reality. “The Ministry has a responsibility to ensure that risks and issues are clearly understood and that it is clear and objective in outlining the choices the Government and New Zealand can make.”
Lindsay says his favourite memories of the Ministry are the wonderful, collegial staff and the constant intellectual challenge and dialogue. He particularly valued his interactions with younger people and really enjoyed coaching and mentoring.
“I have gained enormous satisfaction in helping Ministry staff grow and develop. I will miss the people the most. It’s a very stimulating environment. There are a lot of bright people here and it is a collegial, not a competitive culture. It’s a place where people share and debate things, I will really miss that.”
But Lindsay won’t be disappearing altogether. He plans to be available to do work for central and local government in the governance, inquiry, investigation and facilitation areas.
He officially retired on 26 June. “That is when I turned into a pumpkin, but I’ll keep my hand in on one or two things – I’ll be about,” he says.
