Katie White -WELA Retreat

The Mt Burdett Foundation, through the Rural and Regional Advancement Foundation (RRAF) is proud to support emerging leaders in regional communities, people like Katie White, a botanist, environmental educator and the founder of Caladenia Co. in Esperance.

Katie was awarded a grant to attend the Women’s Environmental Leadership Australia (WELA) retreat, held in Perth in partnership with the Conservation Council of WA. The four-day program brought together a group of passionate environmental changemakers from across the state to build skills in leadership, systems thinking, and community impact. 

Katie has been living in Esperance since 2018, first working as the Environmental Officer for the Shire, and now through her consultancy and creative platform Caladenia Co. She applied to attend WELA to deepen her leadership capacity and bring stronger environmental advocacy and education to her local community.

At the retreat Katie engaged in intensive sessions on leadership styles, team tools, systems thinking, decolonisation, and resilience. One powerful theme explored how Australia’s systems, including governance and workplaces, could be restructured to be more inclusive and Aboriginal-led. This thinking, she says, is already influencing her work. 

Katie also benefited from peer-to-peer learning with fellow environmental leaders from across WA, building relationships that have already led to collaborative opportunities. 

The retreat has empowered Katie to begin addressing critical gaps in Esperance’s environmental sector, particularly the lack of coordination and collaboration between local groups. 

“In Esperance, our environmental community works in silos,” she explains. “There’s no platform for us to come together, support one another, or collaborate effectively. The WELA retreat showed me the power of connection and community—and I’ve already started conversations with South Coast NRM to establish an Esperance environmental network.” 

She has also gained the confidence to speak up on environmental issues that matter deeply to her. One key concern is the unauthorised clearing of road reserves, which she says plays a vital role in preventing erosion, supporting water cycles, promoting biodiversity, and acting as carbon sinks. With renewed confidence and clarity, Katie is now advocating for better awareness and protection of these ecological assets. 

The Mt Burdett Foundation’s support of Katie’s WELA journey is a testament to its commitment to upskilling rural leaders, especially those working at the intersection of environment, community and advocacy. This investment in one individual is already creating ripple effects: from strengthening local environmental efforts to building statewide networks that elevate the voice of regional WA in sustainability conversations. 

The Rural and Regional Advancement Foundation offers funding to individuals like Katie who are ready to grow their skills and give back to their communities. If you’re based in regional WA and want to make a lasting impact, we encourage you to explore our individual grant opportunities.

Learn more and apply on our website: https://www.mtburdettfoundation.org.au/rural-and-regional