NSW Division Committee

Meet the 2026 New South Wales Division Committee members.

Sue Weatherley MPIA (Fellow)
PIA NSW President

Sue is a passionate and successful urban planner and senior local government executive with over 30 years of experience in senior local government executive planning roles in NSW and QLD, including Townsville, Ryde, Parramatta and Georges River.

Sue was on the NSW Architect Registration Board from 2014 to 2020, was the Chair of the 200Planning Task Force for Committee for Sydney and is now on the Local Government Committee for IPART.

Her contribution to Local Government has been twice recognised, in 2012 and 2016, as the recipient of the Minister’s Award for women in local government. In November 2018, Planning Institute of Australia NSW (PIA) named Sue the Planner of the Year at its annual excellence awards. Sue is also a fellow of PIA.

Rukshan de Silva RPIA
Board Director

Rukshan is a Registered Planner and one of PIA's National Board Directors, who is currently employed as the National Planning Manager at Lendlease. 
 
With a background that spans across consulting, local government, and state government, he is committed to ensuring that Australia’s planners and planning systems are set up for success. His experience is focused in strategic planning, community and stakeholder engagement, program delivery, and economic development.
 
Prior to his election to the PIA Board, Rukshan was the Vice President of PIA's NSW Division. He is a Course Convenor and Lecturer for the City Economics, Urban Development and Finance course as part of the Master of City Planning program at the University of New South Wales, and was also named as the Australian Young Planner of the Year in 2019.

Clare Brown MPIA
Policy & Advocacy Convenor

Urbis

Clare is a highly respected and accomplished planner who has a longstanding career across all levels of government and industry. Clare has held senior management roles in several organisations and is currently recognised for her expertise and dedication as a Director of the Board at Urbis.

Clare has both a town planning and legal background and her skill is demonstrated through her regular appearance as an expert witness in the Land and Environment Court and as an alternate member of Sydney and Regional Planning Panels.

Sharon Smith RPIA (Fellow)
All Regions Convenor

Sharon (Gumbaynggirr) is a strategic and urban planner with 40 years of planning and urban design experience, in both local government and consultancy. She has a particular interest creating environmentally sustainable, equitable and engaging places for all and is proud of her Gumbaynggirr heritage. She has always lived and worked on the North Coast of NSW.

Sharon is the immediate Past President of the NSW PIA Divisional Committee, and has served on the Committee for 8 years. She is currently PIA NSW Divisional Committee All Regions Convenor and member of PIA’s Knowledge Circle. She has always championed the regions and been mentor to many young planners over the years.

Norma Shankie-Williams MPIA (Fellow)
Local Government Convenor

Local Government Network Convenor. Norma has worked in the UK and Australia at local, regional and State levels of Government and the private sector in a career spanning over 45 years.

She has recently retired from leading the Strategic Planning Team at Willoughby Council.

She is a strong advocate for the achievement of improved health outcomes and increased resilience in our neighbourhoods, cities and regions and an advocate of the importance of local strategic planning..

Daniel Cavallo RPIA (Fellow)
Education Convenor

Cumberland City Council

Daniel Cavallo is a planner with over 20 years of experience in land use, transport and infrastructure planning. He has a Bachelor of Planning and a Master of Commerce (International Business), both from the University of NSW, and is also a Registered Planner. He currently is the Director, Environment and Planning at Cumberland City Council.

Daniel’s passion is making a positive difference to our community by turning plans into reality. This approach strengthens the role of planning in our cities and places, giving confidence to the community that initiatives are being delivered on the ground. His involvement and legacy in place making, transport networks, housing, employment and the environment is testament to this approach.

Rachel Baker PIA (Assoc.)
Northern Region Convenor

The City of Coffs Harbour

Rachel Baker holds a Master of Sustainable Environments and Planning from Bond University and has over five years of experience in the NSW Local Government Development Assessment field, working across councils on the Mid-North Coast.

Currently, Rachel is on a 12-month secondment with The City of Coffs Harbour Local Planning team, expanding their expertise in planning proposals and implementing strategic planning controls to support long-term goals. Outside of work, Rachel enjoys running a book club, camping, surfing, and spending quality time with their beloved animals.

Claire Middleton MPIA (Life Fellow)
Southern Region Convenor

Claire is an experienced urban planner who has been continuously employed in the planning profession for the past 45 years, working at all levels of Government and in the private sector.

Claire’s expertise and interests are concerned with integrated urban management, focussing on population health and achieving progress towards sustainable development outcomes.

Claire has been in private practice since 1999 and now enjoys the ultimate work/life balance of semi-retirement.

Penny Smith RPIA

EPM Projects

Penny brings a diverse set of skills to the NSW Divisional Committee from her background in social issues marketing and communications, construction, and urban planning over the past 25 years.  Penny is the Planning Director at EPM Projects where she manages complex social infrastructure planning projects throughout NSW, specialising in the education, aged care, affordable housing and health sectors. 

Penny believes in collaborative working, empowering the next generation, and the importance of a robust and efficient planning system. She has a Bachelor of Urban and Regional Planning (Hons), is a Registered Planner and was an inaugural member of PIA’s Women in Planning Committee.

Michael Brewer MPIA
Hunter and Central Coast Region Convenor

415 Urban Planning Solutions

Michael is a planner with over 31 years of expertise in statutory and environmental planning and approvals. A UNE graduate, he has worked across local government in senior technical and leadership roles, industrial property development, State Government taskforces and private consulting.

He regularly appears before the NSW Land and Environment Court as an expert planning witness and currently sits on the Hunters Hill and Liverpool Local Planning Panels as an expert member.

Michael also loves volunteering, whether it be at his local parkrun, as a mentor in PIA’s Mentoring Program or providing pro-bono services to local community groups seeking to protect environmental heritage. Michael is passionate about awareness of disability and neurodiversity, simplifying the planning system and advocating for communities, while supporting the next generation of planners.

Ben Hendriks (GAICD, MPIA, MURP Hons, BA) 

Mecone

Ben is an urban planning executive, board director, and founder of Mecone, a national planning consultancy working across strategic planning, policy, statutory approvals, rezoning, and major project delivery. With over 25 years’ experience in both government and consulting, he advises public and private sector clients on city-shaping projects involving complex planning, land use change, infrastructure coordination and environmental constraints.
As Executive Chair of Mecone, Ben oversees the firm’s governance, strategy and project quality across its national operations. He brings broad-spectrum planning expertise—from development applications and statutory planning to precinct strategy, corridor planning, and reform advice—combined with a focus on practical, evidence-based implementation.

Ben sits on the Sydney Central City Planning Panel (Cumberland), the Northern Beaches Local Planning Panel and co-chairs the Committee for Sydney’s Planning and Housing Taskforce. His recent work spans flood-affected precinct planning, land use and value capture strategies around major transport investment, integrated planning for fast-growing urban centres, rezoning advisory, development application advisory, and planning reform projects. Across this work, Ben combines technical depth with collaborative leadership—aligning planning frameworks with delivery, community outcomes and long-term value.

He is also the founder of Mosaic, a nationally used planning information platform improving transparency and decision-making in the planning system.

Ann-Maree Carruthers MPIA

Mecone

Ann-Maree has over 20 years experience in the planning sector, with extensive experience managing complex programs of work, leading strategy development, and building and leading multi-disciplinary teams. Ann Maree’s professional background spans program and project management, strategic and statutory planning, urban renewal, greenfield development, development assessment, environmental impact assessment, and community engagement.

With over 15 years experience in the public service, Ann-Maree has a thorough understanding of the machinations of Government, policy and assessment processes, as well as Ministerial and Cabinet processes.

With proven success in complex and large-scale projects, Ann-Maree reliably delivers technical expertise and advice that is outcomes focused. Ann-Maree also has extensive experience engaging and working collaboratively with a diverse range of stakeholders, including building partnerships to create shared value for stakeholders.

Jenny Rudolph RPIA (Fellow)

Jenny Rudolph Consulting

Jenny is a town planner with over 32 years of experience and has worked in both the public/government and private sectors.

Jenny has extensive experience in strategic and statutory planning, project management and facilitation of small and large projects in both greenfield and urban renewal development. Jenny also undertakes community and stakeholder consultation as part of the project implementation.

Stan Fitzroy-Mendis MPIA

City of Sydney

Stan is an award-winning planner with over 26 years of experience in urban and regional planning across the private sector, state and local government in New South Wales. He holds degrees in Town Planning and Science from UNSW, an MBA from the Sydney Business School, as well as further study at Harvard University. Stan is a planning manager at the City of Sydney. Stan’s contributions to the Planning Institute of Australia (PIA), include presenting at both the PIA National Congress and NSW State Conference and serving as an invited jury panellist for the PIA Women in Planning Award and as a judge for the PIA NSW Awards. In addition, he contributes to the advancement of planning education through his roles on the PIA NSW Education Committee and the National Planning Education Roundtable. His writing has been published in Australian Planner and New Planner, and he is a guest lecturer in both undergraduate and postgraduate planning programs. As a member of the NSW Divisional Committee, Stan is committed to fostering a positive professional culture within the planning community by celebrating the contributions of planners to the profession and to society. He has a particular passion for advocating for the dedicated development assessment planners across the sector.

Elizabeth Densley RPIA (Fellow)

Eight Mile Planning

Liz is a town planner with 25 years' professional experience in urban and regional planning in NSW. Having spent the large part of her career in Local Government, Liz moved to join Elton Consulting in 2016 and has this year founded Eight Mile Planning.

Liz is a passionate planner with expertise across land use policy, strategic and statutory planning working closely with both private and public sector clients.

Based in Mudgee in regional NSW, Liz has a particular interest in regional growth and development and delivering a planning framework which can be tailored and is relevant across the diverse jurisdictions to which it applies. 

Erin Fuller MPIA

Erin is a well respected planner and leader with a career spanning 20-years with both local and NSW State Government in planning, environmental and senior leadership roles, and has since become an environmental and planning lawyer. With tertiary qualifications in environmental science, urban and regional planning, and law, along with a breadth of experience in the various disciplines shaping our communities, Erin brings a unique and well-rounded perspective to the table in any planning discussion. Disciplines within portfolios she has been responsible for have included development assessment, strategic land-use planning, development contribution planning, water and sewer planning, environment and sustainability, development compliance, civil design and engineering, transport planning, and asset management. Erin is deeply passionate about planning and advocating for its importance in shaping our current and future communities. She is formally trained in community engagement and whenever given the chance, you will hear her advocating for the regions.

Kajal Antil MPIA
Emerging Planners Co-Convenor

City of Newcastle

Kajal is a Strategic Planner at the City of Newcastle. Her work involves developing long-term land use strategies and enabling growth in well located areas to create thriving and resilient communities. She is also a Local Pathways Fellow with SDSN Youth, contributing to global sustainability initiatives. She actively advocates for diversity and inclusion in the profession through her involvement in the Women in Planning Network and serves as a Peer Mentor, supporting and empowering emerging professionals. When she’s not planning cities, she’s planning adventures, whether hiking scenic trails, camping under the stars or taking long drives to discover hidden gems. 

Always on the lookout for the next adventure, this year she took on a new one as Co-Convenor of the NSW Emerging Planners Network Committee 2026. She looks forward to championing the voices of young and emerging planners and driving policy conversations about the profession’s future.   

Erica Lacuna PIA (Assoc.)
Emerging Planners Co-Convenor

Burwood Council 

Erica is a Strategic Planner at Burwood Council who works towards cultivating equitable spaces. A career chameleon, her varied experiences across the service industry, allied health and sport help her become a better planner by amplifying small voices in big places. Academically, Erica’s research has encompassed creative placemaking, planning for a circular economy, universal design and urban play – earning her the Dean’s Medal for academic excellence. At Council, she has contributed to wide ranging policies including affordable housing, night time economy, and environmental resilience.  Away from work, you'll find her birdwatching, bushwalking, and looking forward to a big bowl of noodles. 
Erica looks forward to co-convening the committee for 2026 and driving impactful industry change.