Ecologist Mark Bachmann left his secure government job in 2012 with an audacious plan – to restore wetlands in a region that once had one of the Southern Hemisphere’s greatest concentration of marshes.
He founded the Nature Glenelg Trust (NGT) to bring science-based thinking to the challenge of wetland restoration.
Mark has helped restore more than 50 wetlands to their former natural glory across south-eastern Australia since NGT’s inception. NGT now also owns and manages eight diverse and special reserves that will be protected forever. Mark has personally donated bush properties to NGT, without any public acknowledgement.
He has tackled highly complex projects, restoring damaged lands to healthy, productive landscapes alive with a rich diversity of animals, frogs, plants and waterbirds. Mark devotes much of his time to educating the public about the importance of wetlands, and works closely with Aboriginal communities, farmers and government to help save some of the most threatened ecosystems on the planet.