Truth be told we want to take over the world and Ryan’s just the guy to get us there. OK, maybe the whole world is a tad ambitious, but we do have serious plans to develop our awesome educational packs and integrate them into syllabus’, first in Aotearoa, before we take them global. And whilst we could make the best packs known to man, they’re pretty useless if we don’t have authoritative and influential people on board. And that’s where Ryan comes in! Read on for our grand plan…

Formally a Fine Art student in Auckland, it was Ryan’s dream to become a digital painter. And whilst it was creative and fun, he wanted to leverage his skills as a force for change. One 8 hour drive down the road later, he began a Visual Communications degree in ol’ Welly-town. Struck by the way most businesses operated, he devoted time to developing new ways that sync work in new ways. He looked beyond profit and saw community potential. Why can’t major projects be transferred into the community to increase awareness and understanding? And how will these projects improve our day-to-day? One thing we love about Ryan is that he doesn’t think big…. he thinks HUGE!

One example of his extraordinary innovation is his latest venture. Whilst most of us completed the entirety of Netflix and Animal Crossing over lockdown, Ryan built Eat Local NZ, a start-up that responded to UberEATS’ exuberant pricing model. It all started when he realised how much Uber Eats were charging restaurants. Extortionate amounts if you didn’t know. In the space of 4 weeks, he had signed up 800 venues and generated $45,000 worth of sales.

Yes, but did he watch the infamous finale of Tiger King?! *nervous laughter*

And although Ryan might be a technical whizz now, growing up on a farm didn’t exactly predict a high-flying career in the start-up space. But, most importantly, it led him to us Squawkers. Working towards decreasing the carbon footprint of their family farm, Ryan made no issue of getting his hands dirty for the common cause. He even employed some 5,000 dung beetles to extract harmful nutrients from manure! Maybe don’t include that in the Tinder profile…

Biodiversity, in all its shapes and sizes, has been at the forefront of his life. His own experience demonstrates how important it is to teach kids at a young age and that’s where our Biodiversity Programme comes in! However, we also need partnerships and impactful collaborations to bring our vision to life! As well as forming important alliances, Ryan is mapping out a digital future for Squawk Squad. He envisions a digital space where experts, publicists, ecological companies, educational bodies and conservation projects can come together from all over the world to deliver an incredible programme. What a lovely biodiverse soup!

When Ryan’s not at work, you’ll normally find him conducting start-up weekends and social enterprises to give businesses all the help they need. On his weekends off, he’s interviewing prospective dung beetles for the farm!