OUR TEAM
We are a team of highly experienced outdoor guides, facilitators, learning consultants and experience providers who work together to develop high impact events and journeys of growth, connection and wellbeing.
Every member of our team is passionate about what they do - contributing their knowledge and best energies to help our clients reconnect to nature and facilitate learning journeys that have real impact along the way.
Our passionate team
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John Kugel
Managing Director
John has worked closely with many of Australia's largest organisations for over 10 years, leading the delivery of innovative professional development, training and marketing programs.
He is also the driving force behind Gone Bush Adventures and it's engagement with the Australian corporate sector. He's a bushwalking and wildlife enthusiast who's both an experienced group leader in the wild and in the office.
Cristina Carvalho
General Manager
Cristina leads the marketing & operations of Gone Bush, drawing on over many years experience in business management, marketing, customer service and project management. She brings a practical skill set and serious passion
to the table. Cristina is focused on making Gone Bush programs and overall operations of the business as good as they can be - today and into the future.
Janet Wang
Relationship Manager
Janet has developed a wealth of commercial and business acumen from her career managing stakeholders, projects and financial outcomes for numerous top tier organisations in Australia and the UK including Acer, Kordia, Stockland, the BBC and eHealth NSW.
As a Relationship Manager with Gone Bush, Janet is responsible for cultivating enriching client partnerships that achieve significant ROI for the leaders, cultures and organisations we serve.
Andy Richards
Lead Guide
Andy lives and breathes adventure and has been one of Australia's most highly regarded eco-tourism operators for more than 15 years
via his Understand Down
Under tours. His passion for nature, adventure and life are contagious and he has a tremendous ability to inspire and positively influence all he encounters in the bush.
Alice Allen
Media Consultant & Producer
Alice works with the Gone Bush team to share their stories, experiences and expertise with the wider world.
A published writer with 5+ years in documentary development and production for TV and more recently radio, she has an eye for ideas, an abundance of curiosity and a love of research and storytelling. Alice finds inspiration in the great (and littler) outdoors, knowledge-sharing, practising and teaching yoga, and cultivating community
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Nathan Wainwright
Lead Guide
Nathan is a ecologist, adventurer and wildlife researcher working tirelessly to protect Victoria's old growth forests and vital ecosystems from the axe. Nathan's love for the bush and wildlife combined with his passion to help others better understand themselves and the world around them by looking into nature makes him an invaluable member of the Gone Bush guiding crew.
Marlon Riley
Specialist Guide
Marlon is a Cultural Tutor at Ngutana-Lui Cultural Centre in Brisbane. For over 20 years he has lived his passion and commitment to "Reconciliation through Education", sharing cultural experiences with tens of thousands of people. As a Gone Bush guide, Marlon's knowledge, experience and cultural perspectives are invaluable and greatly contribute to any adventure.
Linda Kugel
Guide & Consultant
Linda's thirty-plus years in education combined with a love of nature, healthy living, spiritual growth and community connection enable her to make meaningful and memorable contributions to Gone Bush experiences. In addition her many contributions via her 'Mumma Kugels' healthy food snacks provided throughout Gone Bush events and adventures have become legendary and must be tasted to be believed.
Josh Kugel
Guide & Consultant
Josh is an intellectual with a depth of experience in the psychology, strategy consulting, financial, community and resources sectors. He is passionate about flourishing and mental health and uses his studies in psychology to scaffold timeless wisdom and the cutting edge to this end.
He's a seasoned adventurer who's as curious in nature as he is about business, culture and enabling people to flourish in life and vocation.
Sylwia Skoczylas
Specialist Guide
Sylwia is a thoughtful, caring and skillful wilderness guide as well as professional health coach & remedial massage therapist who feels most at home when in the bush. Sylwia is passionate about inspiring people pursue a path of greater wellbeing and using the natural environment to nourish their body, mind and soul.
Luke Christiansen
Lead Guide
Luke is a lifetime environmental educator, cultural entertainer & wilderness guide. He's a seasoned adventurer and storyteller who draws on a rich base of personal experiences, scientific knowledge and traditional wisdom to help people connect more deeply with the natural environment and their heritage.
Luke is an absolute classic addition to a Gone Bush experience and leads adventures on a truly positive and engaging note.
Jack Dewhurst
Lead Guide
Jack is a currently serving as a Parks Victoria Ranger and is an incredibly knowledgeable and caring nature guide. His background in ecology, conservation and environmental science combined with his positive energy, intellect and willingness to share makes him a remarkable companion on any bush adventure.
Matt Kelly
Lead Guide
Matt Kelly is a well travelled guide and environmental educator who has worked in National Parks across Australia for much of his life. For the past decade, Matt has been a lead guide in the rainforests of SE Queensland, based at O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat in Lamington National Park. He is an engaging story teller and is able to enrich bush experiences with his passion and depth of knowledge around the natural environment.
Michael Sainsbury
Specialist Guide
Banksy is a remarkable bushman who's lifelong relationship with adventure has taken him all over the globe. He adds significant value to our adventures, carrying a depth of knowledge and wisdom on the natural environment backed by an accomplished career in corporate learning, health, safety
and physiotherapy.
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Alastair Oakman
Lead Guide
Alistair Oakman is a true adventure professional with deep guiding, environmental and educational experience all across Australia.
A modern-day Bush Tucker Man, Al is a legendary and acclaimed bushman who has spent his life helping people connect with
the natural experience in
a powerful way.
Paul Dickson
Lead Guide
Paul is a conservationist and wilderness tour guide with a vast experience and knowledge of the Australian bush - the place in which he feels most at home. Paul's number one love in life is guiding people on Nature Engagement Tours and helping them gain an appreciation for wilderness and
the rich environments
on their doorstep.