About Us

Greenwood Consultancy was established in October 2009 by Kate Greenwood. Kate is a Principal Archaeologist and Principal Cultural Heritage Consultant  who has been working in the Cultural Heritage Industry with Indigenous people for over twenty years. She is passionate, articulate and prides herself on being a person who listens to the needs of the community. Kate is professional, approachable, flexible, enthusiastic and a hard worker and has a background in cultural heritage and natural resource management, teaching and training (at Universities, Vocational Education and Training, for Aboriginal Parties and Communities and Queensland TAFE), strategic planning, development assessment, arts and research. Recently Kate worked as the Regional Cultural Heritage Coordinator (Southern Region) at the Cultural Heritage Unit in the Queensland Government Department of Treaty, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships, Communities and the Arts, administering the Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Act (QLD) 2003 and working with 52 Aboriginal Parties, 11 Cultural Heritage Bodies across one-third of the State of Queensland.

Kate has built on a foundation of skills developed in the field with Traditional Custodians and has backed up her lived experience and knowledge through attending University and attaining a Bachelor of Arts (major in environment and planning) and Post-Graduate Degrees in Archaeology and Heritage Management. Kate is currently undertaking her Doctor of Philosophy at Flinders University. In March 2020 she was awarded the title of Adjunct Research Fellow with the School of Social Science at The University of Queensland.

In 2024 Kate won the AACAI Laila Haglund Award for Excellence in Consulting for her paper with Jagera Daran Research Partners on Connecting Bark and Wooden Material Culture to Culturally Modified Trees in Yagera Country, south east Queensland. This award was established to recognise outstanding contribution to consultancy in Australia. The prize is awarded for the paper presented at the Australian Archaeological Association Annual Conference that makes the best contribution to consultancy in Australia. 

Kate's academic qualifications are:

• Doctor of Philosophy- Culturally Modified Trees and Bark and Wooden Material Culture Items in south east Queensland, Australia: an investigation of Indigenous perspectives and archaeological significance with Jagera Daran Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Body research partners (in progress) 
• Post-graduate Diploma in Archaeology and Heritage Management
• Post-graduate Certificate in Archaeology 
• Bachelor of Arts (Major in Environment and Planning)
• Certificate IV in Training and Assessment
• Certificate IV in Small Business Management
• Certificate IV in Government
• Diploma of Freelance Photography
• Environmental traineeship in Agroforestry and revegetation.

Kate is a member of:

• Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS)
• Australian Archaeological Association
• Australian Oral History Association
• Royal Historical Society of Queensland
• Victorian Government First Peoples- State Relations (listed as a Heritage Advisor)
• Australian International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS).

The Greenwood Consultancy office is based on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, however, we work all over Australia and overseas.

Why we work in cultural heritage

Cultural heritage is not just a job to us, it is our life, our passion and our purpose. Put simply, we love it.

To us, cultural heritage is not just about archaeological sites nor just following the relevant legislation. Cultural heritage is also about Indigenous rights, language, songs, art, community, traditional ecological knowledge (bush tucker/ medicine), fauna, the environment, maintaining sites, cultural continuity and revival, geology, regional ecosystems, soils, intellectual property rights, community health, Elders, young people and the generations to come. We love working with community and seeing real beneficial outcomes on the ground. We are deeply passionate about community-led cultural heritage protection.

How did we get into cultural heritage

Since Kate Greenwood was very little, she knew she wanted to work with Indigenous people from all around the world, in something to do with the environment and Indigenous rights. After Kate finished her agroforestry traineeship with Greening Australia in 1999, she spent a lot of time in the field with Traditional Custodians, learning about plants and their uses (intangible cultural heritage). Kate naturally started learning from the Elders about artefacts and cultural heritage sites, (tangible cultural heritage), about how interconnected the cultural landscape is and she found it fascinating. Kate's first cultural heritage survey was on Bribie Island, in Queensland in 2000. Years later, one of the local Kabi Kabi (Sunshine Coast) Elders said to Kate that she should go and get qualified in archaeology so that and she could support what the Traditional Custodians wanted. The Elder said that Kate knew more than the archaeologists in the field but that they would never listen to her whilst she didn’t 'the piece of paper'. Kate already had an arts degree in environment and planning, so she enrolled and completed the post-graduate program at Flinders University in archaeology and heritage management and has never looked back.

What We Do

We deliver best practice archaeology and cultural heritage consultancy services to Traditional Owners. We cover all aspects of archaeology and cultural heritage survey work, excavation, research, recording, analysis and report writing. We have over twenty years of fieldwork experience on a range of projects and have developed expertise in all aspects of cultural heritage, with specialised knowledge in Traditional Owner engagement, cultural heritage identification, recording, survey and report writing, traditional ecological knowledge, culturally modified trees (scarred trees), cultural landscapes, cultural heritage management, mapping, flora and fauna identification, legislation interpretation, development assessment planning, strategic planning and place-based histories.

We read the landscape and identify any cultural heritage sites through cultural heritage survey work. Our cultural heritage reports are comprehensive, including layers of information that inform the overall cultural heritage landscape. Cultural heritage mapping and databases can be designed and set-up to suit communities' needs. Tools such as community having their own databases and mapping systems can empower Traditional Custodians when making decisions and undertaking negotiations based around land. We also offer services in oral history recording, interpretative signage and displays, along with documentaries of projects to be shared with the Elders, youth and other community members. Project management of arts, environmental and cultural heritage based projects can also be delivered.

What makes us different

In Aboriginal cultural heritage projects, we only work for Traditional Custodians. This is unique in a heritage consultancy and Traditional Owners can be assured that we have their best interests at heart and that we follow Indigenous protocol. Upholding ethical behaviour in everything we do, is vital to creating best practice projects, programs and outcomes. We have developed innovative programs, such as Land For Cultural Heritage, where we work as a facilitator between landholders, Traditional Custodians, heritage and environmental groups to protect sites of cultural heritage significance on private land.

We are willing to listen to your needs and aspirations and put plans and actions in place to achieve them. We are here to establish fruitful working relationships that will continue to grow. Community ownership, empowerment and agency are very important to us. Any initial conversations about projects will include important questions such as what does the community want and need? What ideas does the community have for achieving this? How can we provide the best service for the community? We work continually with community for the best outcome, so that we deliver a quality product that is useful to the community. 

Alongside Kate Greenwood, we have a pool of trusted professionals with varying expertise that we collaborate with for any large or complex projects in order to service communities better.

Testimonials

'I have had the pleasure of working with Kate over a number of years. During that time Kate has been respectful, professional and engaging. It has been refreshing to work with a person who is sensitive to cultural issues and contributes to our growth in Aboriginal archaeology' (MADONNA THOMSON Director, Jagera Daran Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Body, Jagera/Yagera).

'Kate is an archaeologist and heritage specialist with a passion for the subject. Her empathy and cultural intelligence is built on many years working with Indigenous people. I have known Kate for nearly a decade and she has worked with me on various projects. In each case Kate's contribution made my work better' (NATHAN WOOLFORD, Archaeologist, Anthropologist, Gooreng Gooreng).

‘In 2017, I employed Kate Greenwood for heritage research in South East Queensland related to my Australian Research Council Laureate Fellowship research program. One of the reasons was because of her thorough knowledge of the archaeological and ethnographic heritage of South East Queensland, as well as her strong connections to First Nations communities across the region. Kate is highly motivated, emotionally mature, very resourceful and shows great initiative. She works well individually and also is a great team player who gets on extremely well with her colleagues. Kate is well travelled and used to working in different cultural settings. She is very concerned about the social value of heritage and always undertakes research in respectful and culturally appropriate ways. She completes research and reports in a timely and professional manner. I highly recommend Greenwood Consultancy!’ (DISTINGUISHED PROFESSOR PAUL TAÇON, FAHA ARC Australian Laureate Fellow (2016-2021) and Chair in Rock Art Research PERAHU, GCSCR & ARCHE).

‘I worked with Kate on the preservation of 4 significant tree scars and I found her communication and professionalism in her field of work worthy of merit. Her attention to detail is exemplary. I would not hesitate to recommend Kate to anyone in her field of expertise’ (JOHNNY MURISON, Jarramali Enterprises and Western Kuku Yalanji).

 ‘I have had the good fortune to get to know and work with Kate over the last decade on a range of Aboriginal projects. In my experience Kate is one of the most respectful and considered non-Indigenous people I have worked with. I have absolutely no hesitation in recommending Kate to any Indigenous community, or any organisation that operates or is seeking to operate in the Indigenous affairs space’ (JASON FIELD, Aboriginal Human Rights Advocate, Walbunja of the Yuin Nation and Gurriwal of the Dharawal Nation).

‘Kate gave our advanced cultural heritage management course an insightful and stimulating lecture on the realities of working on Australia's Indigenous past, developing and delivering it in partnership with a leading Aboriginal heritage consultant. Drawing on a deep pool of experience, the lecture and discussion was communicated with both passion and clarity and the whole class (including me as the lecturer) learned a great deal from it’ (PROFESSOR OF ARCHAEOLOGY ANDREW FAIRBAIRN, School of Social Science, The University of Queensland).

'Kate has patience and understanding when negotiating those tricky issues in cultural heritage management and other relevant matters when working with community. I appreciate her sensitivity and confidentiality as well as her professional work ethic. This does not go unnoticed and Kate should be proud of the strong reputation that she has developed. Thank you'  (MICHAEL WILLIAMS, Goorang Goorang).

'Kate's conservation and land management background in combination with archaeological background has combined to provide not only a good grasp and understanding of Traditional Ecological Knowledge but how this fits into the cultural landscape. Kate has the utmost respect for Traditional Owners and this is evident in the dignified way that she works with community to achieve the best outcome possible' (BARRY WILLIAMS, Heritage Officer, Darkinjung Local Aboriginal Land Council, Bundjalung Nation).