Catherine Marshall | McCall MacBain Foundation Kupe Leadership Scholar

Bachelor of Law (Honours), Bachelor of Global Studies

The current environmental crisis facing humanity and our planet is one of the biggest challenges mine and future generations will face. I am passionate about striving for systemic change to shift our neo-liberal capitalist system towards a green, decarbonised economy that puts nature and people first. I believe that law and policy are essential tools that we can utilise to enact this change and that inspired leadership incorporating a myriad of perspectives and creative approaches is required. This necessitates an intersectional approach, centring the needs of marginalised communities, particularly the voices of Māori and other indigenous peoples. Additionally, it is essential to listen to and promote grassroots activism that recognises and advocates for local and contextual needs. This will push lawmakers to enact policies that can meaningfully and effectively shift our status quo to create the sustainable Aotearoa we require.

Sponsor: McCall MacBain Foundation

Mentor: Claudia Batten

As part of the founding team of Massive Incorporated, a network for advertising in video games, Claudia helped pioneer “digital” as a media buy. Massive was sold to Microsoft in 2006, where Claudia then spent 3 years scaling the in-game network. In 2009 she co-founded Victors & Spoils, the first advertising agency built on the principles of crowdsourcing. After two years in market, V&S was acquired by French holding company Havas Worldwide. In 2014 Claudia cofounded Broadli with Ale Lariu and Mary Abraham to redefine how we use digital connectivity to power networking.

Claudia most recently spent three years running North American operations for NZTE, with the goal of bringing disruption into government while supporting the growth of NZ exports in North America. She is a Director of NZX listed digital travel company Serko, and digital advisor to the board of Westpac New Zealand.

Claudia is a strong supporter of the New Zealand start up scene.  She participates regularly across the ecosystem on boards, advisory groups and as a very active mentor. She believes that New Zealand must be part of the digital world to close the geographic divide, remain relevant, and increase its prosperity.  In 2013, she was awarded a Distinguished Alumni Award from Victoria University in recognition of her commitment to New Zealand and achievements in tech. In 2014 she was the youngest ever recipient of the prestigious “World Class New Zealand Supreme Award”, in recognition for her achievements and her work inspiring the entrepreneurial ecosystem in New Zealand. Claudia is also a recipient of the Sir Peter Blake Leadership award recognizing her as a Kiwi Leader working to achieve the extraordinary for New Zealand and was awarded the Outstanding Contribution to Technology and Business in New Zealand award at the 2017 CIO Awards.