We were delighted to welcome Nava Fedaeff, Class of 2006, back to Westlake as guest speaker at the 2020 Leavers’ Graduation function.
Nava gave an engaging presentation about her route to her current role as a Forecaster and Science Communicator with NIWA, from her own Leavers’ function in 2006, when she was undecided about her pathway after Westlake, like quite a number in the graduating group.
Following a gap year, she completed a BSc at the University of Auckland, then an Honours Degree in Geography, with volunteer conservation projects in Costa Rica and Thailand giving her further experience in the field. When she joined NIWA in 2014 as a Climate Scientist she was the youngest at that time.
Now, nearly 15 years on from Westlake, and following further specialised study in the UK in Operational Meteorology, she is working in a field that encompasses her interest in geography and the environment, as well as her love of Art, over a large range of projects visualising data and creating digital content.
Nava was also recently acknowledged as NIWA’s Science Communicator of the Year.