Phil Smith, S4P Founder and CEO

Phil’s forty years in education span the breadth of formal and non-formal education: schools, TAFE, community colleges, universities and a wide range of community settings. He has held leadership roles in schools, government agencies, the Australian Association for Environmental Education, and local and international NGOs. He has worked overseas in education, training and evaluation. His experience includes advocacy at local, state and federal levels; education in a humanitarian environment (Nauru); sustainability leadership courses for young people; professional development for teachers and trainers; conference facilitation; and mentoring training. Sustainability education has been and remains a key focus of his education work. As Manager Education in ResourceNSW, he worked with the Department of Education & Training to set up the NSW Sustainable Schools Program. 

Phil’s training includes: Restorative Practices, Conflict Resolution, Media & Public Communication, First Aid, Transition Towns, Writing for Sustainability, Community Engagement Techniques, Habits of Mind, and Approaches to Partnership Building.

Phil teaches in two teacher-training programs at Western Sydney University. He also works as an education consultant, facilitator and writer. He spends considerable time working in a voluntary capacity with the Sutherland Shire Environment Centre on environmental campaigning and as a writer for the New Bush Telegraph.

“I take a deep interest in the world, and I am active in that world—socially, culturally, politically, professionally. What gives the diversity of my career and interests some cohesion is a sense of working towards a world in which healthy people thrive in healthy communities on a healthy planet: a sustainable world, a world that looks after the vulnerable and cares for the environment. As a writer, my interests are social justice, sustainability, politics, education and community.”

Phil Smith

Petur Farkas

Petur is freelancer Desktop Publishing specialist from Hungary. He does the design and layout for the S4P materials. Petur has previously worked for the Regional Environmental Center in Szentendre and the Hungarian branch of WWF. He has long experience working with civil society and non for profit organisations. Petur has also been involved in many international projects on the field of nature conservation, waste management, sustainable development…

Syd Smith

Syd is the former CEO of the Environmental Education Unit of the NSW Department of Education and Training and a former Education Director, teacher and private sustainability education consultant for schools and organisations. He was a member and advisor to the Environment and Schools Initiative (ENSI) committee based in Vienna and was awarded an honorary PhD by Phranakorn Rajabat University in Bangkok. He has lectured to schools and educators in Thailand, Europe, Japan and New Zealand. For many years he was Treasurer of the Australian Association of Environmental Education and is now a life member of that organisation. From 1996 to 2004 he managed the 23 environmental education centres across the state of NSW and, in addition, the staff of the 2 zoo education centres at Taronga and Western Plains. In his long term as an environmental education director he, along with Phil Smith, developed the Sustainable Schools Program in NSW which then extended Australia wide. 

Syd undertakes the evaluations of the S4P initiatives. 

Hanh Do