On today's episode of the Moss Environmental Podcast, we meet Shonelle Gleeson-Willey, founder and director of Moss Environmental. Shonelle was born and raised in Sydney. Later feeling drawn by her since of adventure to a more rural Australia setting, she moved to Tamworth. We hear how to tell the difference between certain Australians that just say they're rural, trying to fit stereotypes, and the truly rural cattle farmers and country folk that she looks up to around her and loves being nearer to now.  After being made redundant by her employee, and then having her second child, she decided she wanted her family to stay there.  Her job standards now higher because of her growing family and level of experience, she found it was a better fit to freelance environmental consulting than to take a job at a larger organization. Then, Shonelle soon channeled her experience and expertise in the field into the generalist environmental consulting company Moss Environmental, which she founded in 2015.  Staring a company in the smaller city of Tamworth presented some unique challenges such as limited (and very expensive) commercial space. Her home work environment of course included her three family members and a four hour window of internet blackout almost daily, so Shonelle felt lucky to soon be offered a spot at the University of New England's Incubator space for small companies and entrepreneurs. After this, she had what she needed to hire an employee and contract additional knowledgeable consultants.  She designed Moss Environmental to be able to provide expertise in environmental and natural resource management, agricultural science and ecology. Now 7 years in, the company consults corporations in the areas of construction, project management, environmental education and mining.  Shonelle reflects on how her previous training and accreditation in erosion sediment control led her to pursue it as a specialty within her area of expertise in the environmental science space.  She was later given a seat as a director on the board for the International Erosion Control Association Australasia, which equipped her with more business knowledge and insight into operations. She now sits as president of the association, and shares how that opportunity has shaped some of her decisions in creating Moss. This episode is a great reminder of how we can steward the training and opportunities we've come across in life, think outside the box, and often invent something a little bigger and better than we might currently be daring to believe.  https://mossenviro.com.au/