Central Otago’s Wānaka-based Department of Conservation (DOC) operations manager, who has been in the role for just over a year, comes from an unexpected background for a conservation hire.

But Charlie Sklenar says her leadership and engineering skills, honed in the UK military - and on deployments around the world, fit well with DOC and its values.

With her father and grandfather in the UK military, a young Charlie was taken by her father to a military recruiting centre and told “you’ll love this”.

She intended to join for just three years after graduating but ended up staying on for 16, training first as an officer at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, followed by engineering leadership.

She has deployed to places as diverse as the Middle East, the Falkland Islands, a two year exchange with the US Army, and across Africa to clear explosives from military activity.

She did everything from bomb disposal leadership roles in Afghanistan to maintaining remote bases in the South Atlantic.

“What I love about DOC that I also love about the military are the values and the focus on delivering operations in remote areas,” Charlie told the Wānaka App.

DOC’s aim to foster partnerships and strive for performance chimes with the UK Military’s values of commitment and respect for others.

Charlie’s path from the military to conservation was reasonably straightforward: After an eventful career, and being “blessed with three little girls”, Charlie decided it was time to take a break from regular overseas deployments.

She and husband Jason (a former UK Olympian in biathlon - the skiing and shooting kind) moved to New Zealand in 2018 and lived initially in Wellington.

Charlie worked for central government in security and emergency response (including the response to Cyclone Gabrielle), before a “pivot to conservation” via her appointment as the Central Otago operations manager in September 2024.

“It’s been a great time for me to come in,” she said.

The Sklenar family (minus one daughter) at the Snow Farm.

Charlie is responsible for the Central Otago district, which manages and maintains more than 1,500km of tracks, 238 structures such as boardwalks, pedestrian bridges, vehicle bridges, viewing platforms, and marine structures, 103 toilets and 49 huts, alongside biodiversity, predator control, community work and concessions authorisations.

The impact of more extreme weather events, such as last year’s slips and the recent damage over the last month, has to be planned for too, Charlie said.

Resourcing is the biggest challenge, she said, and “prioritisation is key”.

DOC’s briefing to incoming conservation minister Tama Potaka two years ago said the department managed more assets than it could afford to maintain in the long term.

What has changed since then, Charlie said, is “we’re starting to see the [International Visitor Levy] funding come through”.

Since 2019, international visitors to New Zealand have been charged a $100 International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy (IVL), with the proceeds addressing challenges in tourism and conservation.

“We’ve got to work within our baseline,” Charlie said, but she noted the department is making “good progress” locally, thanks in part to an engaged community.

Work has been completed on long-standing projects like the Blue Pools and Rob Roy Glacier bridges, the upgrade of Kerin Forks Hut by the Backcountry Trust, and soon there will be a new bike-accessible bridge between Raspberry Flat and Aspiring Hut.

There has also been progress on a new lease at the LINZ-owned Kidds’ Bush, including a tender for new toilets. 

The Central Otago area manages around 40 community agreements with DOC, and Charlie said “we are fortunate to benefit from so much passion in the community”.

During Conservation Week last month, Minister of Conservation Tama Potaka announced new priorities for the department, including better partnerships with iwi/hapū, communities and business to drive greater opportunities for conservation.

“There’s lots happening; we know many people live and visit this area primarily for nature and we have a great team in place to support that,” Charlie said.

DOC is working with local groups, such as the Upper Clutha Tracks Trust and Bike Wānaka, on a range of projects, as well as Forest and Bird, Matukituki Charitable Trust, the Southern Lakes Sanctuary, WAI Wānaka, and more.

Read more: Mohua return to West Matukituki

Meanwhile, Charlie and her family are also enjoying life in the Southern Lakes.

She loves the Snow Farm and the Pisa Conservation Area, and her marksmanship skills have been noticed on the biathlon range, where her husband coaches the national team.

“I have been known to beat Jason at shooting but I doubt I’ll ever ski as fast as him,” she said. 

Charlie’s favourite run in the area is the loop up Breast Hill, along Grandview and down; and one of her favourite spots is the start of the Motatapu Gorge.

She also loves the Blue Pools and strongly recommends locals visit them before the summer tourists arrive. She encourages visitors to visit alternatives to our most popular tracks (such as Roys Peak), pointing them to the Rob Roy Glacier, Grandview, and Isthmus Peak instead.

Her overseas deployments may be in the past, but Charlie still loves getting out in the field when she can.