Meet Our Team

  • A man in a maroon sweater standing indoors near large green plants with a body of water visible through a window behind him.

    Andrew Dowding

    Ngarluma Traditional Owner, Co-Founder and Managing Director

    Visionary, Passionate, Purposeful

    Andrew co-founded Winyama in 2018 to create more opportunities for Indigenous Australians to enter the digital economy. With over two decades of experience working across the Indigenous land estate, he is an expert when it comes to leveraging technology to safeguard and celebrate culture.

    A natural mentor, Andrew sees potential in others and creates spaces for them to thrive. He holds a Bachelor's in Anthropology and History from the University of Sydney.

  • A woman with long brown hair smiling in an office environment, with white doodle-style designs overlaying the photo.

    Kat Stapley-Oh

    Business Development and Sales Optimisation Lead

    Innovative, Reliable, Compassionate

    Kat brings experience from big tech companies, having spent seven years with Google in Singapore and in other roles managing partnerships with Amazon Web Services. Prior to that, she worked for over a decade in a geospatial role at the Maritime division of Transport WA.

    Joining the team in 2023, Kat now helps drive business development and strategic sales activities ensuring our services align to our clients' needs. Methodical and detail-orientated, Kat works closely with Andrew to define business proposals and scopes for large projects of work. She holds a Bachelor of Science, majoring in geographic information systems and an MBA from the University of Western Australia.

  • Smiling woman with short brown hair wearing a blue sweatshirt, sitting in front of large dark green plants, with decorative white doodle overlay.

    Kath Shier

    GIS Lead

    Attentive, Thoughtful, Approachable

    Known as a map geek by her friends, Kath’s career has taken her from London to the cultural landscapes of Western Australia. With over 25 years of experience across Environment, Heritage and Emergency Services she is responsible for leading GIS project delivery and oversees the team’s work and outcomes.

Winyama remains one of the only Indigenous digital consultancies in Australia that specialises in Indigenous mapping and geospatial, which makes their combination of experience, knowledge, and expertise unique.

  • Portrait of Joel in the Winyama office

    Joel D'Antoine

    Bardi Man, Senior GIS Analyst and Project Manager

    Unshakable, Attentive, Empowering

    Following in his father’s footsteps, Joel began his career in cartography before transitioning to GIS. Joel has extensive experience working across heritage, having worked for the Department of Indigenous Affairs and the Department of Mines, WA.

    Delivering high quality training and geospatial projects, Joel is excited about supporting Indigenous communities and creating a brighter future for others to follow.

  • Anna Ischenko

    Senior GIS Analyst and Project Manager

    Curious, Creative, Considerate

    Anna is interested in how spatial technologies can support a more sustainable and equitable future. 

    After completing her Bachelor’s degree in Zoology, Anna spent some time learning Traditional Ecological Knowledge from Mob in Victoria and the Northern Territory before moving to Perth to pursue her Master's in Environmental Science. As part of her thesis, she worked alongside the Menang/Merninger Noongar community to map sacred water trees and rediscover songlines along the south coast of Western Australia. 

    Now a key member of Winyama’s delivery team, Anna is excited to continue to apply her skills in the Indigenous land management sector.

  • Andi Laidlaw



    GIS Analyst and Drone Pilot

    Pragmatic, Tenacious, Passionate

    Raised in the mountains of Colorado, Andi has always had a passion for the natural environment and conservation. This passion inspired her move to Australia in 2016 to pursue a higher education and career in environmental science.

    Andi holds a Master's degree in spatial data science and has worked on a range of environmental projects, developing her skills in mapping, drone surveying, training artificial intelligence models, and using spatial data visualisation tools. Andi also holds a Bachelor's degree in marine science, along with professional certifications and licenses in remote aircraft piloting (RePL and AROC) and scuba diving (Divemaster), having worked along the Great Barrier Reef before joining Winyama.

  • Yuxian (Yux) Seow

    Cultural Research and Development Lead

    Calm, Conscientious, Collaborative

    Working at the intersection of culture, data, and innovation, Yux integrates anthropological practice with Indigenous Knowledge systems and geospatial technology at Winyama. She leads the design and delivery of Winyama's cultural mapping, community engagement, and research projects, ensuring they are shaped by the priorities of Elders, Traditional Owner groups, and communities.

    Yux has a background in anthropology, Indigenous policy research and international development, holding a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) from the University of Western Australia and a Master of Arts in International Development from The Geneva Graduate Institute. 

    She brings global experience to her work, having launched her career in the youth and social innovation sector across London and Europe, where she collaborated with entrepreneurs, innovators, business leaders and changemakers at Ashoka.

  • Portrait of Shelley.

    Shelley Thorne

    Gagerong, Yamatji and Noongar Woman, GIS Analyst

    Exuberant, Dedicated, Passionate

    With over 20 years experience in Resource and Mining industries, Shelley’s passion for mapping flourished while providing technical assistance with ArcGIS Pro and various Cloud platforms in her previous roles. Driven by a desire for change, she decided to pursue her dream career in geospatial and found Winyama’s internship program.

    Completing the Yorga Djenna Bidi program in 2020 was a transformative experience, deepening her connection to her Cultural Heritage and inspiring her to contribute more meaningfully to her community through her work.

  • Portrait of Grady.

    Grady Toomath

    Minang Noongar Man, GIS Analyst and Chief Drone Pilot

    Engaging, Knowledgeable, Considerate

    Grady is a licensed drone pilot (RePL and ReOC) with a background in engineering and electrical design. Known for his analytical mindset, he is committed to understanding intricate software systems and government policies.

    At Winyama, Grady provides remote GIS support as well as in-field drone training.

    Grady enjoys sharing his knowledge and is dedicated to empowering others to pursue careers in technology.

  • Portrait of Tim.

    Tim Cable

    Wilman Noongar Man, Senior IT Consultant

    Reliable, Selfless, Insightful

    Tim thrives on solving problems and finding the right solutions for clients. He is highly skilled, with expertise spanning in-house IT support, consulting and enterprise solution design on AWS.

    Tim holds qualifications as an AWS Cloud Solutions Architect and a Bachelor of Commerce, Business Information Systems and Technology from Curtin University.

  • Franzi Ohly-Smith

    Senior Marketing Officer

    Uplifting, Approachable, Resourceful

    Passionate about telling stories that inspire, Franzi brings a creative and strategic approach to marketing at Winyama. She is responsible for designing and executing marketing strategies that align with Winyama's overarching business goals.

    She works closely with the team and customers, building collaborative, sustainable and mutually beneficial relationships.

    Franzi holds a Bachelor’s in Marketing, Advertising and Public Relations from ECU.

‘Winyama’ means sea eagle in Ngarluma — Managing Director, Andrew Dowding’s traditional language group.

Iconography of a feather with decorative dots and lines.