G’day & Kia ora,

My name is Winston Cowie, a New Zealander from Mahurangi, Rodney District, North Island, Aotearoa New Zealand.

My passion is marine conservation and marine policy. I currently work as the Marine Policy Manager at the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE). I am also a film director, author of New Zealand history, Director of the International Antarctic Expedition and public speaker.

My website is where you can find out more about these things and me. These days I am more interactive on instagram. 

I have pursued these interests in over 40 different countries. To date, I have had the privilege of working in New Zealand, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Trinidad & Tobago, United Kingdom and United States of America. My interests have also taken me to Antarctica, Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, England, Estonia, France, Kenya, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Japan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Morocco, Mozambique, Norway, Oman, Portugal, Qatar, Scotland, Seychelles, Singapore, Spain, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Ukraine, Wales and Yemen.

I am based in the United Arab Emirates, the Middle East.

Enjoy sharing in my passions and please Contact Me for marine conservation, writing, documentary or public speaking queries. Read on for more info!

Ti hei mauri ora,

Winnie

Winston Cowie

 

Profile: Winston Cowie (LLB MSc Oxon FRGS)

Winston Cowie was born in Dargaville, New Zealand, in 1982. He spent his childhood in the Mahurangi region before moving to Auckland to attend Westlake Boys High School. After graduating in 2000, Winston completed a law degree at Otago University and a Master of Science degree from Oxford University, United Kingdom. 

Winston has since had a successful career as an award-winning environmental policy manager working internationally from New Zealand to the Middle East to Antarctica. He currently works as the Marine Policy Manager at the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates on a broad marine policy, planning and conservation portfolio.

Winston is a Fellow of the Royal Geographic Society – the United Kingdom’s learned institution for the geographical sciences.

In his spare time he writes historical fiction and non fiction, and produces documentaries.

Notable professional achievements have included being awarded the Middle East Sustainability Manager of the Year Award; the Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi being recognized by UNEP as having one of the best marine conservation and rehabilitation portfolios in the world; two prestigious individual Al Dana Pearl awards for excellence in environmental policy, presented by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan of Abu Dhabi; being awarded the Sir Robert Swan Leadership Inspiration Award in Antarctica and film festival awards at the prestigious New York TV and Film Awards for nature documentaries he directed.

 His New Zealand Wars historical fiction series has been praised widely by descendants of those who fought in the wars, with his non fiction work on a possible Portuguese and Spanish discovery of New Zealand pre-Tasman being added to the encyclopedia of New Zealand and translated by the Spanish foreign office into Spanish.

An accomplished sportsman, Winston has represented the United Arab Emirates internationally at rugby union and triathlon. He placed 16th in the world in his triathlon age group at the World Championships in 2022 and played rugby for the UAE in 2017 at the World Cup Qualifiers. He previously played in the rugby union Varsity Match for Oxford University against Cambridge University at Twickenham in both 2006 and 2007. He was also an Oxford University Athletics and Surfing Representative and is a qualified Commercial SCUBA diver (South Africa).

Winston’s favourite pastime is sharing the great outdoors and ocean with family and friends.