Charlotte Arcus was named as this year’s Young Stormwater Professional of the Year at the 2024 Stormwater Conference earlier this year. She talks with Mary Searle Bell about her career leading to this accolade. Republished from the Water New Zealand journal.
At school, Charlotte’s passion for maths and science was balanced by her love of being creative. In fact, when she took a career quiz in Year 12, her results suggested a career as a hat maker!
“Oddly enough, I thought of that moment years later, when I was a graduate providing construction monitoring of a landfill liner installation – the specialist welders were essentially cutting out a sewing pattern in HDPE liner and ‘stitching’ the pieces together.”
Fortunately for the water sector, her careers advisor suggested she head along to a Women in Engineering day. That was enough to see her enroll in a Bachelor of Engineering at the University of Auckland.
“I found real alignment with engineering. I was challenged by the concepts, but was surrounded by like-minded friends and, because of my Rarotongan heritage, found support through SPIES – the South Pacific Indigenous Engineering Society.
“The first year is a general course so you get a taste of different engineering fields, which was really helpful for me. In a process of elimination, I chose to do civil engineering as it leant towards opportunities to engage with the community and make a positive contribution to the environment.
“In my third and fourth years, I focused on environmental and water-focused papers, like hydrology, hydraulics and stormwater management. We were using a draft version of Auckland Council’s Guidance Document 001, which I refer to often in my work these days.”
She started work with Tonkin + Taylor in 2014, taking a graduate role in its Civil team because there wasn’t a position available in the water team.
Charlotte says, in hindsight, starting in the civil team exposed her to a wide variety of projects – from infrastructure capacity assessments, three waters design, erosion sediment control, 3D modelling, to construction supervision, and more.
“I enjoyed working on a variety of multi-disciplinary projects for both public and private sector clients. I think this broad exposure helped me learn to be adaptable and draw on different perspectives really early on.”
After five years of work, Charlotte and her husband (who she met on her first day at Tonkin + Taylor) got the travel bug and took a two-year sabbatical, moving to Bali and working part-time as contractors on New Zealand projects while travelling Southeast Asia.
“Living and travelling in third world countries really made me appreciate what we have in New Zealand, and emphasised to me how important it is to protect our natural environment.”
The couple returned home four years ago and Charlotte re-joined Tonkin + Taylor, this time in the water team, to pursue opportunities to develop expertise in stormwater management and design.
In his letter of support for Charlotte’s nomination for the stormwater award, Tonkin + Taylor Managing Director Tim Fisher says that, since rejoining the company, Charlotte has shown a commitment to excellence both in her technical work and leadership in the stormwater management and design fields.
“Having acted as her direct supervisor, I’ve witnessed Charlotte’s technical growth in the stormwater space, her interpersonal skill, and genuine relationship building firsthand,” he wrote.
“She has a proactive energy at getting things done and attracts responsibility; as a result, she has developed a strong technical foundation as a stormwater specialist in a few short years, to the point where she is recognised as a Chartered Professional and doing Expert Witness work.”
Charlotte is grateful for all the exposure and experiences she has had.
“I’m a yes girl – but not in a people-pleaser way. I try to say yes to opportunities, even though my internal voice is often hesitant to go after them.
“Last year, I was project manager for one of Tonkin + Taylor’s major projects – the O Mahurangi Penlink Alliance – and was responsible for the longitudinal drainage and wetland packages from concept design through to construction.
“At the other end of the spectrum, I really enjoy the work I get to do in the stormwater management planning space. This often requires a holistic approach to develop site-specific stormwater management solutions that protect and enhance the receiving environment for future generations.”
Future-focused, Charlotte is heavily involved with the Wonder Project, which creates STEM programmes geared towards primary school kids, and is one of their ambassadors.
“My hope is to open girls’ eyes to the possibility of a career as a stormwater engineer. The Wonder Project is in the process of designing a water challenge and I am delighted to have been able to contribute to that.”
Wonder Project directors Shelley Pearce and Gay Watson say Charlotte has been an integral and dedicated supporter of the programme, visiting classrooms to impart her wisdom, passion, and excitement for her work, and inspiring students to consider STEM career pathways.
“Charlotte is a model ambassador for the Wonder Project, going above and beyond expectations to ensure her students have a great experience. She is committed, inspiring, energising, and makes genuine connections with the students she supports.”
As for being named as the Young Stormwater Professional of the Year, Charlotte says it is the highlight of her career so far but says she couldn’t have done it without the support and mentoring she has received along the way.