Hummingly is the creation of Elizabeth McNaughton and Jolie Wills, a duo who have worked in disasters around the world for more than two decades. The realization that helping one person, one organization, one community, one disaster at a time was no longer enough, lit the spark that became Hummingly. Elizabeth and Jolie set about creating easy-to-use products that people, communities and workplaces the world over could access to do well in tough times.
These proven products are based on Elizabeth and Jolie’s knowledge gained in real disaster and crisis situations. They have gathered wisdom from over 100 crisis leaders, feedback from thousands of disaster survivors, scientific insights from their background in cognitive psychology and a shared passion to prepare the world to do disruption, stress and uncertainty well.
Hummingly’s workshops and products are now helping thousands of people and organizations around the world.
Why we do what we do - Hummingly in a minute.
Meet the team dealing to disruption
Jolie has a Masters in Cognitive Psychology and is a leading psychosocial expert in disaster and disruption. Jolie has studied how the mind works under prolonged pressure, how we make decisions and how our reactions and behaviors are impacted by stress. Jolie is a survivor of the Christchurch earthquakes and has lived disaster recovery with her family first-hand. She led the psychosocial recovery program for New Zealand Red Cross in response to the earthquakes and has supported those working in disasters around the world. Jolie is a Winston Churchill fellowship recipient, a Leadership New Zealand alumna, an Edmund Hillary Fellow, a co-author of Leading in Disaster Recovery: A Companion through the Chaos and is an advising member to the global Counter Terrorism Prevention Network.
Elizabeth will tell you, “My career has quite literally been a series of disasters” as she has worked on many disasters around the globe. Elizabeth has led multi-million-dollar recovery programs for New Zealand Red Cross and was the Executive Director at the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet leading work to create a learning legacy from the Canterbury earthquakes. Internationally, Elizabeth has worked for the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in the Asia-Pacific region. She is a Winston Churchill fellowship recipient, a Leadership New Zealand alumna, an Edmund Hillary Fellow and a co-author of Leading in Disaster Recovery: A Companion through the Chaos.
Rochelle specialises in looking at the smaller details – her career has involved working as a researcher, policy advisor, editor and writer across a broad range of organizations and subject areas. She has worked in disaster recovery programing and community engagement/accountability roles in New Zealand, Kuala Lumpur and the Pacific. This included developing cash grants for earthquake-affected people following the Christchurch earthquakes.
Eldred is the backstop of the team supporting a wide range of Hummingly activities. She has a depth of experience in health spanning four decades and four continents. She has worked in frontline and senior leadership positions with a passion for community health. Her areas of focus being children, older persons and palliative care - the very people who are at the sharp end of disruptive events.
