Jono grew up in the foothills of the Great Dividing Range near Albury in regional NSW, and has a long history of running successful environmental campaigns. He spent 11 years at Friends of the Earth where he led the River Red Gum Campaign and negotiated alliances between environment groups and Traditional Owners. He also led campaigns for the Australian Conservation Foundation for five years as Healthy Ecosystems Program Manager including creation of the historic Murray-Darling Basin Plan. He was the winner of the Jill Reichstein Social Change Award in 2014, and previously Executive Director of the Climate Action Network Australia (CANA).