Kristen Augustine was appointed to the position of Energy Policy Coordinator with the Ministry of Commerce, Planning and Infrastructure in October 2019. In her role, she assists the Ministry to deliver mission-critical initiatives under the National Energy Policy, 2017-2037.

Mrs Augustine holds a Master of Science degree in Spatial Planning from Oxford Brooks University and a Bachelor of Science in Management and Tourism from the University of Surrey in the UK and is a certified town planner and permit technician with the Royal Town Planning Institute and the International Code Council.

She has specialist training in development issues and the impact of climate change on small island developing states. Prior to joining the Ministry of CPI, she served in several capacities during her 12 years at the Department of Planning including as Senior Manager of Operations. She also served as a Planning Officer in the Department of Planning at Reading Borough Council in the United Kingdom. Not a stranger to the Ministry, in 2015 she completed a secondment there as a Senior Policy Officer for six months before returning to the Department of Planning.