Alistair Rendell joined Flinders University as Vice President and Executive Dean for the College of Science and Engineering at the start of 2019 following a 23-year career with the Australian National University, including over five years as Director of the Research School of Computer Science. He has significant experience in both academic leadership and high-performance computing research. With an undergraduate degree in chemistry and a PhD in theoretical chemistry he has made contributions to several widely used computational chemistry software packages.

Claire Lenehan is the Dean (Research) for the College of Science and Engineering at Flinders University. She is Professor in Forensic and Analytical Chemistry, and works closely with industry to develop novel analytical tools for the analysis of a range of complex forensic and environmental samples. 

Professor Giselle Rampersad is the Dean (Education) in the College of Science and Engineering at Flinders University. She was named STEMM Educator of the Year in 2021 in the SA Science Excellence and Innovation Awards. 

She is a Professor in Innovation and Co-Director of the Centre for Defence Engineering Research and Training at Flinders University. She is also the Director for the award winning Diploma of Digital Technologies. Under her leadership, it received national recognition, winning the Australian Defence Industry Award for the Training and Mentorship Program of the Year in 2020, by Defence Connect. It also won the Industry Collaboration award at the SA Training Awards in 2021. The program is undertaken by employees from BAE Systems Australia and other defence primes, SMEs, STEM teachers and Wine/AgTech. This program has achieved over 50% participation by women. 

She leads various major defence research projects including with Defence Science and Technology Group on digital twins. She has an interdisciplinary educational background including a PhD in Innovation and Technology Management (Adelaide University, Australia) and an MSc in Internet Systems and e-Business (Durham University, UK, Computer Science Department). Her research focuses on innovation and technology management, digital transformation and human factors in the adoption of disruptive technologies.

Rocco is Professor and Head of Engineering at the Flinders University of South Australia, a position that he took up on 1st July 2014. As a part of this leadership role, he manages numerous research projects and teaching programs at the undergraduate and postgraduate level. His research interests include the use of the Global Positioning System (GPS) for transportation applications. This research work has mainly involved the use of Intelligent Transport System technologies to improve the effectiveness of transport. He also has a background in the assessment and investigation of the environmental impacts of various transport policy initiatives, including the use of alternative fuels and vehicles. Rocco is currently also heavily involved in connected and autonomous vehicle research and trials.

Professor Lewis joined Flinders University in 2009 following a 21-year career in industrial Research at the IBM T.J. Watson Research Centre in New York, USA (10 years) and research management roles at SOLA Optical / Carl Zeiss in Australia (11 years). He was the founding Director of the Flinders Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology, standing down from that position in 2020 and is currently Head of Science in the College of Science and Engineering.

David career has focused on translational research and product / technology development and is internationally recognized for his research in polymer science and nanotechnology.  He had key roles in the development of photochromic lenses, including Transitions Velocity and a range of high index ophthalmic lens materials and coatings.  Since joining Flinders University, David created NanoConenct, a mechanism to allow companies to explore the potential of nanotechnology on their business.  He also co-founded 3RT to commercialise technology to convert low value plantation timber into high quality furniture, flooring and other applications, which is now commercially available.

David is the inventor of 52 patent families, coauthored nearly 100 scientific papers and his achievements in applied and translational research have been recognised through the RACI Applied Research Medal, election as Fellow of the RACI and citations and awards for commercialisation and contributions to Polymer science in Australia.

Davids research interests are currently focused on the creation of functional particles and surfaces at the nano and micro scales to address challenges in 3D printing, the creation of self-assembled biomimetic surfaces and printable solar cells.

2013 having previously held the position of Chair of the Department of Geography and Anthropology and the RJ Russell Professorship at LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Greg Falzon is Head of Information & Computing Technology and Associate Professor of Precision Agriculture Systems in the College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University. He has made significant contributions in advancing the application of ICT, particularly data science and machine learning in agriculture. A/Prof Falzon has an excellent record of industry funding and impact, with his achievements being recognised across the media. He has presented his research to the Prime Minister and numerous industry groups including Apple, Bosch, Hitachi, and Yamaha. Selected awards from industry include the ICM Agrifood Award and the President’s Medal, Australian Society of Sugar Cane Technologists. A/Prof Falzon is passionate about inspiring and mentoring students and supporting their career development.

Anthony Kittel is the owner, CEO and Managing Director of the REDARC Group.

Born in Port Augusta, Anthony graduated as a qualified Mechanical Engineer at the South Australian Institute of Technology (Now UniSA).  He also completed his MBA at the University of Adelaide.

In 2013, Anthony completed the three year Owners Presidents Management program at the prestigious Harvard Business School. 

Anthony is a National Vice President and Director of Australian Industry Group, Chair of the College of Science and Engineering Industry Advisory Board at Flinders University and a member of the Adelaide University Business School Industry Advisory Board.

Anthony is also a Director of privately owned technology businesses Coogee Metals Limited and DEWC Systems.

He is a Chartered Professional Engineer, a Fellow of the Institution of Engineers Australia and a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Milena Fernandes is a Chemical Engineer (University of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil) with Honours in Oceanology, Meteorology and Environment (University of Paris, France), a PhD in Marine Geochemistry (University of Paris, France)and a Diploma in Project Management (Australian Institute of Management). She has worked as a research scientist in both the university and government sectors since 1997, joining SA Water’s science team in 2010. Her work has a strong focus on the dynamics of nutrients and pollutants in the environment and their relationship with ecosystem health.

Milena works collaboratively with the universities, and has academic affiliation with the College of Science and Engineering at Flinders University. She has been a member of several advisory groups for government including New Life for Our Coast Working Group, Blue Carbon Technical Reference Panel, Blue Infrastructure Working Group and Marine Innovation South Australia. She was also a member of the Scientific Working Group supporting the South Australian Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation in the development of zoning and management plans for South Australia’s 19 marine parks. 

Milena has played a major role in developing a better understanding of the biogeochemistry of coastal ecosystems in South Australia through her participation in the Aquafin CRC, the Adelaide Coastal Waters Study, the Coorong Lower Lakes and Murray Mouth research cluster, in large multi-disciplinary projects funded by the Fisheries Research & Development Corporation, and more recently in projects funded by the ARC, Goyder Research Institute, the Premier’s Research and Industry Fund, the South Australian EPA and Department for Environment and Water. She is leading initiatives to implement coastal modelling of seagrass habitat suitability and remote sensing to support adaptive management of the Adelaide coast. The results of this and past work are being used to refine policy relating to load targets of anthropogenic inputs to coastal waters, and as such have a major impact on industry investment on environmental improvement programs.

Murray has a coastal engineering background with a Bachelor of Engineering, Maritime (Hons), Australian Maritime College; a Master of Engineering Science (Civil), University of Melbourne; and a Doctor of Philosophy (Engineering), Monash University.  He is a member of Engineers Australia, a Fellow of the Royal Society of SA, and became a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors in 2009 and a Fellow of the Governor’s Leadership Foundation in 2010. 

Murray manages the Coast and Marine Branch within the SA Department for Environment and Water.  He and his team provide leadership, advice and guidance on coastal policy, engineering and management and climate change adaptation, manage Adelaide’s beaches and provide support to the Coast Protection Board’s governance, engagement, policy development and application and its works and grants programs.  The branch is a specialist group of coastal engineers and scientists, urban and regional planners, surveyors, policy officers and administrative staff. 

Research interests include the reintroduction of tidal flows to restore coastal ecosystems, the interaction between sea level rise impacts, demographics and value-adding opportunities in climate change adaptation, and impacts of rising sea levels on coastal processes and hazard management.  Murray has co-supervised postgraduate research students and publishes and presents on coastal policy and management and climate change adaptation.

He was the South Australia representative on Engineers Australia's National Committee on Coastal and Ocean Engineering (NCCOE) from 2002 to 2017 and served two terms as Chair.   NCCOE released guidelines on climate change and sustainability on the coast in the 1990s, and a new guideline on adaptation in 2012.  These guidelines are periodically reviewed and contemporised.

Mr Marty Gauvin is an entrepreneur who has established a range of high technology companies. He has founded seven businesses to date with the most recent being Virtual Ark, a cloud computing integrator, consultant and managed services provider focused on advancing capabilities ‘above the cloud’ through rolling out transformational solutions using its own and others IP. Marty also co-founded and runs a micro medical device company, Fertilis, that is automating and improving cell culture with diverse applications such as IVF, gene therapy and stem cell differentiation.

Previously Mr Gauvin was the Managing Director of Hostworks, a provider of critical application management services to a range of large media and online clients that became the largest Internet hosting provider in Australia. He has 30 years’ experience in IT services, system design and innovation across a wide range of sectors and has assisted clients in Australia, Europe and Asia with complex cloud and mobile based projects for the past six years.

Companies that Mr Gauvin has lead have successfully raised over $20M in early stage funding and the largest, Hostworks, sold in 2008 to a Macquarie Bank subsidiary for $69M.

Mr Gauvin has also had a significant career as an innovator. He invented a device to assist visually impaired people to use computers which lead to him being named Young Australian of the Year in 1987 to more recently when he has been listed as an inventor on three patents in the last three years.

Mr Gauvin has been involved in the assessment and structure of a range of Commonwealth Government innovation programs as well as serving on the Council of Flinders University and Chairing ReachOut, a charity focussed upon online tools to assist young people’s mental health. He is currently the Chair of the Innovation Investment Committee of Innovation Australia which governs the programs under which Venture Capital and Private Equity funds operate. He has been closely involved in the growth of the sector in Australia from 2008 during which time PE has grown tenfold and VC thirtyfold.

Professor Caroline McMillen commenced in the role as Chief Scientist for South Australia in October 2018 after serving as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Newcastle for 7 years.

She was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2020, awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Adelaide in 2019 and was elected as a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences and a Bragg Member of the Royal Institution, Australia in 2015. Professor McMillen was also honoured at the end of her term as Vice-Chancellor to be presented with the Key to the City of Newcastle by the Lord Mayor in recognition of her leadership contribution to Newcastle and the region.

She holds a BA (Honours) and Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Oxford, and completed her medical training graduating with an MB, B Chir from the University of Cambridge. She has served in learning and teaching and research leadership positions at Monash University, the University of Adelaide and at the University of South Australia where she held the role of Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research and Innovation prior to her move to Newcastle.

She serves on a range of Boards and Advisory Groups including as Chair of the Adelaide Biomedical City Board, member of the Royal Institution of Australia Council, the Australian Science Media Centre Advisory Board, the University Council of South Australia, the Australia Japan Foundation Board and she is currently the Australian representative for the Minister of Foreign Affairs on the Council of the University of the South Pacific. She is also a Director on the Boards of Compass Housing Services Pty Ltd and DMTC Ltd.

Professor McMillen has an international research reputation for her work which focusses on the early origins of adult disease. Her research group was funded across 2 decades by both the Australian Research Council and the National Health and Medical Research Council and she was a member of the PMSEIC Working Group on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander maternal, fetal and post-natal health.

Professor McMillen is an active champion for science and science education, for the next generation of scientists and particularly for girls and women in science and she was a Member of the Expert Advisory Group for Science in Australia Gender Equity (SAGE) which played a key role in the introduction of the Athena Swan Awards in Australia.

Throughout her career Professor McMillen has been committed to building collaborations between universities, government, industry and communities that drive innovation and have a positive impact on the economic, environmental, social and cultural health of Australia.

Professor Emily Hilder was previously the Director of the Future Industries Institute (FII) and Deputy Director of the ARC Research Hub for integrated devices for end-user analysis at low levels (IDEAL) at University of South Australia. As Director: FII she also led the Future Industries Accelerator (FIA). Established through a $7.5 million investment from the Government of SA, FIA supported SA businesses, in particular SMEs to access research equipment and infrastructure, funding for R&D projects and staff secondments, with a focus on growing R&D capacity in industry and establishing long term, productive collaboration between universities and businesses.

Emily is a graduate of the University of Tasmania where she completed her PhD in analytical chemistry in 2000. Following postdoctoral positions at Johannes Kepler University (Austria) and the E.O. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (USA) she returned to Australia and University of Tasmania in 2004 where she held two ARC Fellowships (APD, Future Fellowship) as well as positions as Assistant Dean of Graduate Research and Head of Chemistry. She was inaugural Director of the ARC Training Centre for Portable Analytical Separation Technologies (ASTech) before relocating to the University of South Australia in 2016. Her research is the field of analytical chemistry and materials science and is focused on the design and application of new materials that can be used to improve analytical measurements. Her work has led to commercial and field adoption in separation science, bioanalysis, disease diagnosis, environment and food science, defence and national security. 

Emily is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering (ATSE) and the Royal Australian Chemical Institute (RACI) and has been recognised by a number of awards including the Eureka Prize for Outstanding Science in Safeguarding Australia (2019), RACI Doreen Clarke Analytical Medal (2016), UTAS Foundation Graduate Award (2010) and has been included in the Analytical Scientist Power Lists from 2013-2017, 2019 & 2020 including the ‘Top 40 under 40’ and as one of the top 10 leaders in analytical science. She is an Associate Editor of Analytical Chemistry (ACS) and a member of the South Australian Premier’s Science and Innovation Council. 

Laura Tyler joined BHP in May 2005 and was made BHP’s inaugural Chief Technical Officer (CTO) in September 2020. The CTO represents key technical and operational capability on the BHP Executive Leadership Team and is responsible for the Group’s health, safety and environment, technology, performance and improvement, metals exploration, and the centres of excellence for maintenance, projects and resources. The Technical mandate puts technology at the heart of the key levers for BHP’s resilience and growth – health and safety, operational reliability, continuous improvement and conversion of Resources into Reserves. The Technical team also lead BHP’s intent to secure additional options in future-facing commodities through global metals exploration success, primarily focussed on copper and nickel.

Laura has worked in management roles for BHP in Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom, and has been a member of BHP’s Executive Leadership Team since 2017. She began her career as a Geological Engineer at Ground Explorations Ltd in 1988 and moved into the mining industry in 1995 as a Mine Geologist with Mount Isa Mines.  She has since worked in various operational and technical leadership roles with increasing levels of seniority.

Prior to her current role, Laura was Asset President for Olympic Dam in South Australia from July 2018 to August 2020, where she was responsible for the safe and sustainable operation of one of the world’s most significant polymetallic resources producing copper, uranium, gold and silver in remote South Australia. Concurrently she also held the role of Chief Geoscientist responsible for the global team of geoscience and resource engineering experts including BHP’s tailings response to recent dam failures, and the leadership of the Legacy Assets in North America.

Prior to her position at Olympic Dam, Laura was the Chief of Staff to the CEO, a role which enabled the CEO to effectively fulfil their commitments to the Board and Company. Laura has also worked in several other senior management roles, including as Asset President Cannington (Queensland, Australia), Vice President – HSEC, Aluminium (London, United Kingdom) and General Manager, EKATI Diamond Mine (North West Territories, Canada).

Before joining BHP, Laura worked for a variety of different companies, including WMC Resources, Newcrest Mining, Mount Isa Mines, Mouchel Consulting and the British Geological Survey.  Laura holds a B.Sc.(Hons) Geology from the University of Wales, Cardiff, and an M.Sc. Mining Engineering from the Cambourne School of Mines.

Dr Paul Smith is Senior R&D Program Manager at Wine Australia, with responsibility for co-investment of Industry and Commonwealth funding to benefit the grape and wine community in Australia. Paul received his PhD in Organic Chemistry from Flinders University (2000), followed by post-doctoral research at CSIRO Molecular Science and then the Department of Clinical Pharmacology at Flinders University (2001-2003) before managing teams of scientists (2003-2017) in grape & wine science at The Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI) then joining the Wine Australia team. He has secured and managed $15 million of research grants which mainly focused on understanding structure-function relationships, analytical chemistry and translation of this knowledge into practical solutions that make an impact for Industry. His contributions have been achieved by the combination of collaboration, transparency, positivity and a continual focus on world class research that leads to practical solutions. He has diverse networks and a breadth of experience across research management, and communication of both scientific and industry-focused knowledge.

Tony is the General Manager of City Services at the City of Marion. He looks after all city day-to-day services with about 200 staff and an annual capital and operational budget of approximately $45M.

Tony has a Bachelor of Engineering in Civil Engineering (Honours), Master of Infrastructure Management, Diploma in Project Management, is a Graduate of the Company Directors Course (GAICD) and a Chartered Professional Engineer (FIEAust CPEng). His nearly 30 year work career has spanned the private sector and local and state governments in the water, engineering advisory and local government sectors. While generally based in Adelaide, his experience includes four years living in New Zealand and consulting work in most Australian States.

Tony values innovation and pushing boundaries to grow and achieve more. His career highlights include growing a $35M water business in New Zealand, assisting blue chip and start up companies to expand their business, and the many satisfied residents of the cities in which he works.

Outside of work he is a keen cyclist and gardener.

Jan is an association management specialist, with expert level understanding of member driven organisations. Through numerous management roles, Jan is accustomed to interfacing with government at all levels, regularly interacting and liaising with industry groups, education providers, board-level and C-suite executives. Jan’s success as a connector and communicator who thrives on building and maintaining strong relationships with high level stakeholder groups, decision makers and individuals alike has provided many successful outcomes for those she represents.

Jan has a solid appreciation and understanding of the practice of engineering, the challenges, and the opportunities facing the profession having worked with businesses specialising in engineering, advisory and design for well over a decade.

Dr Peter Appleford leads the Industry and Regional Development division and is responsible for the oversight of strategic policy and legislative reform, industry development, recovery and resilience, regional and customer services, forestry and pastoral, and emergency management.

Dr Appleford previously led the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI). In this role, he was responsible for the executive management and oversight of the Government of South Australia's principal primary industries research institute. Prior to this, he spent nearly two decades as a senior leader in key Victorian Government agencies including the Department of Primary Industries and the Department of Sustainability and Environment.

Dr Appleford has extensive experience in implementing change while driving integrated and improved performance.

He applies decisive action and sound judgement to deliver value to PIRSA's objectives, highly skilled people, stakeholders and the wider community. He brings an energetic leadership style to inspire, address barriers to growth and drive better business outcomes.

Dr. Dale A Lambert is the Chief of Cyber and Electronic Warfare Division in the Defence Science and Technology Group within the Australian Department of Defence. He was previously the acting Chief of National Security and Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Division and served as the Director General of Science Strategy and Policy for Defence Science and Technology in Canberra. Prior to that Dale was the Research Leader of Intelligence Analytics.

Dr. Lambert holds: a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science; a first-class Bachelor of Arts Honours degree in Philosophy; a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mathematics; and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Artificial lntelligence - all from Flinders University, as well as a Graduate Certificate in Management.

Dr. Lambert is a world-leading scientist in High-Level Information Fusion, the process in which a machine combines multiple signal, image and text data sources to automatically comprehend current events and automatically predict future events. He was contracted from Australian Defence to Swedish industry for four years to design and implement an Artificial Intelligence system for Sweden’s airborne defence. The final Swedish system was subsequently on-sold to several nations in Europe, Asia and South America. He is also credited with the design of the Consensus Artificial lntelligence architecture, one of the world's most comprehensive Artificial lntelligence frameworks. Consensus allows a user to speak in English with animated characters, each of which is connected to an automated psychology that manages that character’s thoughts, intent, beliefs, actions and emotional responses. Consensus has been foundational to a collaborative research program supporting a $100M United States initiative.

Dr. Lambert recently completed two years as Chair of the Executive Chairs of The Technical Cooperation Program, the largest cooperation on defence science and technology between Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. In this role he had administrative oversight of science and technology programs across these five nations covering everything from aerospace systems to human performance. He is also a member of multiple senior Defence committees and numerous university boards.

Dr. Lambert is an internationally sought-after journal reviewer, speaker, panelist, award committee member and has over 70 publications. His co-authored and co-edited Information Fusion book has been used in international conference tutorials in Singapore, Turkey, Spain, the USA and Germany, and was subsequently translated into Chinese and published in China by the Chinese National Defense Industry Press. He has been a postgraduate supervisor for: The University of Adelaide; The University of South Australia; The Centre for Sensor, Signal and Information Processing; Chalmers University in Göteborg, Sweden; and The University of Melbourne.

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), the world’s largest technical professional organisation, presented Dr. Lambert with the IEEE Harry Rowe Mimno Award at a ceremony in Washington DC in 2015 for “excellence in technical communication”. He was awarded the Public Service Medal by the Governor General of Australia in the 2020 Australia Day Honours List for “outstanding public service in the use of artificial intelligence in surveillance and reconnaissance, command and control, intelligence and autonomous platforms”. In 2021 he was elected as a Fellow of the prestigious Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering, a learned academy that helps Australians understand and use technology to solve complex problems.

Georgie Cassar has worked in Spatial Science throughout her career, applying this technology to a wide range of disciplines including infrastructure management, environmental projects, community services and cultural projects.

For more than 2 decades, Georgie has worked in the local government sector, enhancing the wide variety of functions councils provide by applying spatial/mapping technologies.

Georgie volunteers on the SA committee of the Surveying and Spatial Sciences Institute which is the main industry association spanning the sectors of Mapping, Surveying (Engineering, Mining and Land), Remote Sensing and Hydrography. This connects her to Spatial Scientists from a broad spectrum of disciplines.

Georgie was the recipient of the individual award for the Women in Spatial category at the 2017 Asia-Pacific Spatial Excellence Awards of South Australia. 

As a mechanical engineer, Anthony has over 23 years’ experience leading advanced technology product development and commercialisation of products in a wide range of sectors, including telecoms, IT, UHV, food, consumer durables, security and medical sectors. At Micro-X, he established the technology and commercialisation strategy for the start up, assisted with private capital raising and the public listing and has grown the team of over 85 staff. He currently leads all research and engineering operations as well as running the innovative CT business unit.

Anthony believes strongly in customer focused design and has delivered a number of award winning products including the MDS Sciex Cellkey™ Coca-Cola FreestyleTM, Philips VisaPure™ and the Caresteam DRX Revolution Nano™.