Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Kent I am an evolutionary biologist and wildlife conservationist based at the Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology (DICE) at the University of Kent. I completed my PhD on the evolutionary history, ancestral origins and population genetics of invasive ring-necked parakeets. I previously worked as a postdoctoral research assistant for the Seychelles Islands Foundation to determine the evolutionary distinctiveness of the Seychelles black parrot. I am a part of Dr Jim Groombridge's genetic research group, which focuses on conservation genetics, ecological and evolutionary studies. My research interests centre around evolutionary conservation genetics, phylogenetics and biogeography in both invasive and endemic species. I use molecular DNA techniques to understand fundamental eco-evolutionary questions in invasion biology and species conservation. My research includes evolutionary phylogenetics and biogeography of globally invasive species across large continental systems, such as the ring-necked parakeet. I am also interested in the population genetics of small, endemic island species, in particular those in the Indian Ocean islands. I have studied the endangered Seychelles black parrot and Aldabran fody. I have also worked with a number of extinct parrots, successfully extracting DNA to resolve their taxonomic affinities.
Senior Research Fellow, School of Information Systems, Curtin University I have a mix of academic and industry project experience. In the first five years of my employment at Curtin University I was involved in a lot of Industry Funded Projects, where I had to understand the industry problems and propose a solution. I was involved in researching in diverse areas based upon the industry partners needs and develop solutions with my team of PhD students. This has resulted in me gaining a lot of experience in a lot of different areas, which is quite unique to me as a researcher since most other researchers are focussed on a very limited research areas. Further all my research so far has been of practical nature, with real world applications. My expertise is in the following areas: 1. Information Security, Anti-Spam, Cyber Security, Steganography, Digital Watermarking 2. Wireless Sensor Networks, Smart Grids, Cyber Physical Systems, Internet of Things 3. Low Cost Housing/Construction, Decision Support Systems for Construction Material Selection 4. Consumer Engagement, Data Quality, Social Media, User Contribution Measurement 5. Big Data, Data Analytics 6. Business Sustainability, Aviation Emissions
Senior Lecturer, QUT Business School, Economics and Finance, Queensland University of Technology Dr Mark McGovern currently lectures in international economics and finance for international business at QUT. Funded industry research projects have included work for Queensland Main Roads on Financing Transport Infrastructure and for South West Natural Resource Management on Agricultural Viability. Mark’s long term research interest is in industry development in open economies. This saw him invited to the 2020 Summit with follow up research on food security. He is an active member of the Rural Finance Roundtable Working Group. As an applied economist with experience over many industries, he draws from theoretical areas of regional, industry and international economics; impact analysis; and economics more generally. Mark has convened a number of summits and seminars to promote dialogues on matters of importance to the Queensland and Australian economies.
Professor, University of Western Australia Jane Lydon is the Wesfarmers Chair of Australian History at the University of Western Australia. Her books include The Flash of Recognition: Photography and the emergence of Indigenous rights (NewSouth, 2012), which won the 2013 Queensland Literary Awards’ USQ History Book Award. Photography, Humanitarianism, Empire has just been published by Bloomsbury.
Associate Professor in Social Work, Australian Research Council Future Fellow, Flinders University After completing his PhD, Damien Riggs undertook a three-year ARC-funded postdoctoral fellowship before commencing his role as a lecturer in Social Work at Flinders University. He is currently an Australian Research Council Future Fellow, and an Associate Professor in social work. Area of Research: Critical kinship studies, Critical race and whiteness studies, Gender and sexuality studies.
Professorial Fellow in Human Security, La Trobe University Dennis Altman is a writer and academic who first came to attention with the publication of his book Homosexual: Oppression & Liberation in 1972. This book, which has often been compared to Greer’s Female Eunuch and Singer’s Animal Liberation was the first serious analysis to emerge from the gay liberation movement, and was published in seven countries, with a readership which continues today. Since then Altman has written eleven books, exploring sexuality, politics and their inter-relationship in Australia, the United States and now globally. These include The Homosexualization of America; AIDS and the New Puritanism; Rehearsals for Change, a novel (The Comfort of Men) and memoirs (Defying Gravity). His book, Global Sex (Chicago U.P, 2001), has been translated into five languages, including Spanish, Turkish and Korean. In July 2013 UQP will publish his latest book, The End of the Homosexual? Most recently he published Gore Vidal’s America (Polity) and Fifty First State? (Scribe). Altman was Professor of Politics and Director of the Institute for Human Security at LaTrobe University in Melbourne, and is now a Professorial Fellow at La Trobe. He was President of the AIDS Society of Asia and the Pacific (2001-5), and a member of the Governing Council of the International AIDS Society [2004-12]. In 2005 he was Visiting Professor of Australian Studies at Harvard, and was a Board member of Oxfam Australia. In 2007 he was made a member of the Order of Australia.
