Tony Heynen

Impact and connections with stakeholders and decision-makers are the main motivations for Tony's research endeavours, and a core measure of his success.

In particular, he has forged strong collaborative relationships with Technical University Munich and the University of Lausanne through an Erasmus+ mobility grant in 2023. Tony is currently developing research partnerships with these universities to examine the sustainability and legacy of hosting mega-events such as the Olympics. This has built on his early 2023 work that produced a sustainability assessment tool to evaluate the composition of Climate Positive strategies for the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Within the Energy Poverty field, Tony has used his research to inform discussions with government and business stakeholders. In India, this resulted in improved transparency regarding energy access for “Base of the Pyramid” consumers. In Timor-Leste, Tony's research suggested a number of recommendations to stimulate greater energy services in communities. In Papua New Guinea, Tony led a train-the-trainer program that provided youth leaders with the skills and techniques to engage with communities about energy needs and aspirations, contributing to a more democratic development process.

Tony’s research and engagement translates into the continual improvement of UQ’s Sustainable Energy postgraduate programs. For example, Tony's engagement with Ergon Energy over a number of years has resulted in students working on real-world projects on the energy transition in remote Queensland locations, with the best solutions presented back to Ergon Energy. This results in an improved student experience and greater industry relevancy.