Find an expert

Lisa Bai is a Research Fellow in the Australian Centre for Water and Environmental Biotechnology at the University of Queensland, where she is the chief investigator of multiple research projects on process development for sustaibale waste and wastewater management. Her main research focus is resource recoverying from waste and wastewater for the production of bioenergy sources and value-added materials such as biodegradable plastics (PHA).

Dr. Bai has a background in Bioengineering and Environmental Engineering. Before joining ACWEB, Lisa worked in an environmental consultancy company in North Queensland (Townsville - Bowen) for four years, focusing on process design and development for the aquaculture water bioremediation using macroalgae technologies and utilising waste streams as feedstocks for the production of biomass for a diverse usage including aquaculture feed, fertiliser, and other bioactive compound.

Prof. Damien Batstone is Director of the Australian Centre for Water and Environmental Biotechnology, where he leads environmental biotechnology and resource recovery research programmes. His research work has focused on renewable energy from biomass, production of commodity chemicals from renewable sources, and the water-energy-food nexus, including production of novel chemicals and feeds for aquaculture from gases such as hydrogen.

Anaerobic and Environmental Biotechnology

Our group specialises in processes which use anaerobic (or without air) conversions to produce bioenergy, green electricity, and other high-value products from wastes and other low value feeds.

Before joining the University of Queensland, Dave P. Callaghan held positions within industry including Parsons Brinckerhoff and Lawson and Treloar and research sector including Nederlands Instituut voor Ecologie and the University of Queensland. He is an observer of the Queensland Water Panel and active in the newly created Australian Hydraulic Modelling Association. He is the author of a book section and more than 50 other technical documents with applied and research applications. He is a consultant to private and government organisations. He has worked recently with private and government organisations to improve understanding of extreme coastal weather responses. He is recognised for leading edge research in coastal engineering including statistics of extremes, beach erosion from extreme events, physical and biological interactions of salt marshes and coral reefs, lagoon dynamics and wave propagation.

Prof Bill Clarke (Schools of Civil and Chemical Engineering) has an extensive publication record in methods for accelerating the solubilisation and digestion of solid organic waste, measuring landfill emissions and the ingress of O2 and subsequent composting of waste in landfills, the utilisation of waste as a carbon source for H2S production in the mineral processing industry, on-site digestion of combined wastewater and solid organic waste and the fate of pathogens, heavy metals and POPs in organic treatment processes. He was an Associate Editor of Waste Management (2008-13) and is on the Managing Board of the International Waste Working Group.

I am a motivated and enthusiastic Accredited Practising Dietitian and Accredited Sports Dietitian. I am interested in building sustainable foodservices worldwide, sports nutrition for recreational runners and seperate entrepreneurial ventures. I have a passion for clinical research and quality improvement projects in hospital dietetic services. Currently I want to help build sustainable foodservice systems for public/private entities that consider the future of human and planetary health. I am an ambitious individual who loves networking and who is eager to collaborate, please reach out.

My PhD research has focussed on the measurement and management of food waste in hospital foodservices through aggregate food waste audit activities and diverting food waste from landfill.

Paul Dennis leads an exciting research group that applies cutting-edge technologies to understand the roles of microorganisms and their responses to environmental change.

He is also a passionate educator and public speaker who advocates for the importance of biological diversity and evidence-based environmental awareness. He has talked about his research on ABC Radio and a range of other media outlets.

His teaching covers aspects of ecology, microbiology, plant and soil science, and climatology. He considers these topics to be of fundamental importance for the development of more sustainable societies and takes pride in helping others to obtain the knowledge and skills they need to build a better future.

Paul's research has taken him to Antarctica, the Amazon Rainforest, high mountains and oceans. The approaches used in his lab draw on a wide range of expertise in molecular biology, ecology, statistics, computer science, advanced imaging and soil science. He applies these skills to a wide-range of topics and systems including plant-microbe interactions, Antarctic marine and terrestrial ecology, biogeography, pollution and human health.

Originally from Ireland, Rebecca Dunlop completed her BSc (Honours) degree in Environmental Biology followed by her PhD in fish neuroethology, both from The Queen’s University of Belfast. She migrated Australia in 2004 to undertake a post-doc in humpback whale social communication at UQ where the research resulted in a number of highly cited papers, solidifying her international reputation as a leader and expert in large whale communication and social behaviour. She then began lecturing in the School of Veterinary Science in 2010, mainly in animal physiology and moved to the School of Biological Sciences in 2021 to take up a lecturing position in animal behaviour and physiology.

Research

Rebecca'a research interests are in animal physiology, behaviour, and communication. She mainly works on humpback whales, though has worked on bottlenose dolphins, beaked whales, pilot whales, and false killer whales. Her lab focuses on four main research areas: cetacean acoustic communication, hearing, and behaviour; the effects of noise on humpback communication, behaviour, and physiology; humpback whale social behaviour; and endocrine physiology in cetaceans. Her past and current PhD students and honours students all work within these core research areas.

She is, or has been, a P.I in several large collaborative projects aimed at determining the effects of noise on large whale behaviour and hearing in large whales. Understanding underwater noise impacts on marine mammals is a scientific area that is growing due to interest from the Navy, Oil and Gas companies, the vessel industry and from other ocean stakeholders such as whale watching companies.

Her work on social behaviour and reproductive behaviour uses a combination of behavioural and physiological indicators of reproductive status as well as stress and she currently has an endocrinology lab based at Moreton Bay Research Station. She also collaborates with researchers within the school of veterinary science to develop projects on large whale health and disease.

Badin is an environmental engineer with over 20 years’ experience in environmental hydrology and water resource engineering. In his current role with the University of Queensland’s School of Civil Engineering he leads a program of research that aims to support the sustainable management of water resources and aquatic ecosystems. This research seeks to quantify water flows and the associated transport of sediment and contaminants in environmental systems ranging from upland rivers and streams to lakes, estuaries and the near-coastal ocean as well as their connected groundwater systems. Badin employs a multi-disciplinary approach that combines the application of innovative environmental monitoring with a range of models to better understand how different factors influence water quality and ecosystem health in these systems.

Prior to joining the University of Queensland, Badin was active in engineering and environmental management roles within various local government, state government, not-for-profit and professional engineering consulting organisations. He applies this past industry experience in his current research activities, which are characterised by close collaboration with water management agencies, to deliver scientific information to support management decisions.

Badin also maintains an active involvement in the University of Queensland’s undergraduate and post-graduate teaching programs where he delivers lectures in various subjects including environmental engineering, hydrology, environmental risk assessment and modelling of surface water and groundwater systems. The experience gained in these roles enables him to communicate complex environmental information with a level of detail appropriate to a range of different audiences from community stakeholders to the engineering profession and regulatory agencies. Badin also supervises a number of post-graduate and undergraduate students who are pursuing research in the area of environmental hydrology and contaminant transport, with many focusing on the implications of forecast climate shifts on water resource management decisions.

Monitoring and understanding of greenhouse gas emissions and sediment dynamics in shallow water bodies.

My primary interests are in monitoring and understanding biogeochemical processes within shallow water ecosystems. My formal training was in biochemistry and marine biology focusing on Southern Ocean food webs. Subsequently, I have focused on monitoring sediment loading and greenhouse gas emissions from sub-tropical coastal and freshwater systems.

I joined the School of Civil Engineering in 2007 to work in the area of sediment biogeochemical cycling in freshwater storages and coastal lagoons. In order to better understand these processes it is critical to monitor overlying water column processes as well as catchment interactions. Therefore, my primary research activities have been in the developing novel monitoring systems of catchments and their receiving water bodies.

BIO:

Noun (n): I am a Professor in polymer processing in Chemical Engineering, a chief investigator in Advanced Materials Processing and Manufacturing (AMPAM) centre, a chief investigator/director of external links of the ARC industrial transformation training centre (ITTC) in bioplastics and biocomposites, a chief investigator in food and beverage accellerator (FaBA).and a chief investigator in the solving plastic waste cooperative research centre (spwCRC).

Verb (v): I work at the translational research interface between universities and industry. Specifically my research involves rheology, processing and product design of bio-based materials, polymers and nanocomposite materials. I lead translational research projects in biopolymers and biofluid platforms for agrifood, biomedical and high-value manufacturing sectors which attract government and industry funding; and produce patents, licences. industrial know-how as well as fundamental papers.

History (h): I have worked in industry (SRI international, Sola Optical, Moldflow), have worked in five cooperative research centres (CRCs -Food Packaging, Sugar Innovation, Polymers, Fighting Food Waste, Solving Plastic Waste), have acquired and managed continuous government and industry research projects since 1994, was heavily involved in the spinoff of Plantic Technologies from the CRC food packaging in 2002 (and ongoing research support with them until 2016), and was involved in the research that led to the TenasiTech (TPU nanocomposite) spinoff from UQ in 2007.I am a fellow of the institute of chemical engineers (IChemE) and a fellow of the Royal Australian Chemical Institute (RACI). I am on the editorial board of the Plastics, Rubbers and Composites, Starch, the Journal of Renewable Materials, Green Materials and Functional Composite Materials-Springer-Nature. I have experience on the boards of the UQ Dow Centre, the UQ RTA Centre, and the UQ-HBIS Sustainable Steel Innovation Centre. I won IChemE Shedden Uhde Award and Prize for excellence in Chemical Engineering (2004), the CRC Sugar innovation award (2008), the CRCPolymers Chairman’s award for research and commercialisation (2011), and have received the CRC Association Technology Transfer Award, twice, in 2002 and 2015.

Research:

Current projects are focused on developing new sustainable and bio-based polymers and biochemicals from formulation through to degradation/disposal, understanding processing of nanostructured polymers, developing smarter biopolymers and materials for biomedical, drug delivery, food and high value applications, understanding rheology and processing of a range of polymer, foods and liquids and is involved in new initiatives in circular plastics.

Teaching and Learning:

My teaching has spanned Introduction to Engineering Design, Engineering Thermodynamics, Polymer Engineering, Process Economics, Research Thesis and Engineering Management. I am developing new courses in Sustainability and the Circular Economy. My overall teaching goal is to be a relevant, well organised, enthusiastic and empathetic enabler of learning using multiple teaching and learning modes, and be highly connected to current industrial practices and cutting edge research.

International links

I have been a visiting or invited professor at ENSICAEN-University, Caen, Normandy, University of Nottingham, Queen’s University Belfast, the University of Strasbourg and Institut national des sciences appliquées (INSA) de Lyon in France. I have strong international collaborations with the US Department of Agriculture, Albany, USA; Colorado School of Mines, USA; AnoxKaldnes, Sweden; University of Bradford, University of Warwick, University of Nottingham, University of Sheffield, UK, SCION, NZ; Michigan State University, USA, and many Australian universities.

Dr. Anthony Halog: Global Leader in AI-Enabled Circular Economy and Sustainable Systems

Dr. Anthony Halog is an internationally recognized expert in AI-driven circular economy, life cycle assessment (LCA), and sustainable systems engineering. His research integrates artificial intelligence, industrial ecology, and systems thinking to optimize green hydrogen production, bioeconomy transitions, and waste-to-energy systems.

As a Senior Academic at the University of Queensland, Dr. Halog leads research projects funded by ARC, EU Horizon, and industry partners. He has published over 130 high-impact journal articles, advancing knowledge in sustainability science and AI-enabled resource optimization. His work has influenced policy development and industry decarbonization strategies in Australia, Europe, and the Middle East.

Dr. Halog has been awarded prestigious international fellowships, including the OECD Research Fellowship (UK/Finland), DAAD Fellowship (Germany), Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Fellowship, and NSERC Fellowship (Canada). He has held visiting research positions in the UK, Germany, Japan, Saudi Arabia, and Morocco, expanding his global impact on circular economy modeling and AI applications in sustainability.

Beyond academia, he plays a key role in policy advisory and industry collaboration, partnering with the OECD, the United Nations, and the European Commission. As a keynote speaker and editorial board member, he continues to shape global discourse on sustainability transitions and AI-driven resource efficiency.

Paul specialises in Assessment and Management of Risk and Impact of Socio-Environmental determinants on the Wellbeing of our younger generations across their life span.

His overall vision is about how we use Environmental Health Intelligence to improve decision-making towards delivering more efficient Environmental Health Practices, Services and Solutions for local and regional communities in remote and disadvantaged socio-economic settings.

Within the complex interdisciplinary domains that hold the socio-environmental determinants of wellbeing, Paul’s operational research focuses on how / what interventions would best support communities to prevent, mitigate and adapt to EH risk and impact in rapidly changing environments and climate.

Paul Jensen is a research leader in the areas of anaerobic biotechnology and resource recovery at ACWEB; and leads projects in the areas of waste treatment with a focus on recovery of renewable energy resources, production of bio-fertilizers, bio-plastics and other high value products from wastes and other low value raw materials.

Complex challenges require multi-disciplinary thinking and Paul’s team incorporates engineering, biological sciences, modelling and information processing approaches to research and technology development for a range of partners across municipal, agricultural, animal and industrial sectors.

Paul and ACWEB are recognised as both national and global experts on biogas and resource recovery technologies. They actively contributes to over 12 research and consulting projects per year with applications across the product development cycle. Importantly, the team are having real world impact, and have contributed to a range of major wastewater infrastructure projects in the last 5 years.

Since returning to academia from industry in 1998, Professor Lydia Kavanagh has become a leader in engineering education and has used her background as a professional engineer to design both curricula and courses for active learning by combining real-world projects and specialist knowledge. She has had a significant impact on the delivery of UQ’s undergraduate engineering program through creative new teaching pedagogies including the Flipped Classroom, innovative authentic approaches to assessment, and the introduction of multi-disciplinary courses. As Director of First Year Engineering for almost a decade, Lydia was responsible for a significant program of extra-curricular transition support for first year students and she co-coordinated two compulsory courses that delivered what could arguably be the world's largest flipped classroom for 600 students. Recently, she has set up a Leadership and Mentoring Program for all EAIT faculty students (undergraduate and postgraduates), and continued this into a Leaders@EAIT, an ongoing academy for these students to continue to develop leadership competencies.

Lydia is now the Deputy Associate Dean Academic (Curriculum Review and Teaching Innovation) for the Faculty of Science where she has overseen a faculty-wide overview of curriculum resulting in streamlined undergraduate and postgraduate offerings. She holds a concurrent fractional position with the Institute of Teaching and Learning Innovations, where she has developed frameworks and systems for UQ shorter form credentials.

Lydia is also heavily involved institutionally with training and mentoring academics and professional staff with teaching responsibilities through the development and implementation of the Graduate Teaching Assistant program (for PhD scholars and postdocs), Teaching@UQ (for staff new to teaching), and TeachingPlus@UQ (for emerging leaders in Teaching and Learning).

Lydia’s work was recognised with a Principal Fellowship of the HEA, an ALTC Excellence in teaching award in 2011 and she has lead and participated in Carrick/ ALTC/ OLT projects on teamwork, online learning, curriculum innovation (2x), preparing students for first year engineering, and Flipped Classrooms.

Dr Danish Kazmi completed his PhD in Geotechnical Engineering at The University of Queensland (UQ) in Australia. His PhD research investigated the potential use of crushed waste glass as a sustainable alternative to depleting traditional construction sands (natural and quarried) to backfill granular columns for in-situ ground improvement. He is a pioneer globally in researching the potential use of crushed waste glass to backfill granular columns for ground improvement in clayey soil.

His research mainly focuses on developing sustainable geomaterials by recycling ever-increasing wastes as alternatives to diminishing and increasingly expensive natural aggregates in geotechnical construction, helping the transition to a circular economy.

Danish is a TEDx Speaker and delivered a TEDx Talk at TEDxBrisbane. He is also one of the youngest researchers ever from his centre at UQ to receive a PhD.

Danish won the prestigious Career Development Fellowship at UQ, funded by the Australian Government. He received the coveted UQ Global Change Scholar Award and Future Leader Award. He won the Young Science Ambassador Award for the Wonder of Science Program in Australia to help promote a STEM culture in Queensland schools. He is a passionate science communicator and a double award winner at the Three Minute Thesis Competition (3MT®) at the UQ’s School of Civil Engineering level. His PhD research has been featured in several Australian and international magazines and has led him to win several scholarships, alongside his selection to present at well-reputed live science communication events. Danish has published three high-definition UQ-branded Video Abstracts to communicate his research to the broader society and help maximise science outreach. Danish was interviewed by Inspiring Australia as part of Australia's National Science Week celebrations to help spark the interest of students in STEM education. He successfully initiated cross-institutional research collaborations with world-leading organisations and is an invited peer-reviewer for various top-ranking scientific journals and conferences.

Danish currently works full-time as a Geotechnical Engineer in the Tunnels & Geotechnics Team (South Queensland Region) at GHD in the Australian industry. Previously, he worked as a full-time Lecturer in Geotechnical Engineering at UQ. He is passionate about helping to develop transformative civil and geotechnical engineering solutions through leading-edge research leveraging university-industry collaborations.

Danish is a UQ Global Change Scholar and Green Office Representative. He is an accredited Mental Health First Aider and a UQ Mental Health Champion. He is also a certified Carbon Literate. Danish cares deeply about the environment and believes planet Earth is our most valuable asset. Outside work, he enjoys volunteering for sustainability, social initiatives, and science communication, connecting with nature, and spending time at the beach.

Australian Geotechnical Industry Experience Highlights

• Asset management, site inspections, construction quality assurance and compliance (QA and QC)
• Dam inspections, monitoring, regulatory compliance and high-level reporting
• Geotechnical site investigations (including sonic drilling, auger drilling, etc.)
• Borehole and test pit logging
• In-situ sampling of soils and rocks
• Standard Penetration Test (SPT)
• Concrete and asphalt core sampling and logging with borehole reinstatement (Airport taxiways, rigid aircraft pavement design, etc.)
• Dynamic Cone Penetration Test (DCP) and PANDA® Lightweight Dynamic Cone Penetration Test
• Packer Test (to determine the average hydraulic conductivity of underground rock formations)
• Geotechnical instrumentation (standpipe and vibrating wire piezometers, data loggers, telemetry, etc.)
• Geotechnical cost estimation, report writing and proposal development

Australian Industry Certifications or Licenses (Shortlisted)

• ​​​​​Queensland White Card (Construction Induction)
• Class C Manual Driver License (Open)
• Provide Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (HLTAID009)
• Provide basic emergency life support (HLTAID010)
• Provide First Aid (HLTAID011)
• Operate and maintain a four wheel drive vehicle (RIIVEH305F)
• Undertake first response to fire incidents (MSMWHS212)
• Communicate in the workplace (RIICOM201E)
• Apply initial response First Aid (RIIERR205D)
• Respond to local emergencies and incidents (RIIERR302E)
• Comply with site work processes/procedures (RIIGOV201E)
• Conduct local risk control (RIIRIS201E)
• Work safely & follow WHS policies and procedures (RIIWHS201E)
• Standard 11 Surface Induction (RIISS00034 Surface Coal Mine Safety Skill Set)

May 2002–ongoing: Senior Lecturer Land Resources Sciences, Principla Research Fellow, School of Land, Crop and Food Sciences; The University of Queensland, Australia

As lecturer of Land Resources Sciences at the University of Queensland, Dr Kirchhof has both led and collaborated on over half a dozen projects, and supervised numerous research staff and students. His research has focussed on:

• Soil–Water relationships;
• Conservation Agriculture and Irrigation scheduling
• Soil erosion
• Water and Nutrient Balances;
• Spatial Variability of Soil Properties from Ped to Landscape Scales;
• Dry-land Salinity Management;
• Water Recycling
• Computer Modelling of Water Flow with Special Reference to Variability and assessment of deep drainage
• Knowledge Management;

2011-15 Course leader: Australia Awards in Africa Dryland Farming/Soil and Water conservation Short Course Awards, UniQuest; Australia and Africa, Dr Kirchhof led the design and delivery of the AusAID-funded Dryland Farming Short Course Award, contracted to UniQuest/UQ-ID through GRM International, which was delivered twice a year in 2011 and 2014.

Countries of work experience: Indonesia, Vietnam, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Burkino Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Tunisia, Uganda, Kenya, Tunisia, Australia.

Previous postions:

Oct 1997–May 2002: Senior Soil Scientist, Soil Conservation, NSW Agriculture; Australia

Mar 1996–Oct 1997: Soil Physicist, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture; Ibadan, Nigeria

Dec 1991–Mar 1996: Research Fellow, Department of Agriculture, The University of Queensland; Brisbane

Jan 1989–Dec 1991: Soil Scientist, CASSIRO Ltd, Wauchope, NSW

Paul Lant is a Professor in the School of Chemical Engineering at The University of Queensland. Paul has a long history of teaching and research at UQ, and he has held a variety of roles. He was the Head of the School from 2009-2013, during which time he led the establishment of the new School, including the introduction of many new teaching, research and engagement activities. He has a history of successful start-up ventures across his portfolio of research, teaching and commercialisation. He has led many new teaching initiatives and been a key player in establishing UQ Chemical Engineering as a world leader in chemical engineering education innovation. He has started several commercial ventures and has been a Director of several companies. Paul was a Founder and Director of Wastewater Futures Pty Ltd for 20 years. Wastewater Futures is an Australian company that provides process engineering services throughout the entire life cycle. He has consulted widely to industry in Australia, including acting as an Expert Witness in Qld.

Paul is a Fellow of the IChemE and a Registered Professional Engineer Qld (RPEQ). Paul was a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors from 1998-2019.

RESEARCH:

Paul's research portfolio is diverse, and aimed at addressing some critical global challenges and also core challenges facing the hazardous industries. Currently, his major activities are:

The New Plastics Economy: Plastics and plastic waste are globally significant issues. Paul has been leading work at UQ for over 17 years investigating the production of PHA biopolymers. He established the PHA research group at UQ in 2003. Since then, UQ has conducted research on PHA with a total value of approximately $25m. The UQ PHA research group are now recognised as global leaders in biodegradable plastic research, and have had long term partnerships with international companies including Veolia and Norske Skog.

Urban Water Systems: Paul has an international reputation for his research work in the field of urban water systems. Current work focuses on water-carbon-energy linkages in cities.

Energy and Poverty: In 2014, Paul co-founded the Energy and Poverty Research Group at UQ. This is a pan-UQ initiative incorporating the disciplines of engineering, business, social science, environmental science, policy, communications and psychology. The mission is to support positive social, environmental and health outcomes that are vital for sustainable and productive livelihoods in energy impoverished communities in the developed and developing world.

UQ R!SK: Paul co-founded UQ R!SK in 2015 with his colleague A/Prof Maureen Hassall (Director). UQ R!SK is an interdisciplinary initiative to deliver practical, evidence-based outcomes that help hazardous industries address current and future risk challenges. The vision for UQ R!SK is to be a world leader in developing practical and innovative, human-centred operational risk management approaches that deliver real improvements in performance and sustainable competitiveness for hazardous industries.

Paul has a very successful track record of establishing productive collaborative partnerships with industry, and for winning competitive research funding. He has been a CI on 19 prestigious ARC projects, and he has also attracted significant support from industry for research. Paul has been a chief investigator on projects that have attracted in excess of $21 million in grant support from Govt and industry. Paul also led the bid to establish the Dow Centre for Sustainable Engineering Innovation in 2012. This was established with a $10M gift from Dow. Paul was also a lead CI on the ARC ITCC on Bioplastics and Biocomposites (2021-2026) which was established with $5m of ARC funding and $1.5m from industry and Government. Paul has been a co-author on over 150 journal publications and he has supervised 50 PhD students to date. He has an h-index of 54 and 11500 citations (Google Scholar, Aug 2021).

TEACHING AND LEARNING:

An established chemical engineering educator, Paul has received national awards for innovations in undergraduate teaching and supervision of postgraduate students. He was a member of teams winning national teaching awards for both undergraduate and postgraduate education in 2005 and 2006. Paul led the establishment of IWES in 2002. IWES is the leading provider of environmental short course training for Australian industry.

Professor Bronwyn Laycock has a diverse background in translational research, working not only in academia but also in industry and as a consulting chemist as well as at CSIRO. Her research activities have ranged from bio/degradable polymers, composites, organic and organometallic synthesis, waste conversion technologies, and pulp and paper chemistry, to general polymer chemistry. She is currently working across a range of projects with a focus on materials for circular economy applications and management of the transition to the new plastics economy. The application areas in her research program include biopolymers (particularly polyhydroxyalkanoates), polymer lifetime estimation and end-of-life management/conversion technologies, biocomposites, controlled release matrixes for pesticide and fertiliser applications, polyurethane chemistry, and biodegradable packaging.

She has a strong history of successful commercialisation and impact, being a co-inventor on CSIRO's extended wear contact lens program (recognised as its fourth most significant invention) - for which she was awarded a joint CSIRO Medal for Research Achievement 2009. As a Project Leader and Deputy Program Leader within the CRC for Polymers, she also managed a project that delivered an oxodegradable thin film polyethylene that was commercially licenced by Integrated Packaging. This work earned the team a Joint Chairman’s Award for research/commercialization (CRC for Polymers) and an Excellence in Innovation Award (CRC Association).

Eleonore is a Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining (CSRM), part of the Sustainable Minerals Institute at UQ.

Initially trained as an engineer, Eleonore is a multi-disciplinary researcher with expertise in the mining industry and passionate about bridging qualitative and quantitative disciplines. She leads both academic research and industry-commissioned projects.

Her current interests include:

• Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) data and their use in decision making
• Responsible investment practices and outcomes in the mining industry
• The organisational drivers of ESG performance

As part of her role at CSRM, Eleonore delivers guest lectures and professional development offerings on ESG and particularly the social aspects of mining, including on the topics of:

• Establishing a social knowledge base
• Social risk
• Social incident investigation
• Mining-induced displacement and resettlement

She has also published on the topics of energy transition minerals, tailings dam failures, and circular economy and mine waste management. Her research on energy transition minerals earned her a Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) from the Australian Research Council.

Eleonore advises several PhD students on topics such as multi-criteria decision making, post-mining land use, and spatial ESG data analysis.