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Dr Fred Fialho Teixeira is an architect, media artist and senior lecturer at University of Queensland, School of Architecture, Design and Planning. He has been working in the fields of computational architecture and immersive environments for the last 20 years. He has been awarded the Dean's Fellowship from the University of California and Media Arts and Technology Fellowship where he initiated is PhD on innovative biological-based design strategies at the California Nano Systems Institute. Additionally he co-established and developed an international research program on the studies of Perception of Space in Architecture and Culture and the UQ Visualisation Lab with a focus on the used of immersive technologies and extended realities (VR/AR/XR). With over 50 publications on design methods and research in digital design and fabrication, his research focuses on bio-augmented spaces through the experiential traits of immersive media and spatial computing strategies. He's an alumni of the Architectural Association, School of Architecture (AA) and accredited architect by Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and Portuguese Chamber of Architects (OA) and also practiced for high profile offices such as Zaha Hadid Architects. Through his innovative strategies he designed over 30 projects from which he was internationally awarded within biology, art and architectural domains. Presently his research work on spatial computation combines the use of mixed reality and advanced manufacturing to enable the next generation of built environments.

Memberships

Architectural Association, School of Architecture (UK),Royal Institute of British Architects (UK), Chamber of Architects (PT), Australian Smart Communities Association (AU).

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.

Dr. Amrita Kambo is a multi-disciplinary researcher at The University of Queensland, specializing in the intersection of social sciences, sustainability, and urban development. Her research draws on key theoretical concepts such as ‘social acceptance’ and ‘social licence to operate’ (SLO), which she applies to assess how industries, technologies, and businesses gain tacit support from the public. This approach also helps examine the standards of responsible behavior, transparency, and accountability across diverse sectors.

In her recent work, Dr. Kambo has applied the SLO framework to explore community expectations regarding renewable energy technologies, including hydrogen and biogas, as part of a project funded by the Future Fuels CRC. Her research methods include surveys, interviews, focus groups, and participatory research, all aimed at understanding public perceptions and fostering more sustainable practices.

Dr. Kambo’s broader research interests extend to sustainable cities, urban infrastructure, and place-making. These interests stem from her early career in architecture and design, which continue to shape her interest in urban planning.

Her PhD research focused on advancing ‘sustainable’ architecture through innovative concepts such as regenerative design, biophilic design, ecosystem services, Geodesign, biomimicry, green infrastructure, positive development, and net-zero design. Dr. Kambo’s work is driven by a passion for creating responsible, environmentally conscious urban environments that enhance both human and ecological well-being.

Dr. Manu P. Sobti is a landscape historian and urban interlocutor of the Global South with research specialisations in South Asia, South East Asia, Central Asia, and the Middle East. Within the gamut of the Global, the Islamic, and the Non-Western, his continuing work examines borderland transgressions and their intertwinement with human mobilities, indigeneities, and the narratives of passage across these liminal sites. From his perspective, ‘land-centered’ and ‘deep’ place histories replete with human actors serve as critical and de-colonizing processes that negate the top-down master-narratives wherein borders and boundaries simplistically delineate nation states and their scalar range of internal geographies. He was previously Associate Professor at the School of Architecture & Urban Planning (SARUP), University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee USA (2006-16). He has a B.Dipl.Arch. from the School of Architecture-CEPT (Ahmedabad - INDIA), an SMarchS. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge - USA), and a Ph.D. from the College of Architecture, Georgia Institute of Technology (Atlanta - USA).

As a recognized scholar and innovative educator, Sobti served as Director of SARUP-UWM’s India Winterim Program (2008-15). This foreign study program worked intensively with local architecture schools in Ahmedabad, Delhi and Chandigarh, allowing students and faculty to interact actively, often within the gamut of the same project. He also set up a similar, research-focused program in Uzbekistan, engaging advanced undergraduate and graduate students to undertake field research at sites, archives and cultural landscapes. In partnership with the Art History Program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and SARUP colleagues, Sobti also co-coordinated the Building-Landscapes-Cultures (BLC) Concentration of SARUP-UWM’s Doctoral Program (2011-13), creating opportunities for student research in diverse areas of architectural and urban history and in multiple global settings. He served as the Chair of SARUP's PhD Committee between 2014-16, leading an area of BLC's research consortium titled Urban Histories and Contested Geographies.

Sobti's research has been supported by multiple funding bodies, including the Graham Foundation of the Arts (USA), the Architectural Association (UK), the National Council for Eurasian and East European Research (USA), the French Institute of Central Asian Studies (UZBEKISTAN), the US Department of State Fulbright Foundation (USA), the Aga Khan Foundation (SWITZERLAND), the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation (USA), the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (USA), the Centre for 21st Century Studies University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (USA), the Institute for Research in the Humanities University of Wisconsin-Madison (USA), Stanford University (USA), in addition to city governments in New Delhi/Chandigarh/Ahmedabad (INDIA), Samarqand/Bukhara (UZBEKISTAN), Erzurum (TURKEY) and New Orleans (USA). He has also served as a United States Department of State Fulbright Senior Specialist Scholar and received 7 Research Fellowships at important institutions worldwide. He is a nominated Expert Member of the ICOMOS-ICIP (Interpretation and Presentation of Cultural Heritage Sites) International Committee, responsible for debate and stewardship on contentious cultural heritage issues globally.

Dr Brydon Wang is a lawyer and scholar researching at the confluence of technology, law and architecture. He is passionate about flood-resilient smart cities and has 19 years in the construction industry. His PhD was on the Role of Trustworthiness in Automated Decision-making Systems and the Law.

Brydon has practised as a technology and construction lawyer with top-tier law firm Allens, and has had a previous career in architecture and contract administration on award-winning construction projects. He currently teaches undergraduate Contract Law, Responsible Data Science in the Master of Data Science course, and the design and automation of climate-resilient cities (including amphibious settlements) in the Master of Architecture course. Brydon was recently featured on ABC Radio National's 'Future Tense' where he discussed offshore architecture and marine urban sprawl, and on Seeker's popular documentary, 'How close are we to Living in the Ocean?'. He is passionate about regulating to enhance trustworthiness in the design and deployment of automated decision-making systems in cities (BIM, Digital Twins). He is currently researching in trustworthy AI, automation of infrastructure delivery and design governance. Brydon recently co-edited a book, 'Automating Cities: Design, Construction, Operation and Future Impact' (Springer, 2021), wrote for the Centre for Digital Built Britain (operating out of the University of Cambridge) and in The Conversation. Brydon previously co-edited 'Large Floating Structures', a book exploring environmentally-sustainable technologies that allow cities to expand onto adjacent water bodies.