SAAFE Living Labs Lead

Nicholas is a world-renowned environmental microbiologist and Living Labs Lead at SAAFE CRC. Specializing in environmental pathogens and water guidelines, he has contributed to NHMRC, WHO, EPA and Health Canada water guidelines. His research focuses on opportunistic pathogens, antimicrobial resistance in biofilms and their shielding through treatment, and modelling pathogen risks, which is shaping future water management policies and regulations.

Director of Antimicrobial Resistance Policy and Surveillance Section in the Interim Australian Centre for Disease Control

Christina Bareja works with partners in the Australian Government to implement Australia’s National Antimicrobial Resistance Strategy – 2020 and Beyond. Christina’s team coordinates AURA, the human sector AMR and antimicrobial use surveillance program. They work within the health portfolio to increase awareness and drive positive change in combatting AMR.

Anthony specializes in turning science into action, executive science leadership, and promoting science impact at the board level. His expertise spans environmental science, climate resilience, co-design, innovation, and marine ecology. He excels in science communication, strategic problem-solving, and translating complex science into practical solutions for conservation and adaptation.

Director of One Health in the interim CDC

Director, Coombe Consulting

Peter Coombe has a background in business management, focusing on strategy, operations, and project management. He’s currently the secretariat for the Animal Industries Antimicrobial Stewardship R, D & E strategy and manages a joint industry-government project to address antimicrobial resistance in livestock, aligned with Animal Plan 2022-2027.

Program Manager for Biosecurity, Pest, and Disease, Wine Australia’s Research & Innovation team.

With more than 20 years' extensive experience in vineyard management, technical viticulture, research, and extension at both national and international levels, Robyn plays a crucial role in identifying sector priorities for research, innovation, and behavioural change. She is responsible for commissioning and overseeing a diverse portfolio of projects related to biosecurity, pests, and diseases.

SA Health Principal Water Quality Adviser

David provides specialist advice and policy on public health aspects of water quality including management and provision of drinking water, recycled water and recreational waters. His expertise in water regulation, microbiology and risk assessment is globally recognised. David is a contributor to the WHO Drinking Water Guidelines and chairs the Water Quality Expert Reference Panel of enHealth (The Environmental Health Standing Committee).

Senior Principal Research Fellow, Centre for Crop Science, Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation

Sudhir is a leading sustainability researcher at the University of Queensland. His research focuses on sustainability indicators, traceability standards, life cycle assessment, functional biomass research, and promoting sustainable farming practices to enhance environmental stewardship and resource-use efficiency.

Chair of the Agricultural Business Research Institute (ABRI)

Angela Schuster is renowned in the agricultural industry for her innovative projects and strategic vision to drive progress and shape industry standards, and for her role in international and national forums. She chairs Standards Australia’s technical committee on data-driven agrifood systems, and was the Australian representative for the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) Strategic Advisory Group on Smart Farming. Angela and her husband also run a sheep, cattle and cropping enterprise just out of Dubbo, NSW.

Senior Lecturer, ARC Discovery Early Career Research Fellow; President, Equine Veterinarians Australia; Registered Specialist in Large Animal Medicine; Melbourne Veterinary School; The University of Melbourne

Laura is a veterinarian, interdisciplinary researcher and international leader in implementing veterinary antimicrobial stewardship programs. She is working on a variety of projects in One Health AMS including collaborations with social scientists, data scientists, microbiologists, medical and veterinary professionals.

SAAFE's Analytics Program Lead

Ricardo is a veterinarian with extensive research experience spanning human and animal public health. He specialises in the geospatial epidemiological modelling of zoonotic diseases, surveillance system design, and evaluating biosecurity interventions to reduce zoonotic hazards (including antimicrobial resistance). Ricardo’s other notable positions include: Professor of Zoonotic Disease Epidemiology at the University of Queensland, and Biosecurity and Director of the Queensland Alliance for One Health Sciences at the University of Queensland.

HEAL Network NSW Hub Lead & Indigenous Knowledge Systems Lead

Dr Veronica Matthews from the Quandamooka community is an Associate Professor at the University of Sydney’s Centre for Rural Health. Her work centres on improving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander holistic health care systems (including environmental health) through quality improvement, systems-thinking and community-based participatory research. She also co-leads the Centre for Research Excellence in Strengthening Systems for Indigenous Health Care Equity.

HEAL Global Researcher, University of Canberra

Ro has significant experience and expertise at the interface between health, biodiversity, environmental sustainability, and food production, often referred to as One Health, Planetary Health and, or Ecological Public Health.  Her research focuses on evidence synthesis for policy, education and addressing barriers to implementing place-based solutions. She currently coordinates Health within the Nexus Assessment for the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, and addresses healthy and sustainable food system transition as co-lead of the Future of Food in the Capital Region network.

Councillor for Asia and Oceania, World Veterinary Association; Director, Australian Veterinary Association

Mark was Australia’s Chief Veterinary Officer for 12 years (2011 – 2023) and was President of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH/OIE) (2018 – 2021). He has worked in government practice his entire career and has national and international governance experience. Mark was made an honorary Fellow of the Australian New Zealand College of Veterinary Scientists in 2021. He received an honorary doctorate in veterinary medicine from Melbourne University in 2022.

SAAFE CRC Director, Viticulturalist

Liz is an experienced and respected wine industry leader who was the first female recipient of the NSW Legend of the Vine. She was Director of the Australian Wine Research Institute, and former Vice-President and Chair of Research & Development of the NSW Wine Industry Association. With expertise in agrichemicals, biosecurity, pests and diseases, her interest in AMR began in the 90s when she encountered significant resistance problems with botrytiscides, which pushed the crops close to market failure.

SAAFE Solutions Program Lead

Andy has more than 30 years’ experience in the livestock vaccines industry. Based at the university of Queensland, his group develop vaccines through to commercialisation for aquaculture in Australia and overseas.

SAAFE Head of Collaboration (Research and Impact)

Mary Carr, Chief Veterinary Officer of South Australia for 5 years, excels in enhancing biosecurity across the supply chain with a clear, collaborative strategy. She promotes cross-sectoral One Health initiatives and has led AMR planning with the Department of Health, advocating for integrated stakeholder efforts.

Chief Environmental Scientist, Environment Protection Authority Victoria

As former Professor of Environmental Science and Human Health at Macquarie University, Sydney, Mark specialised in environmental contamination and the risks it can pose. His research expertise covers environmental contamination in aerosols, dusts, sediments, soil, water and potential risks to human health. Mark's work has had global reach, with a focus on mining and smelting emissions and depositions, as well as contamination in urban environments.

Director Te Pūnaha Matatini, New Zealand Centre of Research Excellence in Complex Systems

Cilla is a conservation biologist with a history of collaborative and creative research. She leads transdisciplinary research, building on her experience in Indigenous socioecological systems, ecology, conservation and animal behaviour.

As a globally active mentor with strong interests in research and work culture, Cilla is part of the Kindness in Science Collective, and Association for Women in the Sciences. She is also a Homeward Bound facilitator (and past alumna) promoting ethical women’s leadership for sustainability in an uncertain world.

Professor, UQ

Eve is an Australian Research Council (ARC) Professorial Research Fellow in the School of Geography, Planning and Environmental Management at UQ. She is a Chief Investigator on the ARC Centre of Excellence for Environmental Decisions, and with the NESP Threatened Species Hub.

Eve's research is focused on improving environmental decision-making in complex systems using Decision Theory. She is a founding member of the UQ Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Science.

Commissioner of Excellence and Innovation in Health, Government of South Australia

Kei­th is a health­care pow­er­house and internationally recognised respiratory physician with a 42-year career spent on the front­lines of patient care and inno­va­tion.

He was pre­vi­ous­ly Chief Medical Officer at Queensland Health and served in a num­ber of senior lead­er­ship roles, includ­ing Chief Clin­i­cal Infor­ma­tion Offi­cer roles in the NHS and Queens­land, hos­pi­tal and health ser­vice CEO roles in Queens­land and Cam­bridge UK, and as Act­ing Deputy Direc­tor Gen­er­al of Clin­i­cal Excel­lence Queensland.

Professor, School of Public Health, UQ

He is a keen advocate of One Health and the application of systems thinking approaches to understand and improve interventions for wicked zoonotic disease problems at the human-animal-ecosystem interface, such as leptospirosis, brucellosis, human-bat interactions and antimicrobial resistance. His research focuses on understanding how to improve multisectoral governance, planning and implementation of responses to manage One Health problems.

SAAFE Director

John is a trained molecular biologist, and a seasoned technology executive. Passionate about combining his scientific training and commercial expertise to build a better future, he brings a unique lens and breadth of experience to SAAFE's board.

As a purpose-driven tech entrepreneur, his senior leadership experience spans Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Flybuys (2019-2022), CEO and Managing Director of ASX-listed company Integrated Research (2017-2019), and General Manager of Seek Learning (2016-2017).

Lead, Animal Health and Environment, CSIRO AMR Mission

Kylie has worked for more than 15 years in the Australian agriculture sector as a scientist, research and policy manager. In 2022, Kylie received an Australian Biosecurity Award for her work coordinating biosecurity initiatives across the terrestrial livestock sector, including establishing the Australian Animal Industries Antimicrobial Stewardship RD&E strategy.

Centre for Crop & Disease Management, Curtin University

Fran is a plant industries AMR expert who has played a pivotal role in understanding how fungicide resistance develops in crops and how to manage fungicides to reduce the impact of diseases in the field.

Director RMH Guidance Group, Director National Centre for Antimicrobial Stewardship, Department of Infectious Diseases, Melbourne Medical School, University of Melbourne

Kas is an infectious diseases physician and clinical researcher with a wealth of experience in advancing antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) programs. As a renowned leader in AMS, especially in the field of digital health, Kas has directly influenced national policies, clinical practice and the implementation of the National AMR Strategy.

Director of Future Fisheries Veterinary Service

Matt is an internationally recognised veterinary scientist and expert in aquatic contaminants, and how they enter and impact ecosystems. His business provides field, laboratory, research and technical aquatic animal health and production veterinary services to commercial aquaculture and wild fisheries.

ANR/INSERM Distinguished Research Chair, Priority Research program on AMR, Research Director, Agroecology Mixed Research Unity, INRAE, University of Burgundy, France

Ed is a globally recognised pioneer of AMR research and SAAFE CRC’s International Expert Advisory Committee Chair. He is an environmental microbiology and chemistry research scientist who initiated the successful Environmental Dimension of Antimicrobial Resistance (EDAR) conference series – the largest international scientific meeting to specifically address the role of the environment in antimicrobial resistance.

United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) Food Safety Officer

As a veterinarian, with an extensive background in Food Safety, Public Policy, Population Medicine, and Public Health, Dr Pinto Ferreira has faced first-hand many cases of antimicrobial resistance, having started his professional career as a dairy cow clinician.

With more than 15 years' experience in AMR, spanning multiple countries, Dr Pinto Ferreirahas held research and consultancy positions, including Deputy Head of the AMR and Veterinary Products Department of the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE/WOAH).

SAAFE Chair

Research Portfolio Manager, FRDC

Wayne, with a Master of Applied Science in Aquaculture from the University of Tasmania, joined FRDC in 2016. His research focused on hatchery issues for various marine finfish. As Research Portfolio Manager, he oversees the Aquatic Animal Health and Biosecurity Subprogram and manages industry partnerships with major aquaculture organizations.

Professor of Epidemiology, UQ

Lisa specializes in epidemiology, implementation science, and economic evaluation. As Director of Teaching and Learning, she focuses on healthcare-associated infection prevention and health service sustainability. With more than $13 million in grants, her key projects include infection prevention and antimicrobial stewardship.

Director, Pique Global

Deb consults with organisations to navigate complexity and drive systemic change through executive coaching and culture transformation. With more than ten years' executive experience in finance and government, she specializes in organizational change, leadership growth, and emergency response.

Senior Consultant, Isle Utilities Asia-Pacific

Kelly has more than 15 years' experience in water management. She leads innovation programs across Australia and Asia-Pacific, focusing on research, technology, and collaboration. Kelly holds a PhD in Integrated Water Management and has worked with utilities, research organizations, and regulators in both the UK and Australia.

Group Lead, The Pasteur Institute, Cambodia

Sopheak has more than 10 years' experience in clinical microbiology and infectious disease research. With dual doctoral degrees from Cambodia and France, she earned a doctorate in Clinical Microbiology, has a background as a pharmacist, and previously served as an Assistant Lab Manager in Paris Hospital. Since 2010, she has been a University Lecturer in Cambodia.

Dean of Programs in UniSA STEM (Science, Construction & Project Management)

Throughout his academic career Craig has been recognised for his skills in education and communication and combines these with research interests in the interface between environmental and public health. Craig is co-convenor of the South Australian node of the HEAL (Healthy Environments and Lives) Network.

Minimising AMR Mission Lead, CSIRO

Over the last twenty years, Branwen has held numerous senior communications and project management roles that bridge academic organisations, publicly listed companies, government and NGOs in the UK and Australia. She has a PhD in medicine from UNSW (Garvan Institute of Medical Research) and is well-known as a science strategy and corporate affairs consultant.

Prior to joining CSIRO in 2021, Branwen was the general manager of AusGEM - a joint venture between UTS and the NSW Department of Primary Industries. This led to an increased interest in antimicrobial resistance and her becoming a co-founder and managing director of the UTS-led OUTBREAK project, focusing on One Health antimicrobial resistance (AMR) surveillance that received MRFF funding.