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Confirmed Speakers for the event
Anthony S K Wong John Anderson Maggie Beer
Max Moore-Wilton Dr Jim Peacock Kyle McNabb
Margaret Jackson Robert Brandewie Bill Trestrail
April DuBois Ralph Petroff Ros Hughes
David Skellern Greg Simpson Lindsay Adler
Eric Ciliberti Greg Foliente Alan Gregory
Hamish McCormick Carl Middlehurst Steve Morton
Gordon Waddington Ken Preshaw Bill Salter
Sue Thomas
 
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Anthony S K Wong
Commissioner for Innovation and Technology
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government
Anthony Wong's Presentation


Mr. Anthony S K Wong is the Commissioner for Innovation and Technology of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China, responsible for the promotion and development of innovation and technology in Hong Kong. Major initiatives include supporting applied research and development and technology transfer, facilitating the provision of technology support infrastructure and development of human resources, fosteringtechnological entrepreneurship and an innovation and technology culture in the community, furthering technological collaboration with the Mainland and other places, as well as promoting internationally accepted standards and conformity assessment services to underpin technological development and international trade.

Prior to his current position, Mr. Wong worked in different areas in the Office of the Telecommunications Authority. He was appointed the Director-General of Telecommunications and the Telecommunications Authority of Hong Kong from March 1997 to August 2003. One of his major achievements was the liberalization of the telecom services and facilities markets in Hong Kong in the past decade. Mr. Wong also contributed towards the development and promotion of the information infrastructure in Hong Kong and the convergence of the computing, broadcasting and telecommunications industries.

In the international arena, Mr. Wong has participated actively in the various conferences and meetings of the International Telecommunication Union, including the chairing of the World Telecommunication Policy Forum, the Annual Global Symposium for Regulators in 2001 and the Policy and Legal Committee of the Plenipotentiary Conference held in 2002.

Mr. Wong holds a Bachelor of Science Honours degree in Electrical Engineering, a Master of Philosophy degree and a Master of Social Sciences degree.
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John Anderson
Founder of Contiki
Download Audio of John Anderson's talk


John Anderson at the age of 22 took 25 Pounds, an idea and created a new product, an international brand name which is now a 300 Million Dollar plus business. It is an incredible story.

When John sold the company it was, and remains, an International "brand name" and one of the worlds major tour operators, (the largest catering specifically for the 18-35 year old market). From a staff of one and a beaten-up minibus, to 700 staff, operating 160 Mercedes coaches and 15 European properties including a Chateau, Hotels, camping grounds and cruise vessels. He had built brand awareness of 92% in target markets, Contiki was operating in Europe, North America and Australasia, carrying 100,000 passengers annually.

Today John continues as a management consultant and entrepreneur. John is writing a book on the Contiki Story for release in 2006, and recently he has started a new Company offering holidays for the over 45’s.
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Maggie Beer
Author, TV Presenter, Maggie Beer Products


Maggie, originally from Sydney, worked and travelled overseas in an amazing variety of jobs from a Lift Driver in a New Zealand department store to the Assistant to the Senior Geophysicist for British Petroleum in Libya. Returning home in 1968 and well before becoming immersed in the world of food, she was employed in fields as diverse as light aircraft, Citizenship Law for the American Embassy and House Management at the Women's College of Sydney University.

Her marriage to Colin in 1970 led them to the Barossa Valley where they began pheasant breeding and grape growing. The establishment of the Pheasant Farm was the start of a career that now spans farming, food production, exporting, food writing and television presenting. For years Maggie sat on food related boards such as SARDI (South Australia Research and Development Institute) and Premiers Food Council.

There have been lots of awards over the years from those first heady days when in 1991 the Pheasant Farm Restaurant won the Remy Martin Cognac/Australian Gourmet Traveller Restaurant of the Year. More business related accolades included the Telstra Business Woman of the Year in 1997 and the Jaguar/Australian Gourmet Traveller Award of Excellence in 1999 and then in 2001 Maggie was overwhelmed to be presented with the Food Media Club's Industry Peer Award.

Maggie has written 5 books in total, drawing on her own philosophy of quality produce and the pleasures of the table - Maggie's Farm, Maggie's Orchard and Maggie's Table. The latter won the Best Regional Cook Book in English in 2001, and then against all other languages, replicated its success in the Gourmand World Cook Book Awards in Perigourd, France. In 2003 Maggie's Table was also awarded the Australian Food Media Award for Best Hardcover Recipe Book. For her fourth book, Maggie has compressed her fascination with verjuice into Cooking with Verjuice. For the fifth, she collaborated with Stephanie Alexander and chronicled their Italian cooking school experiences in Stephanie and Maggie's Tuscan Cookbook, which has been translated into 5 languages. Maggie is proud to be patron of the Vogue Produce Awards, having spent her energies fostering value adding in agriculture.

It was a natural extension, with her passion for food and food writing, that Maggie should find herself in front of the camera in her own television series. Currently screening on the ABC, The Cook and The Chef shows Maggie introducing Executive Chef Simon Bryant to her home region and the people who supply her with the produce she has used to create her culinary reputation.

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Max Moore Wilton
Executive Chairman and Chief Executive
Sydney Airport Corporation
Download Audio of Max Moore-Wilton's talk


Max Moore-Wilton was appointed Executive Chairman and Chief Executive of the privatised Sydney Airport Corporation in December 2002.

His challenge at Sydney Airport is to bring a greater commercial focus to Australia’s premier airport, while delivering sustainable returns to shareholders in a challenging trading environment.

Mr Moore-Wilton has had a distinguished career in both the private and public sectors.

He has held positions as either Chairman or Board member of a number of major Commonwealth and State business enterprises, and has extensive experience in the transport sector.

Prior to his appointment at Sydney Airport, Mr Moore-Wilton was Secretary to the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet from May 1996 where he oversaw fundamental reform to the Commonwealth Public Service.

Mr Moore-Wilton was appointed a Companion in the General Division of the Order of Australia in the Australia Day Honours List 2001. He has also been:

Secretary to the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (1996-2002)
National Director, Policy Co-ordination and Priorities Review, Australia Stock Exchange (1995-96)
Chief Executive of the NSW Roads and Traffic Authority (1994-95)
Director General of the NSW Department of Transport (1991-94)
Chief Executive of the Maritime Se4rvices Board of NSW (1989-91)
Managing Director of Australian National Line (1984-89)
Director, Australian Airlines Limited (1986-92)
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Dr William James Peacock AC, FAA, FRS, FTSE, FAIAST
Australian Chief Scientist


Dr Jim Peacock was appointed Australian Chief Scientist in March 2006. Dr Peacock is an outstanding scientist with a record of academic excellence and is highly respected by the science, engineering and technology community.

Dr Peacock is an award winning molecular biologist and fervent science advocate. He is recognised internationally as an eminent researcher in the field of plant molecular biology and its applications in agriculture.

In 1994, he was made a Companion of the Order of Australia for outstanding service to science, particularly in the field of molecular biology and to science education. Dr Peacock is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science, Fellow of The Royal Society of London, the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, a Foreign Associate of the US National Academy of Sciences and a Foreign Fellow of the Indian National Science Academy.

In 2000 he was a co-recipient of the inaugural Prime Minister's Science Prize, for his co discovery of the Flowering Switch Gene – a key gene that determines when plants end their vegetative growth phase and begin flowering. This discovery will help boost the productivity of the world’s crops by billions of dollars each year and could also help increase the nutritional value of crops eaten by billions of the world's poorest people.

He was also awarded the BHP Bicentennial Prize for the pursuit of excellence in science and technology and the Australian Academy of Science’s Burnett Medal for distinguished contributions in the biological sciences.

Dr Peacock has gained valuable experience working in industry having founded the Gene Shears biotechnology company and instituted the GrainGene initiative and the HRZ Wheat Company – linking research with the production of new wheat varieties for Australia. He played a key role in the establishment of cotton as Australia’s first highly successful biotech crop.

Dr Peacock is a strong advocate for the integration of science and global business. He drives innovative communication efforts to inform the general public as to the outcomes and value of modern science. He has brought the excitement of science to a broad cross-section of the community and to Australian school students.
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Kyle McNabb
Senior Analyst, Forrester
Kyle McNabb's Presentation (700Kb)

Research Focus
Kyle is a senior analyst in Forrester's Information Delivery research group. His current research focus includes desktop productivity tools, product information management, and many aspects of enterprise content management — focusing on enterprise content management suites, content-centric applications, Web content management, document management, and document imaging.

Previous Work Experience
Kyle comes to Forrester with many years of enterprise software consulting, product marketing, product management, and strategy experience. Most recently, he was director of strategy with Vignette, a leading enterprise content management provider, where he was involved in corporate and product strategy, acquisitions, and partnerships. Prior to his work with Vignette, he held product marketing and product management roles with organizations providing middleware and information management technology solutions to Global 5000 organizations worldwide. Kyle began his career with Accenture (then Andersen Consulting), helping organizations in a number of different industries adopt and implement technology to improve business processes.

Education
Kyle holds a B.S. in finance from San Diego State University.
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Margaret Jackson, AC
Chairman, Qantas Airways Limited
Download Audio of Margaret Jackson's talk


Margaret Jackson was appointed Chairman of Qantas on 1 August 2000. She was first appointed to the Qantas Board of Directors on 1 July 1992. She is also a Director of Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited and a Director of Billabong International Limited.

Margaret is also Chairman of the Asia Pacific Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS, is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors; a Member of the Foreign Affairs Council; a Member of the Melbourne University Business School Association; an Executive Committee member of the Australia Japan Business Co-operation Committee; and Chairmen’s Panel Member, Business Council of Australia.

Margaret holds a Bachelor of Economics Degree from Monash University and completed an MBA with distinction at Melbourne University. She received an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from Monash University in December 2002 and a Companion of the Order of Australia in the General Division (AC) in June 2003. Ms Jackson is also a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia.

Before beginning her career as a full time company director in 1992, she was a Partner of KPMG Peat Marwick's Management Consulting Division.

She has formerly served as Chairman of the Transport Accident Commission and Methodist Ladies’ College and as Deputy Chairman of Southcorp Limited, a Director of the Howard Florey Institute of Experimental Physiology and Medicine, Co-Chair of the Australia New Zealand Leadership Forum, a Director of John Fairfax Holdings Limited, the Brain Research Institute, The Broken Hill Proprietary Company Limited, Pacific Dunlop Limited, Australian Telecommunications Corporation (Telecom) and the Australian Wool Corporation.

Margaret resides in Melbourne and is married with two children.
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Robert Brandewie
Director, Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC) Monterey, California


Mr. Brandewie currently serves as the Director, Defense Manpower Data Center, a field activity reporting to the Office of the Secretary of Defense (Personnel and Readiness). He is responsible for oversight of the largest and most comprehensive automated personnel data base in DoD, management of a dozen major operational DoD programs, supervision of a multi-disciplinary staff of approximately 800. Recently, Mr. Brandewie has led DMDC efforts: to redesign the Department's benefits and entitlements database for the new TRICARE system; to design and field a comprehensive web authentication capabilityfor DoD; to develop and field an identification card and biometric based force protection system; and to design and develop the Common Access Smartcard as the new DoD identification card.

Mr. Brandewie received an M.A. in Administrative Sciences from Yale University in 1972 and a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Connecticut in 1970. Mr. Brandewie was twice awarded the Presidential Rank Award of Meritorious Executive (in 1997 and in 2002); has twice been the recipient of the Secretary of Defense Medal for Meritorious Civilian Service, and was awarded the Secretary of Defense Exceptional Civilian Service Award. He was selected as one of the FED100 for 2003, an award based on influencing the course of Federal information technology. Mr. Brandewie was selected as a career member of the Senior Executive Service in May of 1993.
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Bill Trestrail
Vice President, Silicon Graphics – Asia Pacific


Bill Trestrail was recently appointed Vice President, of Silicon Graphics (SGI) Asia Pacific. As such he is responsible for all operations of SGI in this region. Previously, Bill was the Area General Manager of Silicon Graphics Pty Ltd (SGI) Australia, New Zealand and Southern ASEAN, following the 4 years Bill had been the General Manager for Australia and New Zealand. Bill joined SGI in 1995 as ACT State Manager and since then has held various positions including, National Defence Business Unit Manager and National Sales Manager – Corporate & Government.

Prior to joining SGI Bill held a number of sales and management roles with Seer Technologies, Informix Software and Australian Consolidated Technologies in Canberra, Sydney and Brisbane.

Bill graduated from Queensland University of Technology with a Bachelor of Business Accountancy in 1986 and in 1988 completed his qualifications through the Institute of Chartered Accountants.

Before joining the computer industry Bill, a Chartered Accountant, worked for KPMG Peats and KMG Hungerfords for 6 years in general practice and IT consulting. Bill holds the following board positions in addition to relevant SGI subsidiaries:
  • Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Research Centre
  • Australasian Centre for Interaction Design
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April L. DuBois
Director, International Business Development
Greater Washington Initiative


April DuBois is the Director of International Business Development at the Greater Washington Initiative (GWI). GWI is the regional marketing organization that promotes the Greater Washington DC region (Northern Virginia, Suburban Maryland and the District of Columbia) as a prime location for business expansion. In her position with GWI, Ms. DuBois develops international strategy for attracting global companies to the Greater Washington region. A main focus of her work is to help international firms understand the business potential of selling to the U.S. federal government, the largest consumer of goods and services in the world. She oversees a team of international consultants who work side-by-side with global companies to connect them with potential partners, service providers, customers, venture capital and commercial real estate in the Greater Washington region.

Ms. DuBois has over ten years of experience managing international projects, accounts and contracts for global corporations and government/non-profit organizations. She has directed business development initiatives in the Americas, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and the Pacific Rim and has negotiated strategic partnerships with countless organizations worldwide. She was the first Director of International Business Development for GWI and strategically launched the organization’s series of U.S. government contracting conferences aimed at attracting new global businesses to the region. As a direct result of her leadership, GWI’s business development program has achieved unprecedented international growth.

Before joining GWI, Ms. DuBois managed an $8 million portfolio of Fortune 500 and government agency accounts for Brainbench, Inc., an information technology company based in Northern Virginia. She was the first Strategic Accounts Manager for the company and developed an aggressive global customer relations management strategy that resulted in a 97% renewal rate of the company’s largest clients.

Ms. DuBois developed extensive trade and export-related expertise while serving as Export Specialist at SEDA-COG, a regional, public-private economic development organization in Pennsylvania. During her tenure at SEDA-COG, she assisted over 400 Pennsylvania companies in exporting their products and services overseas; managed numerous overseas trade missions; served as liaison between local companies and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s 15 overseas offices; and published two books on international business and trade, Taking on the World and The Building & Construction Marketing Guide. She received national recognition from the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration and several regional organizations for her work on Taking on the World.

Under the leadership of former Pennsylvania Governor & U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, Tom Ridge (R-PA), Ms. DuBois worked for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Office of International Business Development and with the Governor’s Action Team focusing on trade & foreign direct investment. In her roles there, she provided guidance to Pennsylvania companies seeking to do business overseas and also assisted international companies in setting up a U.S. presence in Pennsylvania.

Ms. DuBois completed her degrees in Spanish Education and International Business at Messiah College and at the University of Barcelona, Spain.

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Ralph Petroff
Entrepreneur in Residence, NICTA


Ralph Petroff is currently one of NICTA's 'Entrepreneurs-in-Residence' [EiR]. As a self-confessed "Serial Entrepreneur," Petroff has taken two ICT start-ups from garage shop to worldwide market leaders.

Petroff was one of two EiRs selected by NICTA in 2005 after a global search. At NICTA, Petroff has evaluated over 80 projects to determine which projects have the highest potential for a commercial ‘spin out.’ Petroff has also spoken on Entrepreneurship at 20 venues across Australia.

Petroff’s first venture, ADS Environmental, has generated over a billion dollars of revenue in environmental monitoring since its founding. His second venture, Time Domain, is the global market leader in Ultra Wideband wireless – a market project by many to be a billion-dollar a year by 2010. As a global ICT entrepreneur, Petroff has also been interviewed by the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, Business Week, the Economist, and many other publications.”
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Roslyn Hughes, BA, FAICD
Chief Executive Officer, Epicorp


Throughout her career, Roslyn Hughes has been involved in leading edge technology, policy development in large organizations, creating and growing technology start-up businesses, technology training, and funds management.

Roslyn was appointed Chief Executive of Epicorp Limited and the Epicorp Seed Funds in January 2001. During her 25 years in the IT industry she has led major projects in technology areas. In her previous role as Senior Director, Office of IT and Multimedia with the ACT Government she provided leadership for the continuous improvement in the provision of IT infrastructure, large business applications and the implementation of electronic service delivery.

Roslyn is sought after as a contributor to technology leadership forums and is a member of a range of business, government and institutional boards and committees. She is Chairman and Director of eight private companies operating both nationally and internationally.

Her skills and unique management approach have enabled her to develop and grow a number of successful start-up companies and take them to exit. She has held past positions as Managing Director, ImageWord, Executive Director, Advanced Education Software and Managing Director, Integrated Office Services.

Roslyn has been an active entrepreneur and investor in a range of technology start-up companies. She has extensive experience in assessing proposals for investment and raising funds from individuals, business angel groups, venture capitalists and partner companies.
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Dr David Skellern
Chief Executive Officer, NICTA


Dr Skellern is one of Australia’s most successful ICT entrepreneurs, sporting a strong background in research, education, collaboration, and commercialisation. Dr Skellern became interim CEO of NICTA in May 2005 and in February 2006 confirmed a further 3-year appointment as the Chief Executive Officer.

Dr Skellern began his career in 1974 at the University of Sydney where he spent around a decade designing, building and commissioning instrumentation and extensions for the Fleurs Synthesis Radiotelescope, one of Australia’s pioneering giant radiotelescopes. From 1983 to 1989 he held various academic appointments as a staff member of Sydney University's Electrical Engineering department.

In 1989 Dr Skellern took up the Chair of Electronics at Macquarie University. Dr Skellern has also spent significant time working in industry as a visiting researcher, including over two years at Hewlett Packard Laboratories.

In 1997 he co-founded the Radiata group of companies in Australia and the USA, established to commercialise the results of the WLAN research project that he led at Macquarie University in collaboration with CSIRO. Over the next three years he played an integral role in building a successful company with a team of 65 staff. In September 2000 Radiata demonstrated the world’s first chip-set implementation of the 54 Mbit/s IEEE 802.11a High-Speed WLAN standard.

Radiata was acquired by Cisco Systems, Inc. in 2001 for $A565m, at which time Dr Skellern joined Cisco and subsequently moved to the United States as Technology Director of the Wireless Networking Business Unit.

Dr David Skellern was appointed to the NICTA board in 2003.

Dr Skellern received a BSc (Computer Science and Mathematics) in 1972, a BE (Electrical Engineering) in 1974, and a PhD in 1985, from the University of Sydney.
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Dr Greg Simpson
Deputy Chief of CSIRO Molecular and Health Technologies,
CSIRO Secure Australia


Dr Greg Simpson has interests and experience in research management and technology transfer. He has worked in some of the world's largest companies and some small Australian manufacturing concerns.

Dr Simpson is the Deputy Chief of the CSIRO Division of Molecular and Health Technologies and the Director of CSIRO Secure Australia.

Secure Australia is a CSIRO program promoting science, engineering and technology solutions to enhance safety and security.

Dr Simpson graduated from the University of Sydney with a BSc (Hons) in 1975 and a PhD in 1979, majoring in organic chemistry. He undertook postdoctoral studies at Imperial College, London, up until 1982 when he was appointed a Visiting Lecturer at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand.

In 1983 Dr Simpson joined the CSIRO Division of Applied Organic Chemistry as a Research Scientist. He has been Project Leader and Program Manager of a number of research programs, particularly in the areas of:
  • crop protection chemicals
  • pharmaceuticals
  • chemical processing.
Dr Simpson has interests and experience in research management and technology transfer. He has worked in some of the world's largest companies and some small Australian manufacturing concerns.

Dr Simpson is the author or co-author of over 80 refereed publications and internal reports on areas of synthetic and process organic chemistry and related areas.

From 1992 to 1994 Dr Simpson undertook part-time study at the Australian Graduate School of Management, University of NSW, leading to award of an Executive Masters of Business Administration in 1994.

In 1996 Dr Simpson accepted the position as Business Manager of the Division of Chemicals and Polymers.

Dr Simpson’s outside responsibilities include:
  • membership of the Board of the Cooperative Research Centre for Polymers
  • Chairman of Advanced Polymerik Pty Ltd
  • President of the Royal Australian Chemical Institute.
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Lindsay Adler
General Manager, Business Development and Commercialisation, CSIRO Plant Industry


Lindsay has extensive experience in CSIRO and has more than 20 years experience in the Division of Plant Industry. Approximately 7 years ago he moved into the Business and Commercial area and has managed the Divisions Business and Commercial activities since 2002. This includes a team of a four Business Managers, two Lawyers and a Patent Manager. Lindsay also works closely with Research Scientists. He has a depth of experience in the Agribusiness sector, with achievements which include the establishment of alliances in Biotechnology with major international companies. He has established spin off companies for CSIRO and occupied the positions of Company Secretary and Executive Manager for some of these companies.

He had a prominent role in the establishment of significant revenue streams that have been created through licencing and the Cotton Breeding Program. This is a notable success with adoption of CSIRO varieties by the industry at approximately 90% and considerable success in the international market. Lindsay also had a role in developing a culture of creating and managing Intellectual Property in CSIRO Plant Industry and pioneering work on the application of End Point Royalties in cereal crops as well as creating opportunities to share in the added value of novel products.
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Eric Ciliberti
Partner, Pelorus Enterprise, Washington
Eric Ciliberti's Presentation (2.5MB)


Prior to joining Pelorus Enterprises, Mr. Ciliberti served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Intergovernmental Affairs at the Department of Energy where he was the Department’s primary liaison to all elected officials including governors, mayors, county officials, and tribal leaders.

Mr. Ciliberti served for several months in Baghdad, Iraq as a security policy advisor with the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA). In Iraq, he was assigned to work with the Ministry of Interior where he worked closely with Iraqis and Coalition personnel on border security policies, and led strategic planning initiatives within the Ministry.

Eric also served in The White House for several years working for President George W. Bush in the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs. As an Associate Director, Mr. Ciliberti served as the President’s primary liaison to county elected officials and their respective organizations at the national and state levels. In addition, Mr. Ciliberti led roundtable discussions with elected officials at numerous venues around the country and introduced a monthly newsletter to inform thousands of elected officials on issues related to Administration priorities such as homeland security, international initiatives, and economic security.

Prior to his service to the President, Mr. Ciliberti has also worked in the non-profit arena for the National Association of Counties (NACo). At NACo, Mr. Ciliberti developed and built the grassroots capacity of the organization into an innovative network of thousands of county officials. He was also responsible for representing the interests of county governments on Capitol Hill, with federal agencies and with the Administration.

Mr. Ciliberti holds Masters degrees in Public Administration from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and in International Relations from the London School of Economics. He earned his Bachelors degree from the University of Maryland at College Park where he majored in government and politics. Mr. Ciliberti currently serves as a Lieutenant Junior Grade (LTJG) in the United States Navy Reserves.
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Greg Foliente
Senior Principal Research Scientist and Science Capability & Stream Leader in High Performance Buildings & Infrastructure, CSIRO


Dr Greg Foliente is Senior Principal Research Scientist and Science Capability & Stream Leader in High Performance Buildings & Infrastructure at CSIRO in Melbourne, Australia. He is considered one of the world’s leading experts in the performance approach in Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC), serving as the coordinator of an international Working Commission (CIB W60) on this topic, and the Program Director of the Performance Based Building (PeBBu) networks in Australia and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) countries.

Greg is currently conference Co-chair of the 2008 World Sustainable Building Conference (SB08) to be held in Melbourne in November 2008, and was the founding Secretary of the World Conference on Timber Engineering (WCTE) Coordinating Council. He and his team at CSIRO collaborate with industry and government to develop methods/models/techniques and tools to facilitate product and process innovation in the delivery and management of built facilities and infrastructure so that their whole-of-life performance improves economic capital, minimises the draw on natural capital and enhances social capital.

He has published widely (in books/monographs and more than 200 papers and reports), and has been widely recognised through international research and fellowship awards, keynote invitations in international conferences and meetings, and appointments to esteemed international scientific/technical committees and overseas research institutions. He has been interviewed or quoted by Australian media on topics related to construction innovation, sustainability, and technology trends in, and future scenarios for, the built environment industry. Greg has received many professional awards throughout his career, most recently the 2006 Wood Engineering Achievement Award, American Wood Council & Forest Products Society and the 2003 James Croes Medal (American Society of Civil Engineers) .

In a travelling exhibition around South-East Asia, organised by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, entitled Richness in Diversity: People of Australia (1998 and 1999), Greg’s profile was included among a very select group of Australians of Asian extraction who have made “outstanding contribution to Australian life”.

Greg has worked in research at the University of California at Berkeley, at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), and at the Forest Products Research and Development Institute (FPRDI), Department of Science and Technology, Laguna, Philippines.

His academic qualifications include PhD, Virginia Tech, Master of Science (Structural Engineering), Virginia Tech, Master of Science (Wood Mechanics), Virginia Tech, and Bachelor of Science (Civil Eng.), Mapua Institute of Technology, Manila, Philippines
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Alan Gregory
Theme Leader, Urban Waterscapes,
Water for a Healthy Country Flagship


Mr Alan Gregory, Theme Leader for the Water for a Healthy Country Flagship’s Urban Waterscapes research, is helping to improve the management of urban water resources.

Australia’s major east coast cities – particularly Melbourne and Sydney - consume more than a third of Australia’s drinking water (almost 3 000 million litres a day).

As Theme Leader for the Water for a Healthy Country Flagship’s Urban Waterscapes research, Mr Alan Gregory leads a team that is examining these cities as total urban systems and investigating the full impact of urban water activities, from the ocean to the outer reaches of water supply catchments.

'With most major cities close to the limits of their water supplies, we face significant challenges as population continues to grow,' said Mr Gregory. 'The added prospect of climate change is further reducing water availability. In response to this, the urban water industry is in an exciting phase of change, pursuing more sustainable ways to provide water services.'

Mr Gregory was previously the manager of water conservation and recycling for Sydney Water, where his primary focus was on demand management, water recycling and integrated water service provision.

Over five years, his small team achieved water demand reductions of 30 gigalitres a year.

Mr Gregory has 30 years’ management, technical and policy experience in:
  • water and wastewater infrastructure planning and acquisition
  • urban development
  • strategic planning.
He also has a Master of Management from the Macquarie University Graduate School of Management and is keen to bring an industry point of view to CSIRO’s water research.

'My previous work was at the forefront of implementing change to more sustainable provision of water services and I aim to bring an industry perspective into the Flagship to help with the challenges of establishing Australia’s cities as world leaders in the efficient use of water,' Mr Gregory said.

'Agencies in all the major capital cities are pursuing water strategies that include demand management, water recycling and other diversified supply initiatives, many of which are new to Australia. The successful implementation of these plans will require a range of supporting research.'

He added, 'I think CSIRO, through the Flagship, has a unique capacity to draw together researchers from different science disciplines and industry experience to tackle urban water issues with a fresh perspective.
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Hamish McCormick
Deputy CEO and Executive Director, Austrade
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Hamish McCormick is Austrade’s Deputy CEO and Executive Director, Government and Corporate Services. Prior to joining Austrade in June 2005, Hamish held the position of Head of the Asia Trade Task Force in Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade where he led the initial work for Free Trade Agreements between ASEAN, Australia and New Zealand, and between Australia and Malaysia.

Hamish held other senior roles within the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. He has also had overseas appointments with DFAT, including as Counsellor at Australia's Permanent Mission to the WTO based in Geneva where he was responsible for WTO multilateral agricultural trade negotiations.

Hamish was an advisor to the then Minister for Trade in 1995 and 1996. He is a graduate of the ANU (Science major), the London School of Economics and holds an MBA from the AGSM.
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Carl Middlehurst
General Counsel and Company Secretary, NICTA


Carl Middlehurst is the General Counsel and Company Secretary for National ICT Australia.

He was formerly Sun’s local general counsel for Australasia, Asia South and also the lawyer responsible for Sun’s distribution model in APAC.

Prior to that, Carl lived in northern California (Palo Alto) and worked for Sun in the US for almost 10 years in both legal and business roles.

At one stage, he was the manager of Sun’s international investment program targeting high-growth emerging markets.

Prior to Sun, Carl was the general counsel and patent manager for a startup pharmaceutical company in northern California, a licensing counsel for The Salk Institute in La Jolla and a solicitor at Baker & McKenzie (in Sydney and San Diego).

Carl has spoken at numerous conferences on internet/ecommerce/privacy law (particularly the international aspects of law on the internet) and the use of intranets in legal departments.

Carl was an Adjunct Professor at Santa Clara University Law School where he taught Internet and Privacy law.

Prior to becoming a lawyer Carl was a research biochemist and was published in a number academic journals.

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Dr Steve Morton
Group Executive, Sustainable Energy & Environment, CSIRO


Dr Morton joined CSIRO in 1984 at our Alice Springs laboratory, and transferred to Canberra a decade later. Prior to his appointment as Group Executive, Dr Morton was Chief of CSIRO’s Division of Sustainable Ecosystems.

After university, Dr Morton worked as a biologist for the Office of the Supervising Scientist at Jabiru in the Northern Territory.

Dr Morton received both his BSc (Hons) and his PhD in animal ecology from the University of Melbourne. He completed post-doctoral studies at the University of California, Irvine and the University of Sydney.

Dr Morton has a strong vision for the ecological future of the nation. He has a longstanding commitment to meeting the challenge of achieving sustainable use of our landscapes.

Dr Morton chaired the Prime Minister's Science Engineering and Innovation Council's working group: Sustaining our Natural Systems and Biodiversity
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Ken Preshaw
Licensing Executive, IBM


Ken Preshaw is Licensing Executive for Intellectual Property Licensing and Asset Commercialization for IBM in A/NZ. In this role, he is responsible for all activities relating to protecting and commercialising IBM’s IP with Australia and New Zealand, including
  • Promoting awareness, knowledge and understanding of IP&AC and its benefits throughout the IBM community,
  • Opportunity management for all IBM IP opportunities including identifying IP Asset licensing opportunities and possible new IP assets
  • Preparation of value propositions and facilitation of the preparation and negotiation of license agreements & IP asset deals
  • Ensuring IBM protects its IP in all deals
Prior to joining the IP&AC team, Ken was a Principal within IBM Business Consulting Services, leading a team of consultants working with clients in Applications Solutions Consulting.

Ken has more than 30 years experience in the Information Technology industry in U.S.A, Canada, Germany, U.K., and Australia. His portfolio of industry experience includes telecommunication, financial services, and transport.

Ken has a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science (with Honours) from Sydney University. He is currently a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and a committee member of NSW branch of the LES (Licensing Executives Society). He is also the club Services Director of the North Sydney Sunrise Rotary Club.
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Gordon Waddington
Head of Physiotherapy, University of Canberra


Associate Professor Gordon Waddington is head of the physiotherapy discipline at the University of Canberra and a practicing physiotherapy clinician and researcher. His research investigates the effects of injury on aspects of motor control of the lower limb. His work was the first to demonstrate that a significant reduction in the ability to discriminate fine movements occurred following injury and has resulted in the development of the first device for clinically testing movement discrimination ability in the lower limb (the AMEDA). This work has been published both nationally and internationally. In his clinical role he has been involved in the development of exercise interventions ranging from high performance athletes (Triathlon National Team Physiotherapist 1993-98) to clinical exercise prescription in the elderly in post-injury rehabilitation.

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Bill Salter
General Manager of SportsConnect Pty Ltd


Bill has extensive experience in the development and implementation of quality systems (paper-based and electronic) in both industry and government.

He has held a variety of senior management and advisory positions in industry and government including Executive Director of the Australian Meat and Livestock Council, National Compliance & Systems Manager for the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service, Advisor to Commonwealth Minister for Primary Industries and General Manager of SportsConnect Pty Ltd.

Bill has been involved in the sports industry as a rugby player, Club Development Manager and Administrator. His involvement in SportsConnect resulted from his belief in the need for improved systems to manage sport at all levels and to establish better links with funding and compliance agencies. SportsConnect is a sports business tool for modern sports industry management. It is designed to integrate sport at all levels for optimal outcomes for sport, business and government.
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Sue Thomas
Pro Vice Chancellor of the Division of Health, Design and Science, University of Canberra


Professor Sue Thomas is the Pro Vice Chancellor of the Division of Health, Design and Science at the University of Canberra. She is a non-clinical Microbiologist by training and has worked in laboratories in Australia, the UK and USA. She also has a long history of interest in teaching and learning issues in higher education. Prior to her arrival at Canberra in June 2005 Sue was an academic at Flinders University in Adelaide where she was Head of the School of Biological Sciences, an integrated department offering undergraduate and postgraduate courses in diverse areas of the life sciences.

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