Newsletter — Edition 1

The Executive Committee held its first meeting back in June, and got stuck into a bit of everything, including:

• 🤝 Welcoming new industry partners into the fold
• 🎓 Kicking off our first round of student recruitment
• 🧭 Working out how supervision works across four universities
• ⚖️ Setting up collaborative working relationships between the Advisory Board and Executive Committee
• ⏱️ Ticking through the training program hour by hour
• 💰 Discussing mechanisms for dealing with budget shortfalls and surpluses

We're lucky to have guidance from a group of remarkable professionals spanning industry, academia, and peak bodies. Their perspective will be instrumental in driving the Centre towards its goals.

Ms Samantha Read

Chair, Independent

Samantha chairs our Advisory Board, bringing 30+ years' experience as a director, CEO, and engineer across chemicals, plastics, renewable fuels, and automotive. She previously led Chemistry Australia and the Biofuels Association of Australia.

Dr Jennifer Semple

Accord

Jennifer manages sustainability and education programs at Accord, the peak body for Australia's personal care and cosmetics industry. She holds a PhD in organic chemistry and knows her way around both the lab bench and the regulatory world.

Dr Anita Hill

CSIRO

Anita is an Honorary Fellow at CSIRO Manufacturing and former Executive Director of CSIRO. A Fellow of both the Australian Academy of Science and ATSE, her background is in mechanical engineering and materials science.

Mr Peter Bury

Chemistry Australia

Peter is Director of Circular Economy and Future Industries at Chemistry Australia, the peak body for the nation's $48 billion chemicals sector. With 37 years' experience across manufacturing, R&D, and recycling, he also sits on the Green Chemical Futures Board.

Prof Frances Separovic AO

University of Melbourne

Frances is Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Chemistry at the University of Melbourne, where her work on solid-state NMR and biophysical chemistry has reshaped how we understand cell membranes.

We're finalising our Strategic Plans and KPIs, due by mid-December, and continuing to recruit our first cohort of postgraduate students. Watch this space — and the next edition — for updates on both.