Speaker Biographies
Dr Cathy Foley AO PSM, Australia’s Chief Scientist, Australian Government
Dr Foley became Australia’s ninth Chief Scientist in January 2021 after a lengthy career at Australia’s national science agency, the CSIRO, where she was appointed as the agency’s Chief Scientist in August 2018.
While working at CSIRO, Dr Foley made significant contributions to the understanding of nitride semiconductors and superconducting electronics. Dr Foley and her team’s most successful application is the LANDTEM sensor system used to locate valuable deposits of minerals deep underground, such as nickel sulphide, silver and gold.
Dr Foley’s scientific excellence and influential leadership have been recognised with numerous awards and fellowships, including being elected to the Australian Academy of Science in 2020, being named an Officer in the Order of Australia in 2020 for service to research science and the advancement of women in physics, receiving the Clunies Ross Medal of the Australian Academy of Technological Science and Engineering in 2015, and receiving the Australian Institute of Physics Medal for Outstanding Service to Physics in 2016. She was elected as a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Science and Engineering in 2008.
Dr Foley’s previous roles include membership of the Prime Minister’s Science, Engineering and Innovation Council, President of the Australian Institute of Physics, President of Science and Technology Australia, Editor-in-Chief of Superconductor Science and Technology journal, and a council member for Questacon.
Dr Foley is committed to helping Australia realise the transformative potential of critical technologies and meet the climate challenge. She is an inspiration to women in STEM across the globe and focused strongly on equality and diversity in the science sector.
Anne Harris, Managing Director, Pfizer Australia & New Zealand
Anne Harris is the Managing Director for Pfizer Australia and New Zealand. She also leads the Internal Medicine Group in Developed Asia and has responsibility for bringing forward Pfizer’s pipeline of innovative medicines to patients in Australia and New Zealand. Anne is incredibly proud to lead Pfizer ANZ’s 1,600 colleagues in working alongside government and healthcare stakeholders to increase access to life changing medicines & vaccines for all Australians and New Zealanders.
Anne has more than 20 years of experience at Pfizer, leading product planning teams in Europe, Asia and Emerging Markets. Starting in the pharmaceutical industry as a medical representative, Anne brings experience in leadership and strategy across sales, marketing, HR and commercial effectiveness.
Most recently, she was Pfizer Vaccines Lead for Developed Asia, working to ensure that meningococcal and pneumococcal vaccines are available through National Immunisation Programs, including immunisation for indigenous and high-risk populations.
She is deeply passionate about diversity and has dedicated her career to building inclusive workplaces that result in inclusive, creative and thriving workforces. Anne is a steering committee member of the Pharmaceutical Association Inclusion Group in Australia.
Anne graduated from the University of Sydney with a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry and Microbiology. She also holds a Diploma of Human Resources from Monash University. She became a board member of Medicines Australia in 2020. Anne is married and is the proud mother of two daughters. She resides in Sydney, Australia.
Professor Emma Johnston AO, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) and Professor of Marine Ecology and Ecotoxicology, The University of Sydney
Professor Emma Johnston AO is a marine scientist at UNSW Sydney and a national advocate for improved environmental management and conservation.
Emma studies human impacts in the oceans including pervasive threats such as climate change, plastic pollution, and invasive species. Emma conducts her research in diverse marine environments from the Great Barrier Reef to icy Antarctica and provides management recommendations to industry and government.
In recognition of her contributions to environmental science, communications, and management, Emma has received numerous awards including the Australian Academy of Science’s Nancy Millis Medal, the Royal Society of New South Wales Clark Medal, the Eureka prize for Science Communication, and in 2018 she was made an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO).
She is immediate past President of Science & Technology Australia, a current Board Member of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority and Co-Chief Author of the Australian Government’s State of Environment Report 2021.
Emma is a high-profile science communicator and television presenter for the ongoing BBC/Foxtel series, Coast Australia and has appeared multiple times on ABC Catalyst, The Drum and Q&A.
Emma is currently Dean of Science and Professor of Marine Ecology and Ecotoxicology at UNSW Sydney.
Professor Anthony Weiss AM, McCaughey Chair in Biochemistry, Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biotechnology, The University of Sydney
Tony Weiss founded the clinical stage company Elastagen to commercialise tropoelastin, which gives tissue its elasticity and enhances the repair of scars and wounds. Benefitting from a remarkable executive and board, two rounds of venture capital funding and other support, and a series of bench-to-bedside clinical trials, Elastagen was acquired by AbbVie in one of the largest transactions completed in the Australian life science sector.
Tony is the McCaughey Chair in Biochemistry, NHMRC Leadership Fellow, and Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biotechnology, at the University of Sydney, where he leads Tissue Engineering & Regenerative Medicine in the Charles Perkins Centre. He is the first Australian to be elected as President of the major international tissue engineering society, TERMIS.
He has swept all the major national innovation awards, including the Prime Minister’s Prize for Innovation (the top national prize), Premier’s Prize for Science & Engineering Leadership in Innovation (the top State innovation prize), Australian Academy of Technology & Engineering’s peak prize: the Clunies Ross Medal, Eureka Prize for Innovation in Medical Research (Australia’s Oscars in Science), double awards from the Royal Australian Chemical Institute: the Weickhardt Medal and Applied Research Medal, and the Vice Chancellor’s Award for Excellence, Australasian Society for Biomaterials & Tissue Engineering’s Award for Research Excellence, Innovator of Influence Award, NIH Fogarty International Fellow, Fulbright Scholar, and the Order of Australia.
Tony is on 14 Editorial Boards, authored >300 publications, and is inventor on 171 awarded international patents in 22 patent families covering human tropoelastin.
He is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering, Royal Society of NSW, Royal Society of Chemistry, Royal Australian Chemical Institute, American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, US National Academy of Inventors, Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, and Biomaterials Science and Engineering.
Professor Anthony Steven Weiss AM - Prime Minister’s Prize for Innovation - YouTube
MODERATOR: Professor Philip O'Connell, Executive Director, Westmead Institute for Medical Research
Professor Philip O’Connell is Executive Director of the Westmead Institute for Medical Research.
Prior to taking up this appointment in 2020, he was Director of Transplantation, University of Sydney at Westmead Hospital.
He is Director of the Centre for Transplant and Renal Research and a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences.
His research interests include the use of genomics for the development of biomarkers of renal allograft dysfunction and biomarker enrichment for clinical trials in renal transplantation.
He is the founding Director of the Australian Clinical Islet Transplant Consortium, a past President of The Transplantation Society and a member of the WHO Task Force on Donation and Transplantation.
Professor O’Connell’s research is funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia.
|