Chief Environmental Scientist at EPA Victoria

Professor Mark Patrick Taylor, Victoria’s Chief Environmental Scientist at EPA Victoria and former Professor of Environmental Science and Human Health at Macquarie University, is a renowned expert in environmental contamination and its risks to human health. His global research spans aerosols, dust, sediments, soil, and water, with a special emphasis on urban environments, mining, and smelting emissions. Prof. Taylor's work includes groundbreaking studies on atmospheric emissions from wildfires, microplastics, and their implications for human health, as well as community engagement in environmental health science. A top 2% global scientist, Prof. Taylor is also a prominent science communicator, widely recognized for his engaging articles in The Conversation, read by over 3.6 million people worldwide.

Talk title

Regulation perspectives of microplastics pollution in Australian waters

AIMS@JCU Research Director, Australian Institute of Marine Science

Dr Motti is the manager of the Biomolecular Analysis Facility at AIMS and has recently been appointed as the research director of the AIMS@JCU, a strategic alliance between AIMS and JCU that facilitates and fosters world class tropical marine research. Dr Motti is currently the principal investigator of AIMS high-profile project on the development of methodologies for the characterisation and quantification of microplastics in Australian waters and marine wildlife.

Talk title

Monitoring microplastics in Australia’s marine estate: the AIMS experience

Professor of Environmental Pollution and Microplastics Research Group Leader,
University of Portsmouth

Prof Couceiro is an expert in pollution. The purpose of her research is to define the sources and fates of pollutants in the environment and develop interventions to prevent or mitigate their impact. She works in collaboration with industry partners (including THA Aquatic, WPL and Southern Water) to work out how to remove pollution from the environment using interventions and new technologies. Prof Couceiro leads the University's Microplastics Research Group which aims to establish the impacts of microplastics on human health and the environment through rigorous scientific research. She is a Senior Editor for the journal Cambridge Prisms: Plastics.

Senior research fellow ,
Global centre for environmental remediation,
University of Newcastle

Dr. Fang's main research interests lie in environmental science and analytical chemistry, including micro-and nanoplastics, PFAS, and bushfire impacts, among others. Dr Fang has developed hyper spectrum and imaging algorithms to help detect the occurrence micro- and nanoplastics in our daily lives.

Talk title

Micro- and nanoplastics from daily life

Advance Queensland Research Fellow, Australian Rivers Institute (ARI),
Griffith University

Dr Shima Ziajahromi is an Advance Queensland Research Fellow at ARI, Griffith University, where she completed her PhD on microplastics in wastewater treatment plants and their toxic effects on aquatic organisms. Her research interests include understanding how wastewater-derived microplastics negatively impact aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, with a particular emphasis on developing novel approaches for the identification and quantification of micro and nanoplastics in environmental samples. Her current project focuses on the abundance, fate, and impact of microplastics on agricultural land and soil biota.

Talk title

Plastic Planet: how microplastics are polluting our ecosystems

Project director Australian Microplastic Assessment Project (AUSMAP)

Dr Blewitt is a Marine Environmental Scientist with over 35 years experience in research, education, and conservation. She is a passionate scientist, involved in research as well as extensive community service activities, public speaking and implementing marine education programs, particularly about the impact of microplastics in the aquatic environment. Currently, Dr Blewitt is the Program Director of AUSMAP – the Australian Microplastic Assessment Project - a nationwide citizen science program that quantifies microplastics on Australian shorelines, raising awareness, while assisting in management and long-term source reduction strategies.

Ecolitic, Director and Principal Consultant

Shaun is an Honours qualified Civil and Environmental Engineer with over 25 years of experience working in the Defence, Mining, Transportation and Construction domains. Shaun also has a Masters in Business and Technology and Certificates in Project Management and Systems Engineering. Shaun’s recently commenced a Doctorate of Philosophy with the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) School of Law. He is the Founder and Director of Ecolitic, an advisory firm specializing in Transition matters around ESG, Circular Economy, and Climate Change Adaptation, where he’s also regularly invited to deliver and chair conference panels on such topics. In addition to his consulting work, he is also currently the Country Director-Australia for the International Standards Organisation Environmental Management Systems Technical Committee; this encompasses standards development in areas including Microplastics, Circular Economy, and ESG. Shaun is also a member of the Engineers Australia Sustainable Engineering Society Committee.

Oceanography sub-program leader at the South Australian Research and Development Institute

Mark is an oceanographer with the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI) in Adelaide. Mark leads the SARDI Oceanography sub-program and the Integrated Marine Observing system (IMOS) Southern Australian Moorings sub-facility. He oversees a team of oceanographers, ocean modelers, and technicians that collaborate across state government agencies, universities, and industry to deliver integrated scientific outcomes that support the sustainable use, development, and optimisation of South Australia’s marine resources and blue economy. Mark’s teams rely on seafloor mapping data to develop ocean models which are used to provide a better understanding of the marine environment and its circulation.

Manager Environmental and Biological Sciences at SA Water

Dr. Alex Keegan manages the Environmental and Biological Science Team and facilitates the delivery of research and scientific investigations to support SA Water’s strategic goals and initiatives. With 24 years’ experience, she is actively involved in research projects and consultancies for direct application to wastewater, recycled water and biosolids for management of pathogens, nutrients, chemical constituents and disinfection. During COVID, Alex lead the SA Water team delivering the COVID surveillance in wastewater program for SA Health. With her team, they deliver industry leading edge research and innovation practices to support environment business plans, risk mitigtion, environmental impact assessments, environmental improvement plans and the delivery of reliable and affordable water and wastewater services.