Professor Kate Auty - Chair

Kate is a Professorial Fellow at the University of Melbourne, a Director of the Urban Climate Change Research Network’s Oceania Hub. She was recently appointed Co-Chair of the Open Government Forum (Civil Society), Open Government Partnership.  

She has extensive experience with environmental and climate issues. This includes as the Commissioner for Sustainability and the Environment in the Australian Capital Territory. Kate is a member of the Victorian Bar. She has worked extensively as a magistrate and coroner. Kate continues to volunteer with community environmental and sustainability groups in north-east Victoria. 

Greg Tweedly - Deputy Chair

Greg has more than 30 years’ experience in regulation, governance, risk, audit and finance. As Chief Executive Officer of WorkSafe Victoria for nearly 10 years, Greg was responsible for the regulation of workplace safety in Victoria. Greg is currently a non-executive director of Melbourne Health and Chair of the Personal Injury Education Foundation.

Kay Rundle

Kay is the director and an executive coach at Kay Rundle and Associates. 

She is an experienced chief executive officer with over 15 years’ experience leading three local government organisations (Maribyrnong, Greater Geelong, and Port Phillip).

Ms Rundle holds a Bachelor of Social Work from the Phillip Institute of Technology, Graduate Diploma in Computing from Monash University, Master of Business from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology and Executive Coaching Level I, II and III from the Institute of Executive Coaching and Leadership. She is also a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and won a Local Government Executive Leadership Award in 2006.

Dr Catherine Lopes

Catherine boasts a track record as a Chief Data and Analytics Officer, strategist, researcher, and thought leader, with over 25 years of experience in data, analytics, AI, and technology. Her international career spans diverse sectors, ranging from financial services, utilities, to media. Currently, her focus lies in enhancing business performance through the development of data and analytics strategies, the utilisation of a wide range of analytics and AI applications, and the establishment of a well-governed enterprise data management and governance framework.

Catherine was the first Chief Data and Analytics Officer at Merkle ANZ, the Head of Enterprise Data and Analytics at AGL Energy, and the Head of Data Strategy and Analytics at ME Bank, ANZ Bank. Catherine also co-founded a startup Sleigh Group which is a creative resource company. She is the founder of Ada's Tribe, a community that empowers women in analytics, data science, and AI, and serves on multiple university advisory boards at ANU and Monash.

In 2005, Catherine was awarded a doctoral degree in data mining, machine learning, and computer science from Monash University, where she won the Mollie Holman Doctoral Medal for her PhD thesis, 'Machine Learning and Time Series Forecasting.'

Margaret Donnan AM

Margaret has extensive national and international experience of working with government, commercial and not for profit boards. She is currently chair of the Audit and Risk Committee of Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency and is an independent director and chair of the Risk and Audit Committee of Battery Stewardship Council.

With a depth and breadth of experience advising ministers, boards and CEOs across government and business, Margaret’s board roles include former chair of IChemE Safety Centre global advisory board, deputy chair of Game Management Authority, and non-executive director on the Metropolitan Waste and Resource Recovery Group and the National Offshore Petroleum Safety Authority.

In Margaret's senior executive career, she was the CEO of Plastics and Chemical Industries Association and was the inaugural Director of Major Hazards at WorkSafe Victoria following the Longford tragedy. In 2016, Margaret was a member of an independent ministerial panel which reviewed WorkSafe Victoria’s compliance and enforcement policy and activities.

Margaret holds a Master of Science major in Chemistry from the University of Melbourne, is an associate fellow of the Institution of Chemical Engineers, is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and a member of the Australian Institute of Health and Safety.

Jonathan Halaliku

Jonathan has undergraduate qualifications in Economics & International Trade. He holds post graduate qualifications and a Masters Degree in Environment & Planning and has extensive experience in urban and regional planning consultancy, advising and acting on behalf of the State and Local Government, the private sector and community stakeholders.  

Jonathan has a comprehensive understanding of statutory and strategic planning and regularly appears within Tribunal and Court settings to provide expert urban planning advice. In 2020 Jonathan was appointed by the Minister of Planning to Planning Panels Victoria and is called upon to preside over, assess and make recommendations on a range of state significant strategic planning and land use projects and planning scheme amendments.    

Jonathan is active and engaged in the urban planning and development industry with memberships and involvement with a range of sub-committees across peak industry bodies. He is a past Board Member and Director of the Victorian Planning and Environmental Law Association and a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors

Emeritus Prof Joan Ozanne-Smith AO

Joan is the Head of Injury Prevention Research at the Department of Forensic Medicine at Monash University.  She is a non-executive director of the Australian China Alumni Association and has previously been a member of the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT). 

Joan has qualifications in medicine, public health and sociology, a research doctorate in injury epidemiology and is a Fellow of the Australasian Faculty of Public Health Medicine. She conducts interdisciplinary research and develops epidemiological data systems in Australia and internationally. She has co-edited several World Health Organization global reports.

Sarah Thomson 

Sarah has diverse professional and personal experience and a strong commitment to ethical and values-based leadership and governance. She brings over 25 years’ experience in finance, governance and risk. In addition, she also has broad-based executive experience primarily as a Chief Financial Officer but also in strategy development, digital, customer and community engagement. 

Sarah is a Chartered Accountant, a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and has degrees in Economics and Asian Studies from the Australian National University. She has worked in diverse organisations in for-profit, for-purpose and government owned enterprises primarily in the international community development and water sectors and has spent a year working in an aboriginal corporation in Kakadu, Northern Territory. 

Sarah has completed a number of leadership courses including the Minister for Water’s Insights Executive Leadership and Williamson Community Leadership programs. She has a strong commitment to her regional home of Shepparton and has been the Chair of the Goulburn Murray Resilience Strategy for 4 years, a Board Member of the Rumbalara Football and Netball Club (a primarily aboriginal club) and a Committee Member of the Committee for Greater Shepparton (a business advocacy committee).