Speakers

You’ll be joined at the Solutions Summit by a distinguished group of leaders. The full roster includes voices from government, industry and thought leaders from around the world. Subscribe to the summit newsletter for exclusive insights, speaker announcements and program updates.

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Cameron Adams
Cameron Adams
Co-Founder / Chief Product Officer
Canva
Jane Angel
Jane Angel
CEO
Council of Australasian University Librarians
Mike Baird AO
The Hon. Mike Baird AO
CEO
Susan McKinnon Foundation
Virginia Barbour
Professor Virginia Barbour
Editor in Chief
MJA
Sarah Bendall
Sarah Bendall
First Assistant Ombudsman
National Student Ombudsman
Katherine Bennell-Pegg
Katherine Bennell-Pegg
2026 Australian of the Year, Astronaut
Australian Space Agency
Rufus Black
Professor Rufus Black
Vice-Chancellor and President
University of Tasmania
Bran Black
Bran Black
Chief Executive
Business Council of Australia
Scott Bowman AO
Professor Scott Bowman AO
Vice-Chancellor and President
Charles Darwin University
Kathy Bowrey
Professor Kathy Bowrey
Professor, Faculty of Law and Justice
UNSW Sydney
Rebekah Brown
Professor Rebekah Brown
Interim Vice-Chancellor and President
The Australian National University
Attila Brungs
Professor Attila Brungs
Vice-Chancellor and President
UNSW Sydney
Alec Cameron
Professor Alec Cameron
Vice-Chancellor and President
RMIT University
Skye Cappuccio
Skye Cappuccio
CEO
COSBOA
Susan Carland
Dr Susan Carland
Deputy Research Director - Impact, Engagement, and Enterprise, School of Social Sciences; Chief Investigator, Campus Cohesion program
Monash University
Amit Chakma
Professor Amit Chakma
Vice-Chancellor
The University of Western Australia
Aania Cheema
Aania Cheema
Chair of the Board
Arc @ UNSW Sydney
Ian Chubb AC
Professor Ian Chubb AC
Independent expert panel member
Strategic Examination of Research and Development
Angela Colantuono
Angela Colantuono
President and Managing Director, ANZ
SAP Australia and New Zealand
Melissa Conley Tyler FAIIA
Melissa Conley Tyler FAIIA
Executive Director
Asia-Pacific Development, Diplomacy & Defence Dialogue (AP4D)
Kate Cornick
Dr Kate Cornick
CEO LaunchVic and Panel Member SERD
LaunchVic Ltd
David Crosbie
David Crosbie
CEO
Community Council for Australia
Gwilym Croucher
Associate Professor Gwilym Croucher
Deputy Director and Associate Professor in Higher Education Policy and Management
Centre for the Study of Higher Education, The University of Melbourne
Michael Crowley
Michael Crowley
Managing Director
Meat and Livestock Australia
Andrew Deeks
Professor Andrew Deeks
Vice Chancellor and President
Murdoch University
Jane Den Hollander AO
Emeritus Professor Jane Den Hollander AO
Wayne Denning
Wayne Denning
Managing Director
Carbon Creative
Richard Denniss
Dr Richard Denniss
Co-Chief Executive Officer
The Australia Institute
Adriano Di Pietro
Dr Adriano Di Pietro
CEO
AMSL Aero
Christopher Downs
Dr Christopher Downs
Director
Food and Beverage Accelerator (FaBA)
Chris Eigeland
Chris Eigeland
CEO
Go1
Mark Esposito
Dr Mark Esposito
Carolyn Evans
Professor Carolyn Evans
Vice-Chancellor and President
Griffith University
Theo Farrell
Professor Theo Farrell
Vice-Chancellor and President
La Trobe University
Ashwin Fernandes
Dr Ashwin Fernandes
Executive Director
QS
Verity Firth AM
Professor the Hon. Verity Firth AM
Vice-President Societal Impact, Equity and Engagement
UNSW Sydney
Kate Fitz-Gibbon
Professor Kate Fitz-Gibbon
Professor
Monash University
Nick Fowler
Dr Nick Fowler
Chief Academic Officer
Elsevier
Bronwyn Fox AO
Professor Bronwyn Fox AO
Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Enterprise)
UNSW Sydney
Lucy Franzmann
Ms Lucy Franzmann
Chief Financial Officer
The University of Melbourne
Sanara Galhenage
Sanara Galhenage
Inaugral President of Swinburne Student Association | Advocacy Advisor
Swinburne Student Association
Cassandra Goldie AO
Dr Cassandra Goldie AO
CEO
Australian Council of Social Service
David Gruen AO
Dr David Gruen AO
Australian Statistician
Australian Bureau of Statistics
Vanessa Guthrie AO
Dr Vanessa Guthrie AO
Chancellor
Curtin University
Julie Hare
Julie Hare
Former Education Editor
The Australian Financial Review
Tony Haymet
Professor Tony Haymet
Australia's Chief Scientist
Harlene Hayne CNZM
Professor Harlene Hayne CNZM
Vice-Chancellor
Curtin University
Sarimah Hellyer
Sarimah Hellyer
CEO
RDA Murray
Braden Hill
Professor Braden Hill
Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Student, Equity and Indigenous)
Edith Cowan University
Julian Hill MP
The Hon. Julian Hill MP
Assistant Minister for Citizenship, Customs and Muilticultural Affairs and Assistant Minister for International Education
Kevin Hogan MP
The Hon Kevin Hogan MP
Shadow Minister for Trade, Investment and Tourism
Federal Parliament
Leanne Holt
Professor Leanne Holt
Deputy Vice-Chancellor Indigenous
UNSW
Amy Hunter
Amy Hunter
Executive Director, Research Business Development and Commercialisation
Deakin University
Elanor Huntington
Professor Elanor Huntington
Deputy Chief Executive
CSIRO
Peter Hurley
Professor Peter Hurley
Director, Mitchell Institute
Victoria University
Bjorn Jarvis
Bjorn Jarvis
Assistant Secretary, Workforce Futures
Jobs and Skills Australia
Damian Jeffree
Damian Jeffree
Head of Financial Markets, Exchanges and Digital
Australian Financial Markets Association
Rae Johnston
Rae Johnston
Multi-award-winning STEM journalist and Broadcaster
Jasmina Joldić PSM
Jasmina Joldić PSM
Deputy Secretary, Higher Education, Research and International
Department of Education
Don Klinger
Professor Don Klinger
Deputy Vice Chancellor Education
Murdoch University