Circular Economy Ministerial Advisory Group

Professor Thwaites is a Professorial Fellow, Monash University, Chair of the Monash Sustainable Development Institute, Chair of the Climateworks Centre and Chair of The McKinnon Institute for political leadership. John is Chair of Melbourne Water and a Director of FairTrade Australia New Zealand.

John was previously Chair of the National Sustainability Council appointed by the Australian Government, which produced the Sustainable Australia Report in 2013. He has previously been Chair of the Australian Building Codes Board, President of the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) and a director of the Australian Green Building Council.

He is a Co-Chair of the Leadership Council of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (“SDSN”) launched by the Secretary General of the United Nations to provide expert advice and support to the development and implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. He is also the Chair of the SDSN Association, which operates the SDSN network around the world.

John Thwaites was Deputy Premier of Victoria from 1999 until his retirement in 2007. During this period, he held various Ministerial portfolios including Minister of Health, Minister of Environment and was Victoria’s first Minister for Climate Change. Prior to being elected to Parliament, he was a barrister and Mayor of South Melbourne.

Dr Cathy Foley AO PSM became Australia's ninth Chief Scientist in January 2021 after an extensive career at Australia's national science agency, including as the agency's Chief Scientist. Dr Foley's scientific excellence and influential leadership have been recognised with numerous awards and fellowships, including election to the Australian Academy of Science in 2020, and an Order of Australia for service to research science and to the advancement of women in physics.

Mr Gertsakis is an Adjunct Professor at the Institute of Sustainable Futures, and a Director of the Product Stewardship Centre of Excellence.

Dr. Dominique Hes is an award-winning author, consultant, collaborator, researcher and academic working in the areas of regenerative development, placemaking, biophilia, urban greenery, sustainable development and all areas that look at using human ingenuity to address the messy, complex problems in our cities. With degrees in Botany, Engineering and Architecture, Dominique brings an interdisciplinary approach, built projects, and governance experience to all her work.  She was a founding Board member of the Living Future Institute of Australia (LFIA) serving from 2012 until 2015, she served as trustee at Trust for Nature board, and is now the Chair of the Board of Greenfleet. 

Mr Jackson is general manager for Strategic Development for Road Services at Downer, a leading provider of integrated services in Australia and New Zealand. He is also President of the Australian Council of Recycling.

Mr Klymenko has worked in fostering sustainability in Australia for over 35 years. In 1987 he co-founded Australian Ethical, Australia’s first socially responsible investment manager with now over $8b under management. He co-founded Planet Ark in 1992, and is presently a Board Member and Chief Sustainability Advisor. He is the key instigator of the new Australian Circular Economy Hub which aims to inspire the transition to Circular Economy in Australia.

Ms Kneller is the Managing Director of WRAP Asia Pacific, a not for profit focussed on the transition to a circular economy, especially for our food, clothing and plastic packaging.  She also works with Fight Food Waste, the organisation leading the delivery of Australia’s halving food waste target.

Mr Levitzke is the former Chief Executive of Zero Waste SA and Green Industries SA for over 17 years and is Chair of Circular360 based in Adelaide. He introduced the first assessment of the benefits of a circular economy to South Australia in 2017 and has developed and implemented four 5-year waste strategies.

Romilly Madew is CEO of Engineers Australia.  Previously Romilly was CEO of Infrastructure Australia (IA), before joining IA, Ms Madew was CEO of the Green Building Council of Australia for 13 years. In acknowledgment of her contribution to Australia’s sustainable building movement, she was awarded an Order of Australia in 2019. In her capacity as CEO of Engineers Australia, she sits on the STEM Champions of Change committee. Romilly is an active surf life saver.

Dr Larry Marshall is Chief Executive of CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency. Larry is a scientist, technology innovator and business leader with a wealth of experience in creating new value and impact with science. He has a PhD in Physics and has led six companies in biotechnology, telecommunications, semiconductors, and venture capital. He is a passionate supporter of Australian innovation, and the power of science and technology to drive Australia’s economic recovery and resilience to future challenges.

Lisa McLean is Managing Director and CEO of Circular Australia, an independent circular economy peak body leading the transition to a zero-carbon circular economy in Australia. Lisa has been successfully working to catalyse new markets and policy frameworks to enable the circular zero-carbon economy for the past 25 years in Australia and abroad.

Professor Quiggin is a member of the Wiradyuri nation, and has practised as a solicitor, advisor and academic on legal, compliance and policy areas of relevance to Indigenous Australians.

Mr Rawson is a leading specialist in waste, recycling and resource management. With a background in chemical engineering, Mark has been practicing in the area of waste, recycling and resource management for over 20 years. Prior to establishing waste consulting company Rawtec in 2007, he was the Regional Manager for Cleanaway for SA/NT. Mark has been National Vice President and Board Member of the Waste Management and Resource Recovery Association of Australia since 2020.

Ms Read is CEO of Chemistry Australia. Her career spans more than 30 years across the chemicals, plastics, renewable fuels, automotive and steel industries. Previously, Samantha was CEO of the Biofuels Association of Australia and an Executive Director of GM Holden Ltd. Her non-executive and external advisory roles have included universities, scientific, government, regulatory, governance, health and skills organisations.

Professor Spoehr is the Pro Vice Chancellor – Research Impact at Flinders University, and Director of the Australian Industrial Transformation Institute. He is also founding Director of the Factory of the Future at Tonsley Innovation District.