Monash Climate Action Forum 2026

The Monash Climate Action Forum brings together researchers and experts to tackle urgent regional challenges and accelerate climate solutions across Australia and the Asia-Pacific.

Held days ahead of COP31 – where Australia will lead global climate negotiations – the Forum features opening remarks from Monash University Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Sharon Pickering.

The event will explore innovative ideas, foster cross-disciplinary partnerships, and highlight Monash’s world-class sustainability expertise in addressing one of humanity's greatest challenges.

Over the course of the day, the Forum will create opportunities to:

Translate high-impact research into scalable, real-world action and policy reform
Bridge policy, academia, and capital by bringing together cross-sector leaders to accelerate climate investment and deployment.
Elevate First Nations leadership and regional equity to ensure transitions and resilience prioritise community consent across Australia and the Indo-Pacific.
Foster community trust and social fairness by addressing the human, consumer, and health impacts of rapidly changing systems and environmental conditions.
Build a stronger, more connected climate ecosystem within Monash and across external networks to drive long-term, collaborative action and impact

The Forum will mark the launch of the Monash Climate Change and Sustainability Network - a new university-wide platform designed to connect our community, make Monash expertise more visible and accessible, and support collaboration and practical action beyond the event.

Featured speakers

Professor Sharon Pickering

The program will feature opening remarks from Monash University Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Sharon Pickering.

Craig Reucassel

Host of the ABC’s War on Waste, will be the Forum’s Master of Ceremonies.

Sharan Burrow AC

Former General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation, will be the Keynote speaker.

Confirmed speakers include:

Permanent Secretary Manasa Lesuma

Ministry of Housing, Fiji

Ruel Yamuna

Special Envoy for Climate Change, Papua New Guinea, and COP31 Pacific Envoy

Henry Gonzalez

Senior Advisor Monash PACT, Former Chief Investment Officer at the Green Climate Fund

Eytan Lenko

Chair/Former CEO, Boundless Earth, Co-Chair Australian Environmental Grantmakers Network

Lynne Gallagher

Board Member, Australian Energy Regulator; Former CEO, Energy Consumers Australia

Fiona McLeay

Chair, Australian Communities Foundation

Heinz Schandl

CSIRO Circular Economy Lead

Dr Hayley Teasdale

Head, Science Advice and Policy, Australian Academy of Science

Tanya Ha

Award-winning science journalist, broadcaster, & sustainable living advocate

Professor Michael Bode

Faculty of Mathematics, Queensland University of Technology

Jason Mingo

Manager Strategy and Sustainability Water Services Association of Australia

Event details

Date: Wednesday 4 November 2026
Venue: Monash College, 750 Collins Street, Docklands
Arrival and registration: From 8.00 am; light refreshments available

View Monash College on Google Maps

Places are limited. Register to join colleagues from across Monash and help shape the connections, partnerships and actions that will continue beyond the Forum. For event enquiries, contact Monash Climate Change and Sustainability Network: mccs@monash.edu.

Forum Program

Please note agenda is subject to change.

Marbee Williams
Director of Balert Yirramboi (strong futures)
Moderator
Craig Reucassel
Host of the ABC’s War on Waste, will be the Forum’s Master of Ceremonies.
Professor Sharon Pickering
Vice-Chancellor and President

Featuring
Sharan Burrow AC
Former General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation; Chair - Climateworks Centre
Accelerating Delivery in a Fractured World: What to Expect from COP31
Anchored in the implementation and reform agenda set at COP30 in Belém, COP31 faces the challenge of accelerating delivery and scaling climate finance in an increasingly fractured political landscape. Bringing together regional diplomatic voices, research expertise, and global climate finance leadership, this session will discuss turning high-level pledges into practical, high-impact implementation.
Moderator
Sharan Burrow AC
Former General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation; Chair - Climateworks Centre
Featuring
Henry Gonzalez
Senior Advisor, Monash PACT; Formerly Chief Investment Officer, Green Climate Fund
Ruel Yamuna
Special Envoy for Climate and Environment, Papua New Guinea; COP31 Pacific Envoy for Access to Climate Finance
Anna Skarbek
CEO Climateworks Centre
Jess Walters
Indigenous Research Coordinator - Office of DVCI and Member of the First Nations Clean Energy and Climate Change Advisory Committee to Minister Chris Bowen
The forces shaping the future of people and nature
Professor Steven Chown
Vice-Chancellor's Distinguished Professor, School of Biological Sciences; Director, Securing Antarctica's Environmental Future (SAEF)

AI and Environmental Futures: Panel and Audience Q&A
This session explores the costs and benefits of deploying generative AI to improve environmental forecasting and projections to shape environmental policy and protection. Drawing on a diverse panel of experts, the session will address the development of AI forecasts and the possibility of AI projections, the ways in which AI has transformed the pathway from biodiversity data to biodiversity protection, the costs-benefit ratio of data centres for environmental policy and projection, the barriers to development of a sovereign AI capability to ensure a sustainable, ambitious future made in Australia.
Moderator
Professor Katya Pas
Associate Dean Research & Professor, School of Chemistry, FoScience
Featuring
Professor Michael Bode
Faculty of Mathematics, Queensland University of Technology
Dr Hayley Teasdale
Head, Science Advice and Policy, Australian Academy of Science
Mr Jason Mingo
Manager, Strategy and Sustainability Water Services Association of Australia
Vice Chancellor's Distinguished Professor Geoff Webb
Monash University, Department of Data Science & AI
Dr Felicity McCormack
Monash University 70th Anniversary Fellow, Monash University, School of Earth, Atmosphere & Environment
Mid-morning break for tea, coffee, and refreshments.
Built to Last: Why so many climate pilots fail and how foundational science could be the secret to scale
This session explores universities’ role as risk-mitigation engines: bringing foundational science together with government, industry and community partnerships to test solutions, understand ecological, social and environmental risks, and build confidence for investment and policy adoption. It asks – what does it take to turn foundational research into impact at scale? From reducing mosquito-borne disease through the World Mosquito Program, to improving water, sanitation and settlement health through Revitalising Informal Settlements and their Environments (RISE), Monash University research lays the groundwork for lasting impact.
Moderator
Tanya Ha
Award-winning science journalist, broadcaster, & sustainable living advocate
Featuring
Permanent Secretary Manasa Lesuma
Ministry of Housing, Fiji
Mr Cam Watson
Executive Director (Global Access), World Mosquito Program
Professor Tony Wong FTSE
Professor of Sustainable Development
Sarah Ransom
General Manager, Australian Water Partnership

The Future of Health and Climate: Emerging Research to Address the Health Impacts of Heat in a Hotter, Riskier World
Showcases the role of universities in helping governments to anticipate and respond to emerging health risks of global warming, connecting from major programmatic research to local research efforts showcased by today's early- to mid-career researchers that are tomorrow's leaders.
Moderator
Tanya Ha
Award-winning science journalist, broadcaster, & sustainable living advocate
Featuring
Associate Professor Henry Surendra
Coordinator for the Master of Public Health Program at Monash University, Indonesia
Dr Hannah Kirk
Senior Lecturer, Developmental Psychology, Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health
Dr Michael Loftus
Senior Research Fellow, Health and Climate Initiative, SPHPM, and Consultant Physician in the Department of Infectious Diseases, Alfred Hospital
Dr Lauren Pearson
Research Fellow and Equity Lead, Health Active Cities, SPHPM
Dr Miranda Cumpston
Guidelines Program Manager, Australian Living Evidence Consortium (ALEC), SPHPM
Professor Tim Dunne
Provost and Senior Vice-President, Monash University
Lunch

Lunchtime Session 1 - Inheriting the Future: Youth Climate Leaders in Action
This session showcases youth-led climate action and solutions that respond to complex systemic climate challenges. Bringing together examples from technology, advocacy, community resilience and social innovation, the session explores how young leaders are responding to climate challenges with creativity,
urgency and hope. It will demonstrate how youth-led initiatives can move beyond awareness-raising towards practical implementation, collective action and long-term systems change.
Moderator
Associate Professor Susie Ho
Senior Academic Director / Director, Monash Innovation Guarantee, Faculty of Science
Featuring
Samuel Marcus
PhD Candidate, ARC Centre of Excellence for 21st Century Weather, Faculty of Science -- Combines climate science with frontline emergency services experience to strengthen disaster preparedness and community resilience.
Julia Bekin
Bachelor of Architectural Design Student, MADA -- Founder of ARANDU, advancing climate justice through sustainable architecture, youth advocacy and climate-resilient schools in Brazil.
Sumit Kumar
PhD Candidate, Sustainability Transitions Lab, Monash Business School -- Chevening Scholar exploring how artificial intelligence can accelerate energy transitions, with experience in international AI research collaboration.
Brigitta Gunawan
Bachelor of Science (Honours) Graduate, Faculty of Science. Forbes 30 Under 30 honouree and Samsung–UNDP Generation17 Young Leader, championing ocean conservation through 30x30 Indonesia and Diverseas.
Adriel Appathurai
Medical Student, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences -- UNICEF Australia Young Ambassador and national climate-health advocate promoting resilient healthcare and youth participation in policymaking.
Webri Veliana
Master of Environment and Sustainability Student, Faculty of Science -- Founder of Greenwave NGO, transforming waste management in Indonesia through circular economy innovation and community empowerment.
Lunchtime Session 2 - We know the science. We have the solutions. So why is combating climate change so bloody hard? Why climate solutions need more than good science and policy
What if people could hear exactly the same climate solution and come away with completely different views? This interactive session explores the power of communication to shape how climate and energy solutions are understood, debated and received, and what this means for public trust, engagement and
social licence.
Moderator
Tanya Ha
Award-winning science journalist, broadcaster, & sustainable living advocate
Featuring
Monash Climate Communication Hub (MCCH)
Impact-driven international research for climate solutions
Dr Lucy Richardson
Senior Lecturer and Deputy Director of the Monash Climate Communication Hub
Professor Alan Reid
Professor in the Faculty of Education, Monash University
Amelia Pearson
Operations Manager at the Monash Climate Change Communication Research Hub
Session 3 - The Policy Pitch: Legal and Regulatory Reforms for Australia's Climate Future
Accelerating Australia’s climate response requires translating net zero targets into high-impact, enforceable legal and policy frameworks. Designed as an interactive pitch session, this event brings together leading researchers from Monash Law, the Monash Business School, and Climateworks Centre to present reform proposals spanning industrial decarbonisation, climate risk disclosure, market mechanisms, and climate justice. Each speaker will pitch a targeted policy intervention and the audience will be invited to comment on ambition, feasibility, and impact of proposed reforms.
Moderator
Anitra Cowan Rechner
Head of Reviews, Climate Change Authority
Associate Professor Anita Foerster
Department of Business Law and Taxation, Monash Business School; Co-director, Sustainability Transitions Lab
Featuring

Finishing the job on climate risk reporting – a net zero transition planning obligation
Dr Ella Vines
FoBusEco, Green Lab
Dr Rebekkah Markey-Towler
Research Fellow, FoBusEco, Green Lab, Monash University

Regulating the next tech fix – carbon management technologies
Dr Andrea Furger
Research Fellow, FoLaw, Monash University

Climate justice in climate policy
Associate Professor Cristy Clark
FoLaw, Climate Justice Lab, Monash University
Associate Professor Brad Jessup
FoLaw, Climate Justice Lab, Monash University

Making markets work for nature and climate
Dr Sarah Brugler
Lecturer, FoLaw, Monash University

Decarbonising industrial precincts
Katherine Quinn
Manager, Impact/Australian Policy, Climateworks Centre

Delivering on climate and nature targets through integrated planning
Liam Walsh
System Lead, Food, Land & Oceans, Climateworks Centre
Lunchtime Session 4 - Climate Mobility and Human Security in the Indo-Pacific: How is climate change reshaping where people can live, move and thrive, and what does this mean for security in Australia and the Indo-Pacific?
This session will explore the intersection of climate change, migration and conflict, including the ways in which these dynamics interact and shape risks and opportunities in different contexts and for diverse communities. Members of three Monash University research hubs - Climate Action and Sustainable
Societies, Migration and Mobilities, and Global Peace and Security - will briefly introduce the importance of understanding these intersections, drawing on their research and outlining areas of future work. This will be followed by an open discussion with audience members, first exploring how climate
change, migration and conflict intersect in different contexts and the risks this can create, and then considering how these risks can be mitigated and addressed. The second part of the discussion will consider a range of approaches, including participatory, inclusive and creative approaches, and provide
an opportunity to identify potential areas for collaboration.
Moderator
Associate Professor Eleanor Gordon
Politics and International Relations, Director of the Monash Gender, Peace and Security Research Hub (Monash GPS)
Featuring
Dr Svenja Keele
Climate Action and Sustainable Societies Hub (CASS); FoArts, Monash University
Associate Professor Matteo Bonotti
Monash Migration and Mobilities Research Hub, FoArts, Monash University
Delia Paul
Monash GPS and Monash Migration and Mobilities Research Hub, FoArts, Monash University
No content
Expert Panel on Human-Centred Transitions: Building Trust, Equity, and Resilience
Accelerating climate action across Australia and the Indo-Pacific demands far more than technical infrastructure and financial capital — it requires deep public trust, social equity, and community self-determination. As rapid transition rollouts and compounding climate impacts reshape regional communities, top-down policy frameworks often struggle to match the lived realities and rights of the people they are designed to serve.

Featuring energy regulatory leader Lynne Gallagher, Indigenous disaster resilience scholar Bhiamie Williamson, climate communication researcher Azliyana Azhari, human-centred technology and social futures expert Sarah Pink, and design leader Mel Dodd, this session will examine how community engagement, inclusive design, and culturally informed approaches can shape more equitable climate transitions. Together, they will explore what it takes to build trusted essential services, resilient disaster response frameworks, and regional energy systems grounded in community consent, cultural sovereignty, and human dignity.
Moderator
Professor Mel Dodd
Dean, Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture (MADA)
Featuring
Lynne Gallagher
Board Member, Australian Energy Regulator (AER); Chair, Industry Advisory Council Member, Monash Energy Institute
Associate Professor Bhiamie Williamson
Faculty of Arts; Lead, National Indigenous Disaster Resilience (NIDR) Program; Chair, Country Needs People Ltd; Director, Australian Indigenous Governance Institute (AIGI)
Azliyana Azhari
Monash Climate Communication Hub, Monash Malaysia
Professor Sarah Pink
Director, Emerging Technologies Research Lab

Funder Spotlight on Risk, Reach, and Rigor: Catalysing High-Impact Climate Philanthropy
Flexible and early philanthropic support is essential for de-risking bold climate solutions and unlocking larger institutional and government investments. Amidst political uncertainty, this session brings together funders for an unfiltered look at what’s actually working, where philanthropy must step up next, and how bold capital can de-risk the future.
Moderator
Jimmy Buck
Vice-President (Advancement)
Featuring
Eytan Lenko
Chair (Former CEO) Boundless Earth
Fiona McLeay
Chair, Australian Communities Foundation
Lightning Solutions Showcase - Winning the War on Waste: Powering a Circular Future
Hosted by ABC War on Waste presenter Craig Reucassel, this fast-paced solutions showcase explores how we can prevent waste, keep resources in use and turn promising circular innovations into wider impact. Researchers from Monash University and CSIRO share practical examples spanning food-waste-derived packaging, bioplastics and recycling, resource-efficient homes, repair incentives and less wasteful pharmaceutical laboratories. The session closes with the policy, business and behavioural changes needed to take these solutions to scale.
Moderator
Craig Reucassel
ABC Radio Sydney: Presenter, Breakfast; ABC TV creater/host (War on Waste, Fight for Planet A, Big Weather, and The Great Food Con)
Featuring
Dr Heinz Schandl
Senior Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO — Scaling circular solutions
Dr Eddie Attenborough
Lecturer, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Monash University — Bioplastics, recycling and end-of-life materials.
Dr Lisa de Kleyn
Research Fellow, Sociology, Faculty of Arts, Monash University — Resource-efficient households
Dr Leonie van 't Hag
Senior Lecturer, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Monash University — Turning food waste into packaging
Associate Professor Martin Geissdoerfer
Associate Professor of Circular Economy Transitions and Co-Director, Sustainability Transitions Lab, Monash Business School — Waste and climate
Associate Professor Lauren May
Drug Discovery Biology, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University — Reducing waste in pharmaceutical research
Lauren Brumley
Research Fellow, BehaviourWorks Australia, Monash University — Consumer repair and incentives
Closing remarks (10 min)
Professor Steven Vaughan
Dean, Faculty of Law | Co-Chair Monash Climate Action Forum

Acknowledgements

Steering Committee

- Sandy Swanson
- Anna Saxby
- Mae Wee
- Sunny Harris
- Lyn Falkiner
- Dr Shee Yu Gang
- Kidung Asmara
- Gillian Dodgin
- Carmela Ozzimo
- Natalie Emmerson
- Cristy Clark
- Sarah Stratton
- Karin Maritz
- Lisa Douglas
- Damian Dowling
- Annette Bos
- Brendan Josey
- Enrica Longo
- Diego Ramirez
- Richard Scalzo
- Sina Khatami
- Neena Tulaskar
- A/Prof Lauren May
- Dr Leanne Hawkey
- David Sweeting
- Anita Foerster
- Martin Geissdoerfer
- Amelia Pearson
- Lucy Richardson
- Zoe Hansen
- Angela Firth
- Heather Browett
- Manika Saha
- Mehrdad Arashpour
- Asadul Islam
- Eleanor Gordon
- Claire Buckis
- Harish Sundar Raman
- Tessa Jones
- Kris Kathiravel

Name	Position
Prof Steven Vaughan (Co-Chair)	Dean, Faculty of Law
Prof Jordan Nash (Co-Chair)	Dean, Faculty of Science
Prof Mel Dodd (co-Chair)	Dean, Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture (MADA)
Professor Simon Wilkie	Dean of Monash Business School
Professor Belinda Gabbe	Head of School, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine
Teresa Finlayson	Vice-President (Strategy and Major Projects) and Chief of Staff
Professor Tristan Kennedy	Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Indigenous) and Senior Vice-President
Professor Dato’ Dr Ahmad Rafiq Tutku	Vice-President (Research and Development), Monash University Malaysia
Jimmy Buck	Vice President, Advancement
Associate Professor Susie Ho	Senior Academic Director (Rich Experiences), Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Student Experience)
Professor Yiannis Ventikos	Dean, Faculty of Engineering
Dr Matthew French	Senior Director, Research Enterprise and Impact, Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor
Professor Katya Pas	Deputy Dean (Research) and Professor of Theoretical/Computational Chemistry, School of Chemistry; Co-Director Monash Climate Change & Sustainability Network
Professor Rob Raven	Director, Sustainability Transitions Lab, Monash Business School; Co-Director Monash Climate Change & Sustainability Network

Monash Climate Action Forum 2026