Speakers

Kevin Rudd is President and CEO of Asia Society and has been president of the Asia Society Policy Institute since January 2015. He served as Australia’s 26th Prime Minister from 2007 to 2010, then as Foreign Minister from 2010 to 2012, before returning as Prime Minister in 2013.

John Hattie's work is internationally acclaimed. His influential 2008 book Visible Learning: A synthesis of over 800 Meta-Analyses Relating to Achievement is believed to be the world’s largest evidence-based study into the factors which improve student learning.

Verity Firth is the Executive Director, Social Justice at the UTS Centre for Social Justice & Inclusion. As Minister for Education and Training she focussed on equity in education, and how to best address educational disadvantage in low socioeconomic communities, including rural and remote Indigenous communities.

Rui Yang is Professor and Associate Dean (Research) in the Faculty of Education at the University of Hong Kong. His research interests include comparative and cross-cultural analysis of educational issues, internationalisation and educational reforms, international relations in education, Chinese educational traditions and their modern transformation.

Zoe Ranganathan is the President of the National Union of Students, advocating for the political and social rights of young people and academic quality and freedom in higher education. Representing over 1 million students across the country, Zoe is focused on ensuring that the post-pandemic higher education sector is more accessible to students.

Martine Letts joined the Committee for Melbourne as CEO in 2016 after serving as CEO of the Australia China Business Council where she led the development of the organisation’s national strategy. Prior to this, Martine was Deputy Director of the Lowy Institute for International Policy where she spearheaded the organisation’s business and organisational development.

Shaun Ewen is Pro Vice-Chancellor (Indigenous) and Foundation Director of the Melbourne Poche Centre for Indigenous Health at The University of Melbourne, and visiting Professor of Indigenous Health and Leadership at King’s College London. He is also convenor of the Association of Commonwealth University’s Peace and Reconciliation network.

Abul Rizvi is a Special Adviser at Michelson Alexanderan. He is also an Independent Australia columnist and former Deputy Secretary of the Department of Immigration. He was awarded the Public Service Medal and the Centenary Medal for services to the development and implementation of immigration policy, including in particular the reshaping of Australia’s intake to focus on skilled migration.

Belle Lim is the National President of the Council of International Students in Australia. She is currently completing a PhD at Monash University and the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. Belle is the force behind Future Female, a conference and campaign for international women studying in Victoria. Belle was the Victorian Premier’s International Student of the Year in 2019.

Craig Robertson is the Founding CEO of the new Victorian Skills Authority. Before taking on this role in August this year, Craig was the CEO of TAFE Directors Australia, an organisation that promotes nationally and internationally the critical role that TAFEs play in tertiary education in Australia. Prior to this, Craig worked in the Victorian Government with responsibilities for the operation of vocational education and working with Victorian universities.

Naomi Dempsey is the Interim Deputy Provost (Students & Academic Services) at Victoria University. Naomi leads the dual-sector’s strategic priorities to enhance the student experience, student success and engagement and learning and teaching support. Having created the space for students and staff to work together, Naomi is focussed on innovating every element of the student lifecycle so that all students may thrive and succeed.

Andrew Harvey is Director of the Centre for Higher Education Equity and Diversity Research. Andrew has published widely in areas of higher education policy, including student equity, admissions, retention, and globalisation. He is lead editor of Student Equity in Australian Higher Education: Twenty-five years of A Fair Chance for All (Springer, 2016).

Anne Younger is General Manager, Research and Projects with the Australian Industry Group’s Centre for Education and Training. Anne’s work focusses on exploring innovative ways to meet the current and future skills and capabilities needed by industry and the community.

Calvin Smith is Associate Professor and Academic Lead for Professional Development in the Office of Medical Education, at The University of Queensland. His research focuses primarily on theorising the impact of aspects of work-integrated learning curriculum on student learning and the development of employability.

Andrew Norton is Professor in the Practice of Higher Education Policy at the Centre for Social Research and Methods at the Australian National University. Prior to joining ANU, he was Higher Education Program Director at the Grattan Institute. Andrew Norton is a leading analyst of higher education policy.

Nadine Zacharias is Director, Student Engagement at Swinburne University of Technology. Nadine has led major research projects related to access and participation in higher education by students from under-represented groups, including a multi-stakeholder study of widening participation through school-university partnerships in Queensland.

James Waghorne is a historian who works on the history of knowledge and history of universities. His work reaches across the history of university governance, university disciplines, the heritage of university campuses, and the changing influence of campus life and culture on the student experience.

Sophie Arkoudis is Associate Dean (Research) at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education and Professor in Higher Education at the Melbourne CSHE. Her research program spans English language teaching and assessment in higher education, international students, quality of teaching and learning, and internationalising the curriculum.

Tracii Ryan is a Research Fellow in higher education. Her research expertise bridges the disciplines of psychology and education. Tracii’s research focus is on technology-enabled learning, student wellbeing, sustainable teaching and learning strategies, the socioemotional aspects of learning, and self-regulated learning.

Michael Wesley is a Professor of International Relations and Deputy Vice Chancellor International at the University of Melbourne. His research focuses on Australian foreign policy, Asia Pacific security competition and geopolitics, and state-building interventions.

Chi Baik is Deputy Director of the Melbourne CSHE and an Associate Professor in higher education. Her broad research interests centre on the quality of the student experience and factors affecting the educational experiences and outcomes of students from diverse backgrounds.

Gwilym Croucher is a Senior Lecturer in the Melbourne CSHE. He has expertise in higher education and research policy drawing on his research focus on the funding, financing and history of universities.