The Team
Deborah Lau
- With over 14 years of senior research management experience at CSIRO, Deborah has delivered impact across a diverse portfolio of projects developing materials and processes for energy and the environment. Deborah has been nationally awarded and internationally recognised for contribution to the field of cultural heritage and conservation science in Australia and has recently led the first global commercialisation of a novel polymer coating called MS3, now being used to protect the world’s most valuable paintings. She has long-standing expertise in developing hyperspectral and chemometric approaches to data analysis for an extensive range of complex material structures in order to accelerate materials discovery. She is now leading the Ending Plastic Waste research which is Australia’s catalyst for systematic change to tackle plastic pollution.
Albert Ardevol Grau
- Albert Ardevol is a computational biochemist with expertise in molecular modelling and protein engineering. He uses structural biology, computational modelling and biochemistry to rationally design and test new proteins for biotechnological applications and biomedicine. In his role in the CSIRO’s Ending Plastic Waste research, he is focused on accelerating technology to enable a circular economy for plastic packaging and textiles. By studying the plastic cycle, creating new biomaterials, and designing bioprocesses to degrade, recycle and give value to the waste, we can abate the plastic pollution hazard while developing the Australian science and manufacturing industry.
Andrea Walton
- Andrea leads research into social acceptability frameworks to enable sustainability transitions that deliver community wellbeing and regional prosperity. Andrea’s recent work includes social license in the waste and resource recovery (WRR) sector investigating social acceptance of WRR infrastructure including energy from waste facilities and advanced recycling facilities. Her group also investigates industry transitions at the regional scale to further regional prosperity in Australia’s regions, including from the energy transition. In combination, this research contributes to the responsible development of innovative approaches as Australia transitions to a circular economy.
Naomi Boxall
- Naomi is a research scientist with more than 15 years’ experience in mining, waste treatment and resource recovery from strategic urban, industrial, and problematic wastes. Currently, she is researching innovation for emerging waste streams, practical application of circular economy principles in Australia, and the impact of hazardous chemicals on safe waste reuse. Naomi’s focus in the Ending Plastic Waste resarch is leveraging standards and best practices to reduce plastic waste.
Melissa Skidmore
- Melissa is a senior research scientist with over 20 years research experience. Melissa combines her expertise in polymer chemistry, synthetic chemistry, computational chemistry, polymer analysis and characterisation to redesign, reuse and recycle plastics. As work package lead for Waste Innovation Melissa leads research into new polymer development- “recyclable-by-design”, recycling pathways for problem plastics and works across the Ending Plastic Waste team to promote circular economy principles and turn plastic waste into a resource. Melissa co-authored CSIRO “The recycled plastics market: global analysis and trends” report.
Denise Hardesty
- A senior principal research scientist in the Environment Business Unit. Denise has been leading a portfolio of plastics related work for more than 14 years. As the Information for Decision Making lead, she brings a depth of knowledge and experience on data collection, analysis and interpretation for impact. For the last decade plus Denise has been working with local, state, and federal government leaders to identify solutions to reduce waste leakage to the environment. She has worked closely alongside government and industry bodies around the world including the Australian Packaging Covenant, the Convention on Biological Diversity and the United Nations.
Angus Barnes
- Angus has worked in Business Development (BD) with CSIRO since 2017, mainly within the former Oceans & Atmosphere BU (now Environment) and specifically with the Climate Science Centre. Angus was the BD lead for the Navigating Climate Change team which was established in 2019, and worked across BU’s on climate-related opportunities. Before joining CSIRO, Angus worked in international development for over 20 years including with AusAID, the former Federal Government aid agency, and in BD roles with an engineering firm and a not-for-profit. Through this work he travelled extensively through Asia & the Pacific and lived in the Philippines and PNG.
Gavin Walker
- Gavin is an experimental scientist with over 30 years experience in information systems, helping data be effective in solving real world problems. He has worked in infrastructure planning, hydrological data sharing, transport simulation, sensor systems, virtual education, government data sharing, market design, and more recently waste. Gavin is examining the managed waste system, looking for new information flows and analytics, for consumers and businesses, with confidentiality. Information can help secure recycled material, from different sources, at low risk of poor quality and disruption, establish product stock requirements, recycled content, durability and recyclability and help consumers identify the condition and substance of products to choose the highest value disposal pathway at the least socio-economic cost.
Natalie Kikken
- Natalie Kikken has over 15 years’ experience working in communications across the government, industry and not for profit sectors. She has expertise in the development and delivery of communications campaigns, storytelling and writing, media and issues management, content and digital assets including video and social media, stakeholder engagement, collateral, training and employee engagement.
Carina Beyer
- Carina is an experienced administrative professional with a background in publishing and communications, stakeholder relations and operational support. Carina worked as a publishing assistant and then publishing coordinator at Hawker Brownlow Education for 4.5 years before joining CSIRO as the Administrative Officer for the Ending Plastic Waste team.
Natasha Porter
- Natasha Porter is a Social Scientist and the CSIRO Ending Plastic Waste research program manager. Natasha has extensive research experience across various science domains, including water research, energy, circular economy, sustainable land use, climate change, biodiversity and ecology. Natasha has managed projects of multiple scales, from regional-scale to large international collaborative projects. Natasha’s research has focused on developing social theory, integrating it with multidisciplinary projects and with expertise covering the design and implementation of community-based experimental research, quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis and project management.