Mark Wootton

Mark Wootton (chair) is the Principal and Manager of Jigsaw Farms, a family farm enterprise north of Hamilton, Victoria, covering 14,500 acres. Jigsaw Farms is a beef and sheep farm with large tracts of biodiversity  plantings, wetlands and agroforestry. Mark holds a Diploma of Agriculture, a Graduate Diploma of Education and  a Geography Degree from Monash University. He is also a board member of the Glenelg Hopkins Catchment Management Authority.

John Connor

John Connor is a lawyer with a diverse background including as a researcher for Dr Peter Macdonald the Independent member for Manly who held the balance of power with the minority NSW Coalition government of the time, as a leader in environment organisations like the Australian Conservation Foundation, and as a co-convenor of the Make Poverty History campaign while working at World Vision.

John has worked on numerous government advisory panels, most recently for the Prime Minister’s Task Group on Energy Efficiency, and is a member of Westpac’s Customer Consultative Council, the Board of the Environment Defenders Office, the Commonwealth Government’s NGO Roundtable on Climate Change, the NSW Government’s Climate Council, and is a “Governator” with the Australian Youth Climate Coalition. John joined the Institute in March 2007.

Andrew Demetriou

Andrew Demetriou has been CEO of the Australian Football League (AFL) since 2003. He is a former teacher in business, law and politics and played in the AFL. Andrew was appointed Managing Director of the Ruthinium Group in 1989, a position he held until his appointment as CEO of the AFL Players Association in 1998. Andrew remains a director of Ruthinium Group which is one of the world’s largest manufacturers and distributors of acrylic teeth, exporting to over 70 countries worldwide.

Susan Jeanes

Susan Jeanes is the Chief Executive of the Australian Geothermal Energy Association, the national body representing the Australian geothermal energy industry.  She is a Member of the CSIRO’s Energy and Transport Sector Advisory Council.  Susan is also a Director of both the Institute of Mineral and Energy Resources and the South Australian Centre for Geothermal Energy Research at the University of Adelaide.  Susan has previously worked in the political arena, serving in the Federal Parliament as the Member for Kingston and working as an Advisor to the former Environment and Heritage Minister Robert Hill on climate change and energy policy.  She has also worked for a number of shadow ministers in various portfolio areas prior to the election of the Howard Government in 1996.  Susan also held the position of Chief Executive of the Renewable Energy Generators of Australia until October 2007.

Adam Kilgour

Adam Kilgour is Managing Director of Diplomacy Pty Limited. He is a former adviser to Victorian and Commonwealth Government Cabinet Ministers and founder of public affairs firm CPR. He has also been a Managing Director of the ASX-listed Photon Group Ltd and is Chairman of Stirling Henry Global Migration.

Clare Martin

Clare Martin  brings a wealth of experience to The Climate Institute through her work in journalism and public life. Clare was elected to the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly in 1995 and appointed Opposition Leader in 1999. She was elected the Northern Territory’s first Labor Chief Minister in 2001 and served in that capacity until 2007, retiring from Parliament in 2008 to become CEO of the Australian Council of Social Service. In August 2010, she took up appointment as a Professorial Fellow at Charles Darwin University's Northern Institute - an Institute focused on issues of Northern Australia and Southeast Asia.

Tony McMichael

Professor Tony McMichael is an environmental epidemiologist at the Australian National University (ANU) in Canberra, with a long record of research and publication. During 2001-2007 he was Director of the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health at ANU. He has, over several decades, advised the World Health Organization, the UN Environment Program and the World Bank on matters of environmental risks to health. During 1993-2007 he played a central role in the assessment of health risks due to climate change for the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change as an Australian Government-nominated scientist. He is currently assisting the World Health Organization develop a newly-mandated international program of research and risk management in relation to climate change and human health. He is supported by a five-year Australia Fellowship from the National Health and Medical Research Council.

Sam Meers

Sam Meersis managing director and a trustee of the Nelson Meers Foundation. She is currently deputy chair of Philanthropy Australia, a trustee of the Art Gallery of NSW, a director of the State Library of NSW Foundation and the Documentary Australia Foundation, and a member of the Advisory Councils of the Centre for Social Impact and of the Sydney Women’s Fund. Previously Sam practised as a specialist media lawyer, holding senior management positions within the media sector. She is a former deputy chair of the Australian Subscription Television and Radio Association and a former board member of the Belvoir St Theatre and the Power Institute for Art and Visual Culture.

Jenny Merkley

Jenny Merkley (treasurer) is an Associate Director at KPMG in the Climate Change and Sustainability group. Jenny is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia (ICAA) and previously worked in the financial services audit division and accounting advisory group at KPMG. Jenny holds a Bachelor of Business (Accounting) from UTS Sydney, and a Masters in Environmental Management (UNSW).

Graeme Pearman

Dr Graeme Pearman was elected to Fellowship of the Australian Academy of Science in 1988 and has been a member and chair of many Australian and international meteorological/global change committees. Graeme was the former head of CSIRO Division of Atmospheric Research. He was also a recipient of a United Nation’s Environment Program Global 500 Award in 1989 for his active involvement in a national awareness program on climate change and in 1999 he was awarded the Australian Medal of the Order of Australia for his services to atmospheric science and promotion of the science of climate change to the public.

 

Hugh Saddler

Dr Hugh Saddleris currently a Principal Consultant with Pitt&Sherry and the Managing Director of SustainAbility Advice Team Pty Ltd. He is also an Adjunct Professor at the Australian National University. He has a degree in science from Adelaide University and a PhD from Cambridge University. He is the author of a book on Australian energy policy, Energy in Australia, and over 70 scientific papers, monographs and articles on energy technology and environmental policy, and is recognised as one of Australia's leading experts in this field.