International Women’s Day means many things to many people. For the Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology, we believe this is an important opportunity to both challenge the gender stereotypes and gender imbalances that still exist and also celebrate the achievements of women within our community over the past year.
Marie Boden
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Marie is a driving force for inclusion in technology, championing initiatives that open doors for the next generation of girls in computing. This year, she established and actively supports a campus chapter of the Girls Programming Network (GPN), creating a sustainable pathway for school‑aged girls to explore coding in a welcoming, hands‑on environment. She has recruited and mentored university students to lead the program, building leadership capability while fostering a strong culture of volunteerism and peer support.
Under Marie’s guidance, GPN runs four free workshops each year, delivered on weekends through the dedication of Marie and her student leaders, removing cost and access barriers for participants. Marie’s leadership combines vision with practical action, she doesn’t just advocate for inclusion; she builds the structures that make it real. This initiative is one of many ways she consistently advances equity and participation for girls and women in technology.
Dr Saskia Bollmann
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
UQ Biomedical Engineer Saskia Bollmann is part of an international research team that has developed a fast, non‑invasive MRI method to map the brain’s tiniest blood vessels in unprecedented detail. Published in Science Advances, this work aims to deliver faster, more comfortable scans for patients and clearer insights for clinicians, potentially supporting earlier detection of stroke, dementia, and other neurological conditions. Using ultra‑high‑field 7 Tesla MRI, the team captured whole‑brain images at 0.35‑millimetre resolution in just seven minutes, visualising veins within the cerebral cortex. Advanced processing techniques distinguish between large surface veins, smaller pial veins, and veins within the grey matter, helping clinicians separate vascular effects from true neural signals.
Candice Brill
Sustainable Minerals Institute
Candice Brill is an outstanding early‑career researcher who plays a vital dual role in our Centre. Alongside her research responsibilities, she manages our laboratory facilities with exceptional care and professionalism. She is deeply committed to health and safety, ensuring lab procedures maintain high standards so staff and students can work confidently in a safe environment.
Candice also drives initiatives to improve the quality of our laboratory services, enhancing reliability and user experience. Beyond the lab, she has contributed to our wellbeing culture through the wellness corner, now used by staff and students as a space to pause, connect, and recharge. Through her care for people, safety, and quality, Candice helps create a positive and inclusive research environment.
Helen Burdon
Faculty Office
Helen’s leadership in driving our outreach activities was recognised through the Peter Doherty Awards for Excellence in STEM Education – STEM Education Partnership Award in 2025. Her dedication to creating meaningful engagement opportunities and her unwavering commitment to inspiring the next generation of STEM learners have had a tangible and lasting impact across our community.
Allana Cooper
Sustainable Minerals Institute
Allana has provided exceptional high‑level administrative and executive support to SMI staff and students, bringing her passion for event management and travel to everything she does. She consistently steps up to help, working hard, guiding, instructing, leading, and managing with confidence and care.
Olivia Dwyer
Architecture, Design and Planning
Olivia’s exceptional leadership and dedication underpin the School’s operational strength and strategic progress. She plays a central role in enabling academic and professional staff to succeed, ensuring systems, processes, and resources align effectively with the School’s ambitions. Her calm professionalism, organisational insight, and problem‑solving capability create stability and clarity across complex activities ranging from staffing and finance to student and governance matters.
Olivia is widely respected for her supportive approach, responsiveness, and commitment to fostering a positive workplace culture. She enables initiatives to move forward efficiently while maintaining high standards of integrity and accountability. Her contribution extends beyond management into community‑building, helping the School function as a cohesive and forward‑looking academic environment.
Emma Ericson
Civil Engineering
Congratulations to Emma on her appointment as the School of Civil Engineering WHSC! In a remarkably short time, Emma has shown outstanding leadership, strengthening the School’s WHS processes, thoughtfully guiding several incident investigations, and playing a key role in advancing health, safety, and wellness initiatives across the Faculty and the University. Her commitment and collaborative approach are already making a meaningful difference.
Melanie Fleming
Faculty Office
Melanie played a critical part in delivering the Australasian Association of Engineering Education Conference at UQ in 2025. It was the first time in more than 20 years that UQ hosted the conference, and it was hugely successful, with the largest number of attendees in the conference’s long history.
Courtney Gardner
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Courtney’s contribution over the past year has been invaluable to our teaching staff through her role as Senior Officer, Student and Academic Administration. She keeps the complex administrative side of teaching running smoothly, especially during semester when issues arise quickly and require clear, timely action. Courtney is consistently responsive, practical, and solutions‑focused, helping staff navigate processes, resolve enrolment and assessment matters, and manage the many moving parts that underpin classes, labs, and marking. She is meticulous in checking key requirements, including ECP‑related processes, ensuring the right steps are followed and giving staff confidence that everything is compliant and properly recorded. Courtney’s steady support, attention to detail, and calm professionalism make a real difference to both staff experience and student outcomes.
Carroll Go‑Sam
Architecture, Design and Planning
Carroll’s leadership in Indigenous research, scholarship, and engagement is profoundly important to the School and to UQ’s commitment to Indigenous knowledge and inclusion. Her work advances understanding of Indigenous perspectives in architecture and the built environment, strengthening culturally informed design thinking and respectful engagement practices. She brings intellectual depth and cultural integrity to her teaching and research, supporting students and colleagues in learning from Country and community‑centred knowledge systems.
Carroll’s engagement activities build meaningful relationships with Indigenous communities and contribute to reconciliation through education and scholarship. Her contributions enrich curriculum, research direction, and institutional awareness of Indigenous design knowledge. She is a valued mentor and advocate who helps create space for Indigenous voices within architecture and planning discourse.
Rebecca Gravina
Civil Engineering
Congratulations to Prof. Rebecca Gravina and colleagues for their success in Australia’s Economic Accelerator (AEA) Ignite program for the project Optimising ore‑sand as a scalable circular economy solution to reduce mineral wastes and responsibly supply alternative construction materials.
Merinda Hall
Sustainable Minerals Institute
I’d like to nominate Merinda for her outstanding advocacy for safe work practices in the lab. She consistently prioritises the health and wellbeing of her colleagues and isn’t afraid to speak up when something isn’t right. Her commitment to maintaining a safe, respectful, and accountable work environment sets a strong example and genuinely strengthens our lab culture.
Helen Huang
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
I would like to celebrate my colleague Helen’s outstanding achievements over the past year. She has been recognised with Fellowships of both the ACM and the IEEE, two of the most prestigious honours in our field. These recognitions reflect her sustained and internationally recognised contributions to computing and engineering research, as well as her leadership in shaping the direction of the discipline. Her achievements are a source of pride for our community and an inspiration to early‑career researchers and students, particularly women pursuing careers in STEM.
Helen Huang
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Helen has been named a 2025 ACM Fellow, one of the highest honours in computing, recognising the top 1% of professionals worldwide. Across areas including digital manufacturing, agriculture, public safety, and education, her research helps organisations harness complex visual and social data to build smarter, more reliable AI systems that deliver tangible benefits. This prestigious recognition from the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) honours Professor Huang’s world‑leading contributions to large‑scale multimedia content understanding, indexing, and retrieval.
Lizanne Holt
Faculty Office
I am proud to nominate Lizanne for International Women’s Day recognition. This day celebrates women whose actions uplift others, and Lizanne exemplifies this every day. Her friendly, approachable, and cheerful nature creates a positive and supportive environment for everyone she works with. Lizanne’s professionalism, efficiency, and constant willingness to help make her an essential part of the Faculty Office and HR team. She consistently goes above and beyond, contributing far more than is seen. Lizanne inspires through her kindness, dedication, and generosity, and she truly deserves to be celebrated.
Victoria James
Faculty Office
Victoria is an exceptional communications leader whose work has transformed how our faculty sees itself and how others see us. Through thoughtful storytelling and strategic communication, she shines a light on everyday achievements, innovation, and impact across the campus. Vic has a rare ability to recognise the human story behind the work and present it in a way that uplifts individuals, teams, and the broader community. Her content not only informs but connects, strengthening pride, visibility, and engagement across the faculty. She consistently amplifies diverse voices and ensures contributions at all levels are recognised and celebrated. Generous, perceptive, and deeply collaborative, Victoria has made a lasting cultural difference by making people feel seen, valued, and heard.
Laura Jeffress & Flora Kazai
Faculty Office
Laura Jeffress and Flora Kazai from the EAIT Employability Team successfully led the overhaul of Engineering Professional Practice and the creation of the new EPP Hub for engineering students. The Hub guides students through their professional practice requirements, encouraging them to start early and gain a broad range of professional experiences. Built from the ground up, the EPP Hub helps students track their experiences, curate their reflections, and graduate confident and ready to join the workforce.
Charlotte Kessler
Architecture, Design and Planning
Charlotte contributes significantly to the School through her energetic teaching, contemporary design perspective, and strong engagement with students. Her studios encourage experimentation, material exploration, and critical reflection, supporting students in developing confident and original design voices. She brings an international outlook to design education that enriches learning experiences and broadens disciplinary horizons.
Charlotte’s collaborative spirit and willingness to contribute to curriculum conversations and program activities strengthen the Design discipline’s cohesion and vitality. She consistently supports a positive studio culture where students feel encouraged to test ideas and develop resilience in their creative practice. Her approach aligns closely with the School’s ambition to cultivate innovative and globally aware designers.
Kim Lamb
Mechanical and Mining Engineering
Kim will celebrate 35 years as a UQ staff member this year, and for more than half of that time she has served as the School Manager for Mechanical & Mining Engineering, starting on St Patrick’s Day in 2008. She has seen many changes over the years and is now looking forward to hanging up her UQ lanyard when she retires in April.
Bronwyn Laycock
Chemical Engineering
Bronwyn is a steadfast champion for academic women, consistently leading with compassion, conviction and generosity. She works tirelessly to support both staff and students, offering thoughtful, wise advice grounded in deep expertise and an unwavering commitment to uplifting others.
Daisy (Yu) Liu
Mechanical and Mining Engineering
Daisy has been a powerhouse in the hypersonics lab and a key organiser behind the Women in the School of Mechanical & Mining Engineering meet‑ups. She was so successful that she has since been recruited by industry. We wish her all the best in her future career pathway.
Melanie Maher
Architecture, Design and Planning
Melanie has made a strong contribution to the School through her leadership in outreach, Open Day coordination, and engagement with industry and prospective students. Her work enhances the visibility and accessibility of the School’s programs, helping future students connect with architecture and design pathways at UQ. She brings enthusiasm, organisation, and professionalism to engagement activities, ensuring events are welcoming, informative, and impactful.
Melanie’s connections with industry strengthen relationships that benefit teaching, student opportunities, and the School’s external profile. She demonstrates commitment to student recruitment and community connection, supporting the School’s growth and sustainability. Her collaborative approach and willingness to contribute to shared initiatives make her a valued colleague.
Mehrnoosh Mirzaei
Architecture, Design and Planning
Mehrnoosh has made a highly valued contribution to the School through her dedication to design teaching, thoughtful engagement with curriculum, and supportive work with students. Her commitment to studio‑based learning fosters creativity, critical thinking, and confidence among emerging designers. She brings care and precision to her teaching practice, ensuring students experience both conceptual depth and practical skill development.
Mehrnoosh is also a collegial and dependable presence within the Design discipline, contributing positively to program delivery and team collaboration. Her willingness to support shared teaching responsibilities and constructively engage in discussions around design pedagogy reflects a strong commitment to collective excellence. Through her work, she helps strengthen the School’s culture of inclusive and high‑quality design education.
Gloria Milena Monsalve Bravo
Chemical Engineering
Gloria brings enthusiasm, fresh ideas and unwavering commitment to everything she takes on, and it was wonderful to celebrate her securing a Lecturer position for 2025, an achievement that reflects her hard work, passion and talent.
Liza O’Moore
Civil Engineering
Liza received the inaugural Executive Dean Award for Transformational Impact in 2025, a fitting recognition given the dedication, expertise, and courage she brings to everything she does.
Sherrie Palmer
Sustainable Minerals Institute
Sherrie plays a critical, often unseen role in enabling our Centre’s research success. As Business Manager, she manages a complex portfolio of multi‑party research initiatives and industry‑facing contracts involving researchers, students, and external partners. Each year she oversees up to 60 contracts and around 100 proposals, balancing university governance, industry requirements, and student protection, while minimising complexity and delays. Sherrie consistently goes beyond her formal role.
Sherrie anticipates issues, resolves conflicts early, and creates practical pathways through contractual and administrative challenges to ensure research progresses smoothly. Her work directly supports students and early‑career researchers, helping protect their experience while enabling delivery. In the spirit of Balance the Scales, Sherrie exemplifies essential leadership that is rarely recognised through traditional academic measures.
Sonia Roitman
Architecture, Design and Planning
Sonia’s international engagement and impactful research have significantly strengthened the School’s global profile and societal contribution. Over recent years, her work in Indonesia, Samoa, and Uganda has advanced knowledge on housing, urban development, and social inclusion in diverse contexts. She demonstrates deep commitment to collaborative, community‑engaged research that informs policy and practice while supporting local capacity‑building.
Sonia’s leadership in international partnerships and projects reflects scholarly excellence and a strong sense of social responsibility. Her research outputs, networks, and engagement activities enhance UQ’s global reputation and contribute to meaningful change in rapidly urbanising regions. She also brings valuable international perspectives into teaching and mentoring, enriching student learning.
Natascha Rossi
ACWEB
The centre commends Natascha Rossi for her great work in building two large pilots for drinking water treatment, in collaboration with utilities in two different states. Not only did Natascha produce all the necessary design, safety and site-specific paperwork, but she physically built the pilots, assembling industry-size equipment and learning how to operate diverse machinery in the Maker’s Space for construction of fine parts. Although the pilots are now built, she’s keeping her sleeves rolled up for deployment and operation in the next 18 months. Natascha has demonstrated great leadership and rapid skill development.
Kym Runge
Sustainable Minerals Institute
Kym plays a pivotal role in driving innovation and fostering a people‑centred culture within our Centre. She is a visionary research leader who consistently conceives and shapes bold, practical research directions, turning them into high‑impact, collaborative work. She has been central to nurturing the High Voltage Pulse initiative from early research concept into a major collaboration now progressing toward company formation and commercial scale‑up.
Over the past year, Kym has actively advanced our New Generation Process Model Development initiative, expanding our pipeline of innovative projects and strengthening long‑term capability. Kym leads with integrity, she is principled, honest, and ethical, and puts others first. She is especially committed to students, ensuring they are supported, challenged, and able to thrive. Through her values‑driven leadership, she helps create an environment where people feel safe, heard, and empowered, truly reflecting this year’s theme, Balance the Scales.
Shazia Sadiq
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Shazia’s leadership continues to elevate The University of Queensland and the wider data and AI community. Her dedication to building resilient, ethical, and future‑ready data systems is shaping real impact across industry, government, and education. We are proud to see her work recognised and to celebrate the difference she is making in Australia and globally. A remarkable advocate, researcher, and collaborator, Shazia brings vision and momentum to this crucial field.
Mandana Shaygan
Sustainable Minerals Institute
Mandana is a mid‑career soil scientist who has excelled at the interface of soil chemistry and soil hydrology. She has applied her unique expertise to a range of nationally significant projects focused on rehabilitation of mined lands, including an ACARP‑funded project investigating carbon cycling in soils following fire.
Anna Skilar
Sustainable Minerals Institute
During her final year as a student, Anna made an outstanding contribution to the wellbeing and cohesion of our Centre’s student community. Alongside her academic commitments, Anna played a highly active role in student‑focused initiatives, dedicating significant time and energy to supporting peers and strengthening the student experience. She was deeply involved in organising internal events that fostered connection, inclusion, and a positive workplace culture, particularly around student engagement and support.
Anna was also a key contributor to the development of the Centre’s wellness corner, helping create a shared space where students and staff could pause, connect, and recharge. Through her care for others, reliability, and commitment to building a supportive student environment, Anna set a strong example of leadership and service. Her contributions during her final year left a lasting positive impact on our student community and culture.
Karen Steel
Chemical Engineering
Karen is an inspiring role model for emerging women engineers. She is generous with her time, providing practical, solutions‑focused mentorship grounded in strong engineering principles. Her research leadership in sustainable biocoke addresses a critical need in hard‑to‑abate sectors, demonstrating both technical excellence and real‑world impact. Through her mentorship and research, she is shaping a more inclusive and sustainable engineering future.
Dr Xin Fu Tan
Mechanical and Mining Engineering
Joined the School of Mechanical & Mining Engineering (SMME) as a Lecturer in Mechanical Engineering last year. She is ARC Early Career Industry Fellow and brings expertise on advancing sustainable electronics manufacturing, an important and evolving field. We are excited to have Xin Fu join the SMME teaching & learning academic team and look forward to ongoing contributions.
Anh Tran
Faculty Office
Anh is an outstanding advocate for women in engineering, leading the Women in Engineering program with enthusiasm, purpose, and impact. She has created a supportive, high‑energy environment that actively encourages girls and young women to see engineering as both accessible and achievable. Through outreach events, workshops, mentoring, and school engagement, Anh consistently turns interest into action, helping students move from curiosity to confident enrolment in engineering pathways. Her leadership brings together students, staff, and industry partners to build strong networks of support and visible role models.
Anh is known for her generosity with time, practical guidance, and ability to inspire confidence. She doesn’t just promote participation, she builds belonging and momentum. Her passion, consistency, and results‑driven approach are making a measurable difference in increasing the number and diversity of women entering engineering degrees.
Denys Villa Gomez
Civil Engineering
Denys has stepped into an exciting new CI role within the Biosustainability Hub and is leading the expansion of capability and research in the School’s Environmental Laboratory, championing the development and management of cross‑disciplinary and cross‑University research teams.
Kathy Witt
Gas & Energy Transition Research Centre
A big shout‑out to the outstanding leadership Kathy has brought to the Gas & Energy Transition Centre. In her time as Acting Director, she has worked tirelessly to support the Centre, showing remarkable grit, tenacity and strategic foresight, all delivered with her wonderful sense of humour and deep humanity. Her contribution has been invaluable.
Stephanie Wyeth
Architecture, Design and Planning
Stephanie’s leadership in Planning continues to have a transformative impact on the School’s teaching, research, and professional engagement. She has played a central role in shaping planning education through curriculum innovation, program development, and sustained mentorship of colleagues and students. Her scholarly work and policy engagement strengthen the discipline’s visibility and relevance, connecting academic insight with real‑world planning challenges.
Stephanie’s thoughtful leadership fosters collaboration, intellectual rigour, and a strong sense of shared purpose across the Planning team. She actively supports emerging scholars and contributes to a positive and inclusive academic culture. Her commitment to excellence in planning education and her ability to bridge research, practice, and pedagogy exemplify UQ’s values.
Dan Yuan
Mechanical and Mining Engineering
Dan brings great energy to her work in both teaching and research. As a DECRA Fellow in the School of Mechanical & Mining Engineering, she successfully led MECH2305 (Introduction to Engineering Design and Manufacturing) for more than 400 undergraduate students while simultaneously managing her fellowship responsibilities. In 2025, she was awarded the highly competitive UQ Foundation Research Excellence Award for her work on saliva‑based diagnostic devices to detect diseases such as leukaemia. It is clear that this is just the beginning, and we look forward to hearing much more from Dan in the future.
