Murdoch University
WA Data Science Innovation Hub
Curtin Institute for Data Science
Murdoch University
Edith Cowan University
Curtin University
WA Department of Health
Curtin University
University of Western Australia
Curtin University
CERI - Centre for Entrepreneurial Research and Innovation
AARNet
Curtin University
Australian Access Federation Ltd
Murdoch University
Curtin University
Pawsey Supercomputing Research Centre
Curtin University
Curtin University
WA Department of Health
Telethon Kids Institute
Edith Cowan Univiersty
Curtin University
Murdoch University
Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC)
Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC)
Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC)
International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR)
Murdoch University
Edith Cowan University
Curtin University
Murdoch University
Murdoch University
Curtin University
Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC)
Forrest Research Foundation
Clarivate
Gale
Murdoch University
Curtin University
Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC)
Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network (AURIN)
LabArchives
Prof. Peter Eastwood Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation), Murdoch University
Professor Peter Eastwood is an experienced Australian biomedical research scientist who has built an internationally recognised research programme in sleep and respiratory physiology. He is currently the Deputy Vice Chancellor Research & Innovation at Murdoch University, WA. He has previously held appointments as: Dean of Research, College of Medicine & Public Health and Director, Flinders Health & Medical Research Institute at Flinders University, SA; a NHMRC Senior Research Fellow at the West Australian Sleep Disorders Research Institute, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, Professor at the School of Anatomy and Human Biology, University of Western Australia and Adjunct Professor at Curtin University of Technology. He is also Director of the Raine Study, Foundation Director of the Centre for Sleep Science at the University of Western Australia, President of the Australasian Sleep Association, immediate past Deputy Director of the Lung Institute of Western Australia, and immediate past Editor in Chief of Respirology, the major respiratory journal in the Asian Pacific.
Alex Jenkins Director, WA Data Science Innovation Hub
Alex Jenkins is the Director of the WA Data Science Innovation Hub (WADSIH), Chair & Founder of the Curtin AI in Research (CAIR) Group, and inaugural Member of the WA State Government’s AI Advisory Board. With an extensive background in digital technologies, Alex is dedicated to advancing the use of AI across Australian business, academia, and the public sector. His work emphasises leveraging AI to enhance education and improve lives, driving innovation and practical applications in diverse sectors. Alex is committed to ensuring that Australia remains at the forefront of AI adoption, elevating WADSIH to a national thought-leader in AI and fostering collaboration to promote AI’s transformative potential for societal benefit. He is also known for his impactful TEDx talk, ‘An AI Tutor for Every Child’, highlighting the potential of AI in revolutionising Australia’s education system
As AI tools become embedded in research practice, questions are emerging about impact, ethics, authorship, and the changing role of researchers themselves. This panel explores what’s coming next for AI in research deliverables, communication, and data science. Panellists will discuss how AI is being used to support writing, visualisation, interpretation, and public engagement, alongside human‑in‑the‑loop (HITL) approaches. The session invites perspectives on AI ethics, research workflows, and how researchers can adopt AI critically and responsibly for research impact and innovation. Chaired by Dr. Ranjodh B. Singh (Curtin University)
Prof. Melanie Johnston-Hollitt Director, Curtin Institute for Data Science
In her 20-year career, Prof Johnston-Hollitt has been involved in the design, construction, operation and governance of several major international radio telescopes, including the Low Frequency Array in the Netherlands, the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) in Western Australia, and the billion-dollar Square Kilometre Array (SKA), which will be hosted in both Australia and South Africa. She was a founding member of the Board of Directors for the SKA Organisation, where she worked on the international governance and the scientific and technical aspects of the telescope. In particular, she led the Science Analysis Pipeline design for the SKA and contributed to the Science Data Processor pipeline. She is the immediate past director of the 65 million-dollar MWA radio telescope and spent 9 years involved in the project, including 6 years on the international executive board (4 years as board chair) and 3 years as the MWA Director. During her time as chair of the MWA board, Professor Johnston-Hollitt was responsible for the expansion of the MWA project to move from 11 research organisations over 3 countries with 112 individual researchers to 21 research organisations over 6 countries with 270 individual researchers. As MWA Director, she oversaw the third phase of the MWA project realised via the design and funding for the new ‘MWAX correlator’ – a GPU-based bespoke compute system. Her research interests span the intersection between radio astronomy, signal and image processing and big data analytics. She leads the galactic and extragalactic science team in the Curtin Institute for Radio Astronomy, who are exploiting the MWA and other telescopes to uncover the mysteries of the Universe.In August 2020, Professor Johnston-Hollitt has been appointed as the new Director of the Curtin Institute for Data Science (CIDS), leading a multi-disciplinary team of data scientists. The CIDS is a cross-disciplinary research accelerator based on the use of high-performance computing. In 2024, her role expanded with her appointment as Executive Director of both CIDS and Innovation Central Perth (ICP).
A/Prof. Belinda Brown Dean Graduate Research, Murdoch University
Associate Professor Belinda Brown is Dean of Graduate Research (Murdoch University) and a researcher in healthy ageing and dementia prevention. Her work focuses on how lifestyle factors such as physical activity, sleep, and health behaviours influence cognitive ageing and brain health across adulthood. Alongside her research program, she leads university-wide strategy and development for higher degree by research training and researcher development. Belinda has worked with HDR candidates and early career researchers across diverse disciplines, giving her a unique perspective on the realities of research careers. She is passionate about building supportive research cultures, and helping researchers develop the skills to thrive in academia and beyond.
This presentation will reflect on the habits and behaviours that seem to distinguish researchers who flourish in the early stages of their career, and over the long term. Drawing on experience supervising research students and leading HDR programs, this talk explores what actually predicts growth and resilience in research careers; and why it is often not what people expect.
Dr Vivienne ‘Binyarn’ Hansen Balladong Wadjuk Noongar yorga,
Dr Vivienne ‘Binyarn’ Hansen is a Balladong Wadjuk Noongar yorga, a renowned Practitioner of Noongar medicine, co-author of books Noongar Bush Medicine and Noongar Bush Tucker, the first Indigenous member of the National Herbalist Association of Australia, a founding member of the Ngangk Yira Institute for Change Council of Elders, and a recent recipient of an Honorary Doctorate from Murdoch University. She has dedicated her life to sharing, teaching, and advocating for Noongar culture, language, and knowledge. The ResBaz organising committee is honoured to have Dr Hansen delivering the Welcome to Country.
Jason Tadi ,
Vim is a powerful, keyboard-driven text editor that enables fast and efficient editing, particularly in cloud-based environments where graphical tools are limited. Vim integrates well with tools such as LaTeX, Git, and command-line utilities, making it useful for writing, coding, and data manipulation. This 30-minute beginner-friendly session introduces Vim fundamentals in the context of research workflows, focusing on modal editing, navigation, and core commands. Participants will learn practical techniques to navigate and edit files, and begin building a flexible workflow for coding and text-based research tasks.
This talk introduces coding agents, focusing on Claude Code. Coding agents are AI tools that use Large Language Models to interpret natural language and perform tasks. Agents can help researchers write code, analyse data, plan research, and prototype ideas. The session will show how Claude Code works and how it can be used in research workflows. It will demonstrate effective use of Claude Code and highlight its limitations.
Dr. Sean Buckley , Edith Cowan University
Sean is a conservation and ecological geneticist with a focus on understanding how evolutionary and genomic research can inform conservation management of biodiversity. His research spans population genetics, phylogeography, and adaptive genomics, with applications in conservation planning, conservation translocations (including genetic rescue), and threatened species recovery. He works across a range of Australian fauna - (currently) including freshwater fishes, marsupials, reptiles, and birds - using genomic tools to address real-world conservation challenges. As a science communicator, he is also passionate about making science accessible, inclusive, and engaging. He regularly communicates science through outreach talks, media contributions, and his long-running blog The G-CAT, which explores conservation, ecology, evolution and genetics. As the Edith Cowan University representative in the Pawsey Supercomputing Research Centre Champions Program, he is also passionate about supporting research staff and students to use and engage with high-performance computing capabilities.
Research and research data generate valuable insights, but how do those insights move beyond disciplinary boundaries and into practice? This panel explores how research skills and expertise are translated across different contexts, and how we support learning to become meaningful real‑world action. Panellists will discuss communities of practice, facilitation, and skills‑focused learning spaces. This includes how complex information—data, evidence, and analysis—is communicated to practitioners, industry, policy makers, and communities. The discussion will consider how interpretation and sense‑making shape confidence and capability, how impact can be recognised and evaluated, and how institutions can create spaces for cross‑disciplinary skill‑building that leads to change.
Poornima Marasini ,
Often times a pattern or trend is hidden in data, but can you always spot it? A lot of times, data alone does not tell the whole story. In this hands-on session we will use a real world dataset on restaurant tipping behavior and find out whether bigger tables tip more generously, whether day of the week influences tipping and so on by creating different plots to visualise relationships between data. We will run cells in Google Colab to get instant charts, plots and visually see how the elements of data are related and how they influence each other.
Dr. Kristina Gagalova , Curtin University
Double academic curriculum with one Master degrees in Bioinformatics and one in Biotechnology. Deep understanding of bioinformatics algorithms, programming and Next Generation Sequencing technologies. Solid basics in molecular biology and genetics. Experience in OMICS data analysis, machine learning and workflow implementation. A proven track of successful project delivery in the context of basic research. Extensive collaboration with researchers from different scientific background. Excellent English verbal and written communication skills.
Reproducibility shouldn’t be this mysterious thing we all aim for but rarely achieve. In this hands-on session, we’ll go through the basics of Nextflow using the “Hello Nextflow” tutorial as a starting point. You’ll build a simple pipeline step by step, see how processes fit together, and get a feel for how data moves through a workflow. The goal is to show how Nextflow helps you organise your analyses so they can be run again, shared, and scaled without everything breaking. If you’ve ever struggled with “it worked on my machine,” this session is for you.
Dr. Jade Hallam Senior Data Engineer, WA Department of Health
Data linkage transforms siloed datasets into a powerful, interconnected evidence base. This gives you the power to explore relationships between isolated datasets, opening the door to questions you could never answer otherwise. The Western Australian Data Linkage System (WADLS), based at the Department of Health, is among the most comprehensive and high‑quality linkage systems worldwide. It routinely integrates data from a broad range of Health and non‑Health sources and provides linked datasets to support research. This presentation will serve as an introduction to data linkage for researchers - how it works, why it matters, and how to access linked data.
Dr. Fatima Naim , Curtin University
Fatima Naim has been involved in agricultural research for the past decade. Fatima trained as chemist and went onto completing her PhD in plant metabolic engineering. Since then, she has worked on multiple projects including enhancing transgene longevity and developing precisely gene edited plants. At CCDM, she is a Foundation project leader focusing on dissecting the early phase of infection and recovery post disease disruption.
Your research is only as valuable as your ability to find, understand, and reuse it, by you and others. Yet most researchers are never formally trained in creating high-quality metadata. This highly practical, hands-on workshop introduces the fundamentals of research data management and the FAIR Principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable), with real-world examples. The session focuses on building skills you can immediately apply to your own data outputs and use to help others improve theirs. Participants will work directly with example datasets and are encouraged to bring their own to: • understand what makes metadata useful and why it’s often done poorly • learn how to write clear and reusable metadata • explore emerging approaches, including AI-assisted prompts, to support metadata creation By the end of the session, you will leave with practical tools, templates, and confidence to improve your data practices, enhancing the visibility, impact, and longevity of your research.
Yalimay Jimenez ,
This hands-on workshop explores how Python and data science workflows can support geochemical analysis in mining and environmental projects. Participants will learn how to transform laboratory spreadsheets into analysis-ready datasets, automate geochemical calculations and domain-specific plots used in the industry, perform exploratory data analysis, and generate technical visualisations and reports. The session emphasises reproducible workflows and transparent data processing practices increasingly expected in both research and industry. Using realistic datasets, attendees will gain practical experience with simple, interpretable techniques that form the foundation of more advanced approaches such as machine learning and deep learning. The workshop is designed for beginners and provides a foundation for geoscientists interested in applying Python to environmental and mining geochemistry.
Dr. Kate Miller Senior Specialist, Science and Partnerships, University of Western Australia
Kate is PHRN’s Coordinator for Science and Partnerships. She implements strategic projects and establishes relationships with our partners, industry collaborations and participants. She has extensive experience facilitating training and developed the online Data Linkage Researcher Training and the Ethics and Data Linkage training provided by the PHRN. Previously, Kate worked at the Telethon Kids Institute as an epidemiologist with the Strep A Vaccine Global Consortium. In this role she led the development of standardised surveillance protocols to provide standardised case definitions for diseases caused by Strep A and guide researchers with the design and planning of clinical trials to measure vaccine efficacy and safety. Kate undertook her PhD at the UWA using linked data to explore the relationship between ultraviolet radiation and type 1 diabetes.
This presentation explores how linked administrative and routinely collected data can be used more effectively across research. It explains how linking datasets allows researchers to connect information from multiple sources, enabling richer, longitudinal, and more complete analyses. The talk highlights common barriers such as difficulty discovering what data exists, complex access processes, and limited early-stage visibility of available datasets. It introduces resources for researchers, including tools to improve data discoverability, access, and usability, guided support, and training to help researchers integrate linked data more easily into study design, analysis, and long-term research workflows.
Discover how Australia’s National Research Infrastructure (NRI) can support you in your research journey. NRI is a network of tools, data platforms and expert support designed to make research easier and more effective. Through a series of lightning talks, you will be introduced to key NRI tools and services, including high performance computing, national scale data platforms, bioinformatics, data linkage, high-quality data assets and cloud computing. You will learn how these can help you optimise your workflow, overcome common research challenges and save time on routine tasks. You will also find out where to access training and support, so you can confidently use these national resources to accelerate your research. Co-Speaker details - Meirian Lovelace-Tozer, Skills Development Lead (Services), Australia Research Data Commons (ARDC) - Sarah Thomas, Portfolio Manager, Australian Access Federation (AAF) - Dr Sara King, Training and Engagement Lead, AARNet - Mzingisi Mqhum, Stakeholder Engagement Manager, Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network (AURIN) - Dr Ludovic Capelli, Training and Education Manager, Pawsey Supercomputing Research Centre - Dr Kate Miller, Coordinator, Senior Specialist, Science and Partnerships, Population Health Research Network (PHRN) Contributed to content - Dr Abduallah Shaikh, Digital Skills Development Manager, National Computational Infrastructure (NCI) - Dr Paige Martin, Team Lead, User Training, ACCESS-NRI - Dr Melissa Burke, Training Manager, Australian BioCommons
Victoria Lee , Curtin University
Inclusive research takes more than good intentions. In this session, we share how Curtin's Engagement & Student Experience team made research participation more inclusive. Drawing on user research from 2025, we’ll explore flexible online and in-person methods, placement of feedback points where students already are, and targeted recruitment and incentive options to reach diverse participants. Walk away with practical ideas and food for thought for researchers seeking to broaden participation through a user experience lens and beyond traditional research frameworks.
Min Tan Commercialisation Specialist, CERI - Centre for Entrepreneurial Research and Innovation
Participants will transform their own research into a clear, audience-specific narrative by structuring it as a story, adapting it for different audiences (e.g. public, industry, policy), and refining their language to remove jargon while maintaining credibility and expertise.
Sara King Training and Engagement Lead, AARNet
Dr Sara King is the Training and Engagement Lead for AARNet. She is focused on outreach within the research sector, developing communities of interest around training and skills development in eResearch. She is passionate about helping others develop the infrastructure and digital literacies required for working in a data-driven world, translating technology so it is accessible to everyone.
Have you ever wondered why, thanks to your fast internet at home you can stream movies in UltraHD smoothly, but your data upload can be super slow? Sometimes sharing data with collaborators can be tedious, slow and frustrating. This workshop addresses some data handling solutions in a research context. The workshop will introduce some research data movement tools, with a hands-on introduction to FileSender and a peek into Globus, a service that enables large-scale data transfers. By the end of this workshop, you should be able to: (1) Understand various network and connectivity constraints, (2) Transfer large amounts of data via the network, (3) Search for more advanced options for data movement and know where to go for help. Come along and learn how to make data transfer easy and convenient for you.
Discover how Australia’s National Research Infrastructure (NRI) can support you in your research journey. NRI is a network of tools, data platforms and expert support designed to make research easier and more effective. Through a series of lightning talks, you will be introduced to key NRI tools and services, including high performance computing, national scale data platforms, bioinformatics, data linkage, high-quality data assets and cloud computing. You will learn how these can help you optimise your workflow, overcome common research challenges and save time on routine tasks. You will also find out where to access training and support, so you can confidently use these national resources to accelerate your research. Co-Speaker details - Meirian Lovelace-Tozer, Skills Development Lead (Services), Australia Research Data Commons (ARDC) - Sarah Thomas, Portfolio Manager, Australian Access Federation (AAF) - Dr Sara King, Training and Engagement Lead, AARNet - Mzingisi Mqhum, Stakeholder Engagement Manager, Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network (AURIN) - Dr Ludovic Capelli, Training and Education Manager, Pawsey Supercomputing Research Centre - Dr Kate Miller, Coordinator, Senior Specialist, Science and Partnerships, Population Health Research Network (PHRN) Contributed to content - Dr Abduallah Shaikh, Digital Skills Development Manager, National Computational Infrastructure (NCI) - Dr Paige Martin, Team Lead, User Training, ACCESS-NRI - Dr Melissa Burke, Training Manager, Australian BioCommons
Claire Hulcup Academic Skills Advisor (Numeracy), Curtin University
This session introduces Stata as a powerful tool for statistical analysis, with a focus on how it supports reproducible research. Moving beyond point-and-click workflows, it will explore how do-files enable you to automate analyses, and how log files can be used to create a record of your work. Through live demonstrations, you will learn how to structure analyses, manage data and generate results that can be easily shared and reproduced. Designed for beginners or anyone curious about using Stata, this interactive session will highlight how it can improve efficiency, collaboration and research integrity.
Anurag Katariya Solutions Architect, Australian Access Federation Ltd
This session will discuss the purpose of the Australian Access Federation, the value we add to the research and innovation ecosystem, and what tools and services currently exist to support the research community. We will also discuss our roadmap of infrastructure improvements and how the community can be involved in co-designing future trust and identity infrastructure.
Rajasree Rajamohanan , Murdoch University
Dr. Michael Dizon Senior Lecturer, Curtin University
Michael Anthony C. Dizon, PhD, is a Senior Lecturer and Co-Director of Research and Innovation at Curtin Law School. His principal area of research is law and ICT. He has held academic positions in New Zealand, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the Philippines, and previously worked as an ICT lawyer.
As AI tools become embedded in research practice, questions are emerging about impact, ethics, authorship, and the changing role of researchers themselves. This panel explores what’s coming next for AI in research deliverables, communication, and data science. Panellists will discuss how AI is being used to support writing, visualisation, interpretation, and public engagement, alongside human‑in‑the‑loop (HITL) approaches. The session invites perspectives on AI ethics, research workflows, and how researchers can adopt AI critically and responsibly for research impact and innovation. Chaired by Dr. Ranjodh B. Singh (Curtin University)
This session will discuss the importance of a human-in-the-loop (HITL) approach to AI for research. HITL provides greater autonomy, responsibility, reliability and transparency over how the AI works and its outputs, which are in accord with the AI ethics principles in Australia and internationally. There will also be a live demonstration of an AI platform that uses HITL machine learning on textual data. The user can directly change the AI’s answers and improvements become immediately and permanently part of the AI’s learning. Further advantages of this human-centred AI platform include more flexibility, privacy, security, cost effectiveness and environmental sustainability.
Dr. Ludovic Capelli Training and Education Manager, Pawsey Supercomputing Research Centre
This hands-on workshop introduces OpenMP, a widely used shared-memory parallel programming model. Participants will learn how to enable CPU parallelism by creating and coordinating threads, managing data sharing, parallelising loops, balancing workloads, and ensuring correct synchronisation. The session also covers key OpenMP constructs and execution models. It is designed for participants with prior experience in C, C++, or Fortran who want to improve performance through parallel programming.
Discover how Australia’s National Research Infrastructure (NRI) can support you in your research journey. NRI is a network of tools, data platforms and expert support designed to make research easier and more effective. Through a series of lightning talks, you will be introduced to key NRI tools and services, including high performance computing, national scale data platforms, bioinformatics, data linkage, high-quality data assets and cloud computing. You will learn how these can help you optimise your workflow, overcome common research challenges and save time on routine tasks. You will also find out where to access training and support, so you can confidently use these national resources to accelerate your research. Co-Speaker details - Meirian Lovelace-Tozer, Skills Development Lead (Services), Australia Research Data Commons (ARDC) - Sarah Thomas, Portfolio Manager, Australian Access Federation (AAF) - Dr Sara King, Training and Engagement Lead, AARNet - Mzingisi Mqhum, Stakeholder Engagement Manager, Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network (AURIN) - Dr Ludovic Capelli, Training and Education Manager, Pawsey Supercomputing Research Centre - Dr Kate Miller, Coordinator, Senior Specialist, Science and Partnerships, Population Health Research Network (PHRN) Contributed to content - Dr Abduallah Shaikh, Digital Skills Development Manager, National Computational Infrastructure (NCI) - Dr Paige Martin, Team Lead, User Training, ACCESS-NRI - Dr Melissa Burke, Training Manager, Australian BioCommons
Prof. Tom Gedeon AI Chair, Human-centric Advancements, Curtin University
My research focus is on responsive and responsible AI: Responsive AI: Use of human behavioural and biometric data to create useful AI systems and Responsible AI: A privacy by design approach to control private and personal data used. I have developed human centred computing technologies which use advanced AI and sensors to predict human internal states such as stress, doubt, anger and so on, which are highly relevant to understanding people management. My goal is to use these techniques to enhance human capabilities, in applications such as training people with real time feedback, creating responsive user interfaces, and measuring team dynamics in real time.
Prof. Mingming Cheng Professor in Digital Marketing, Curtin University
Professor Mingming Cheng is Professor in Digital Marketing and Director of the Social Media Research Lab at the School of Management and Marketing, Curtin University. Mingming is an award-winning researcher and educator with an international reputation in social media analytics and tourism. His core research interests and expertise deal with Chinese outbound tourists with a strong focus on Chinese young generations, the sharing economy (e.g. Airbnb and Uber), data science (big data), sustainable tourism and social media marketing. Mingming is deeply committed to innovative research and teaching practices that create positive impacts on those involved. Mingming has won multiple prestigious teaching, research and engagement awards for his teaching and research excellence and impacts. He is also a regular contributor to the mainstream media. Further information can be found in Mingming’s personal website: https://mingmingcheng.com/
Social media has evolved from a communication tool into a powerful part of everyday life, shaping how people interact, make decisions, and express themselves. At the same time, the vast amount of multimodal and largely unstructured data generated on these platforms presents significant challenges for analysis. This session unpacks the social media analytics workflow, from data collection and analysis to the generation of meaningful insights. Drawing on examples from digital multimodal data, the session explores how social media can serve as a rich source for understanding human behaviour and social phenomena. By bridging data-driven methods with social science perspectives, the session demonstrates how valuable human insights can be extracted from complex online environments.
Dr. Sylvia Young Lead Data Scientist, WA Department of Health
Dr. Sylvia Young has been leading data science projects as the Lead Data Scientist at the Department of Health WA since 2022. Prior to this, Dr. Young had been an Assistant Professor in Bioinformatics and Biostatistics with the Centre for Medical Research at the University of Western Australia for eight years. She has a PhD degree in Computational Biology from La Trobe University, Victoria.
Launched in late 2022, Synthetic Data Generation (SDG) Program with WA Department of Health (the Department) aimed to improve data accessibility, expand data capacity, and reduce the time for data provisioning. After three years’ development, the Department has established a Synthetic Health Database including diverse categories of synthetic data products. In addition, the Department has endorsed the Synthetic Data Governance and Technical Guidelines which guided the practices of synthetic data management, governance, and applications. We would like to share with the researchers the insights of synthetic data generation using machine learning models and synthetic data application pathways. In addition, the Department has endorsed the Synthetic Data Governance and Technical Guidelines which guided the practices of synthetic data management, governance, and applications. We would like to share with the researchers the insights of synthetic data generation using machine learning models and synthetic data application pathways.
Dr. Patricia Agudelo-Romero Senior Research Fellow in Bioinformatics, Telethon Kids Institute
Patricia Agudelo‑Romero is a Senior Research Fellow in Bioinformatics with a strong passion for uncovering how viruses shape human health. Her research focuses on the complex interactions between viruses, bacteria, and the human host—an area she views as central to understanding the origins of respiratory and immune diseases. At the Kids Research Institute Australia (The Kids) and The University of Western Australia, Patricia leads bioinformatics research that integrates metagenomics, transcriptomics, epigenetics, and systems biology. Her work aims to decode host–microorganism interactions in conditions such as asthma and cystic fibrosis, as well as to elucidate the role of breastfeeding in early microbial colonisation and protection against respiratory conditions. She has also developed EVEREST, an integrated computational platform for virome discovery and analysis, available in both Snakemake and Nextflow implementations.
Rupali Bhagat , Edith Cowan Univiersty
Data literacy is not about coding or advanced analytics. It is about the ability to understand, interpret, question, and communicate information in meaningful ways. In today’s data-driven world the ability to understand and interpret data is no longer limited to technical experts but to everyone. For non-digital scholars, data literacy means using data as a tool to strengthen arguments, support decision-making, and enhance understanding across different contexts. This talk is designed to simplify data literacy by breaking down key concepts into accessible and practical insights. It aims to build confidence by showing that meaningful engagement with data does not require advanced technical skills, but rather a clear understanding of how to interpret and apply information in research and decision-making.
Research and research data generate valuable insights, but how do those insights move beyond disciplinary boundaries and into practice? This panel explores how research skills and expertise are translated across different contexts, and how we support learning to become meaningful real‑world action. Panellists will discuss communities of practice, facilitation, and skills‑focused learning spaces. This includes how complex information—data, evidence, and analysis—is communicated to practitioners, industry, policy makers, and communities. The discussion will consider how interpretation and sense‑making shape confidence and capability, how impact can be recognised and evaluated, and how institutions can create spaces for cross‑disciplinary skill‑building that leads to change.
Alina Eshal ,
As AI tools become embedded in research practice, questions are emerging about impact, ethics, authorship, and the changing role of researchers themselves. This panel explores what’s coming next for AI in research deliverables, communication, and data science. Panellists will discuss how AI is being used to support writing, visualisation, interpretation, and public engagement, alongside human‑in‑the‑loop (HITL) approaches. The session invites perspectives on AI ethics, research workflows, and how researchers can adopt AI critically and responsibly for research impact and innovation. Chaired by Dr. Ranjodh B. Singh (Curtin University)
As research faces growing demands for visibility and real-world influence, AI tools are transforming how findings are communicated. This 90-minute hands-on workshop introduces accessible AI applications for crafting compelling abstracts, visuals, summaries, public narratives, and audience-tailored outputs. Participants will practice tools for drafting, editing, data visualisation, and ethical use (addressing accuracy, bias, and attribution). With a focus on Gen Z researchers - who are digital natives leading AI adoption in daily workflows - this session equips attendees across disciplines to boost impact, funding, and outreach. No prior AI experience needed; bring your laptop for interactive exercises.
Rakib Hasan Associate Lecturer, Curtin University
Empathy detection is an emerging topic at the intersection of natural language processing, computer vision and psychology. In this presentation, we explore how foundation models can address key barriers in this field. We will see that large language models can guide smaller language models for text-based empathy detection and achieve state-of-the-art results on benchmark tasks. Next, we will explore uncertainty quantification in language modelling to enable robust and trustworthy empathy computing systems. For video-based empathy detection, we will discuss how tabular foundation models achieve strong accuracy and cross-subject generalisation while respecting privacy constraints. We will conclude with potential applications of such empathy detection systems across various real-life scenarios.
Marjolein Towler , Murdoch University
This 30-minute hands-on workshop introduces researchers to the practical use of SCOPUS AI for improving literature searches and research analysis. Participants will learn how to use AI-assisted tools to identify relevant publications, map key themes, and generate concise research summaries. The session includes guided exercises demonstrating how SCOPUS AI can help refine search strategies, uncover emerging trends, and support evidence-based writing. Suitable for academics, postgraduates, and research staff looking to integrate AI capabilities into their research workflow for greater efficiency and insight.
Meirian Lovelace-Tozer , Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC)
Ellen Lyrtzis Skills Development Lead (NCRIS), Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC)
With a background in health and medical research and project management, Ellen supports the ARDC’s vision for advancing data-driven research by helping to bring national capability (NCRIS) together, foster collaboration and promote best practices in skills development and training for users of national research infrastructure.
Liz Stokes Skills Development Lead (Trainer and Research Communities), Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC)
Liz advocates for trainers and connects global training communities to deliver a national skills advantage for Australian researchers. They lead the ARDC Carpentries Partnership, coordinate ResBaz digital skills festivals in Australia and contribute skills expertise to ARDC programs.
A thriving research culture is only as strong as the community that supports it. Yet the essential soft skills required to facilitate teams, build Communities of Practice, and support your peers are rarely formally taught. Most of us end up learning these critical leadership skills by accident or through absolute disasters. This highly practical workshop introduces fundamentals of community facilitation for postgraduate students. We will explore a vital blend of pedagogy and performativity to get people engaged and keep them working together effectively. Drawing on evidence-based research and ARDC skills community mentoring strategies, this session builds skills you can immediately apply to uplift your own research networks. Participants will gain practical tips, peer-training guides and evocative metaphors such as the choreography of icebergs.
Research and research data generate valuable insights, but how do those insights move beyond disciplinary boundaries and into practice? This panel explores how research skills and expertise are translated across different contexts, and how we support learning to become meaningful real‑world action. Panellists will discuss communities of practice, facilitation, and skills‑focused learning spaces. This includes how complex information—data, evidence, and analysis—is communicated to practitioners, industry, policy makers, and communities. The discussion will consider how interpretation and sense‑making shape confidence and capability, how impact can be recognised and evaluated, and how institutions can create spaces for cross‑disciplinary skill‑building that leads to change.
Prof. Andreas Wicenec Director of the Data Intensive Astronomy Program at ICRAR, International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR)
Professor at the University of Western Australia since 2010, leading the Data Intensive Astronomy Program (DIA) of the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR) to research, design and implement Petabyte scale data flows and high performance scientific computing for the Square Kilometre Array, the Murchison Wide Field Array (MWA), the Australian SKA Pathfinder. During his graduate, post-graduate and post-doctoral appointments, he was involved in the software development and reduction of photometric and astrometric Tycho data from the ESA Hipparcos satellite. He joined the European Southern Observatory (ESO) in 1997 as an archive specialist and was involved in the final implementation of the archive for ESOs Very Large Telescope (VLT) and the ESO Imaging Survey. Between 2002 and 2010, he was employed as ESOs Archive Scientist and led the development group of the ALMA archive subsystem. Prof. Wicenec is also involved in the International Virtual Observatory Alliance (IVOA). His scientific interests and publications include high precision global astrometry, optical background radiation, stellar photometry, dynamics and evolution of planetary nebulae and observational survey astronomy and the related data management, scheduling and computational concepts.
Alasdair Macdonald Director Research and Innovation Office, Murdoch University
Research assessment frameworks are shifting, raising questions about how research quality and impact are defined, measured, and defended. This panel explores how universities currently assess research success, and how emerging approaches (including policy and practice impact, industry and community engagement, open research, and use beyond academia) may reshape evaluation in the future. Panellists will discuss what evidence matters for career progression, impact, and funding, and how to balance changing frameworks with strong fundamental research practices. Chaired by Kaitlyn Houston (Murdoch University)
Michelle Duryea Associate Director, Research Analytics, Systems and Performance, Edith Cowan University
Research assessment frameworks are shifting, raising questions about how research quality and impact are defined, measured, and defended. This panel explores how universities currently assess research success, and how emerging approaches (including policy and practice impact, industry and community engagement, open research, and use beyond academia) may reshape evaluation in the future. Panellists will discuss what evidence matters for career progression, impact, and funding, and how to balance changing frameworks with strong fundamental research practices. Chaired by Kaitlyn Houston (Murdoch University)
Rochelle Fleming Director, Research Partnerships, Curtin University
Research assessment frameworks are shifting, raising questions about how research quality and impact are defined, measured, and defended. This panel explores how universities currently assess research success, and how emerging approaches (including policy and practice impact, industry and community engagement, open research, and use beyond academia) may reshape evaluation in the future. Panellists will discuss what evidence matters for career progression, impact, and funding, and how to balance changing frameworks with strong fundamental research practices. Chaired by Kaitlyn Houston (Murdoch University)
Scout Bell Manager, Digital and Research Services, Murdoch University
Kaitlyn Houston Research Support Coordinator, Murdoch University
Research assessment frameworks are shifting, raising questions about how research quality and impact are defined, measured, and defended. This panel explores how universities currently assess research success, and how emerging approaches (including policy and practice impact, industry and community engagement, open research, and use beyond academia) may reshape evaluation in the future. Panellists will discuss what evidence matters for career progression, impact, and funding, and how to balance changing frameworks with strong fundamental research practices. Chaired by Kaitlyn Houston (Murdoch University)
Dr. Ranjodh B. Singh Senior Lecturer, Curtin University
Ranjodh is involved in teaching both undergraduate and postgraduate units in Data Analytics and Econometrics.
As AI tools become embedded in research practice, questions are emerging about impact, ethics, authorship, and the changing role of researchers themselves. This panel explores what’s coming next for AI in research deliverables, communication, and data science. Panellists will discuss how AI is being used to support writing, visualisation, interpretation, and public engagement, alongside human‑in‑the‑loop (HITL) approaches. The session invites perspectives on AI ethics, research workflows, and how researchers can adopt AI critically and responsibly for research impact and innovation. Chaired by Dr. Ranjodh B. Singh (Curtin University)
Mary Filsell Data Consultant, Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC)
Backed by over 20 years supporting and promoting research across HASS and STEM, Mary is passionate about connecting researchers with competitive advantage through data and driving excellence in their creation, analysis and retention of high-quality data assets. She supports universities and partners in SA, WA and NT as well as the HASS and Indigenous Research Data Commons.
Are you a passionate researcher active in humanities, arts, social sciences (HASS) or Indigenous research? Would you like to learn about tools, platforms and services available right now that will accelerate your research? Join us for • An overview of the ARDC’s HASS and Indigenous Research Data Commons • An introduction to digital tools supporting HASS and Indigenous research in Australia with a focus on tools for text analytics, including offerings from the Language Data Commons of Australia (LDaCA) • An interactive discussion about Digital GLAM and HASS Tools & Services and what you are using.
Louise Renwich Program and Partnerships Coordinator, Forrest Research Foundation
Pavel Kasyanov Principal Technical Solutions Consultant, Clarivate
Pavel has worked with Clarivate for more than twenty years, sixteen of which he has spent specialising in the Web of Science and the suite of analytical tools built around it. He has extensive experience in scientific discovery workflows, research evaluation, and bibliometrics. Over the past five years, Pavel has also developed deep expertise in the Web of Science APIs, creating a range of Python applications and R scripts that showcase the power and versatility of programmatic access to research information.
This session introduces participants to using academic APIs, including Web of Science Starter and Expanded APIs, to retrieve and analyse research metadata using ready-to-use Python and R templates. Participants will learn : • how academic APIs return structured metadata • how to make basic queries using existing Python/R templates • how to extract common metadata fields (titles, keywords, authors, citation counts) • how to interpret results for trend detection and generate simple visualisations of topic evolution using prebuilt examples. All examples are beginner friendly, and all code will be provided for post-workshop use. This session is cross-disciplinary and relevant across sciences, social sciences, and humanities.
Damian Almeida Academic Engagement Manager, Gale
The Gale Digital Scholar Lab provides a transformative platform for teaching and learning by integrating digital humanities methodologies with primary source archives. By enabling students and researchers to curate, clean, and analyze large datasets of historical texts, the Lab fosters critical thinking, data literacy, and interdisciplinary research skills. Its user-friendly tools for text mining, sentiment analysis, and visualization empower learners to uncover new insights while engaging directly with authentic primary materials.
Thuy Duong Le , Murdoch University
In finance research, one of the most significant issues is the inconsistency in the frequency of dependent and independent variables. This problem is more crucial when incorporating macroeconomic factors into research using financial indices whose data is mostly daily. Some scholars employ an interpolation process to address the issue; nevertheless, it can not restore the nature of macroeconomic data and makes the estimation biased. This hands-on workshop addresses this data frequency mismatch using a quantitative method called GARCH-MIDAS. It will demonstrate how to conduct the GARCH-MIDAS regression in an equation where the dependent variable is daily data, while the independent variable is monthly. The estimation is performed in the academic version of EViews 14.
Dr. Sunil Govinnage , Curtin University
Sunil Govinnage, PhD is a graduate of Curtin University Sustainability Policy (CUSP). Western Australia. Sunils current research focuses on mining regulations and sustainability. Further to his current research Sunil is interested in Public Policy, Good governance , & regulatory theory.Socio-Political issues of Sri Lanka, & Asia, Development and Environmental Economics. Sunil has an interdisciplinary background in a number of academic fields and over 20 years in Western AUstralian public service work experience. His work life includes primary health care, nutrition education, media relations, disaster management, IT system training, planning & development; contract and risk management and public policy analysis and implementation in Australia and overseas. Sunil is a published poet.
Since its formal endorsement by the United Nations General Assembly in 1987, following the Brundtland Report, Sustainable Development (SD) has become a dominant global policy framework. Its evolution has included key methodological shifts, notably the adoption of the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) in 1997 to integrate economic, social, and environmental dimensions. However, TBL has been widely critiqued for its limited capacity to address cultural contexts. This workshop critically examines these limitations and proposes the Quadruple Bottom Line (QBL) as an expanded framework, emphasising culture as an essential pillar for more inclusive and context-sensitive sustainability practice.
Meirian Lovelace-Tozer Skills Development Lead (Services), Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC)
With over 10 years of experience in education, Meirian is committed to making an impact through empowering Australian research communities with a competitive advantage. Meirian delivers training and resources that support researchers to effectively leverage ARDC services.
Don't let limited computing power slow down your research. The ARDC Nectar Research Cloud provides fast and scalable computing resources tailored specifically for research. Whether you need to run intensive data analyses and complex simulations, train AI and ML models, manage big data or collaborate seamlessly across institutions, Nectar gives you the computational power to scale up your work. Join us for an interactive introduction to Nectar, where we'll cover: * What is cloud computing and how can it accelerate my research? * Real-world case studies powered by Nectar. * Guidance on accessing tutorials and ongoing support. * Live Q&A to answer your questions. No cloud computing or coding experience is required to attend.
Discover how Australia’s National Research Infrastructure (NRI) can support you in your research journey. NRI is a network of tools, data platforms and expert support designed to make research easier and more effective. Through a series of lightning talks, you will be introduced to key NRI tools and services, including high performance computing, national scale data platforms, bioinformatics, data linkage, high-quality data assets and cloud computing. You will learn how these can help you optimise your workflow, overcome common research challenges and save time on routine tasks. You will also find out where to access training and support, so you can confidently use these national resources to accelerate your research. Co-Speaker details - Meirian Lovelace-Tozer, Skills Development Lead (Services), Australia Research Data Commons (ARDC) - Sarah Thomas, Portfolio Manager, Australian Access Federation (AAF) - Dr Sara King, Training and Engagement Lead, AARNet - Mzingisi Mqhum, Stakeholder Engagement Manager, Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network (AURIN) - Dr Ludovic Capelli, Training and Education Manager, Pawsey Supercomputing Research Centre - Dr Kate Miller, Coordinator, Senior Specialist, Science and Partnerships, Population Health Research Network (PHRN) Contributed to content - Dr Abduallah Shaikh, Digital Skills Development Manager, National Computational Infrastructure (NCI) - Dr Paige Martin, Team Lead, User Training, ACCESS-NRI - Dr Melissa Burke, Training Manager, Australian BioCommons
Mzingisi Mqhum Stakeholder Engagement Manager, Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network (AURIN)
Strategic and forward-thinking Stakeholder Engagement Leader with over 20 years’ experience across government, academia, and industry. Expertise spans stakeholder engagement, project management, research, marketing, and communications, with a strong focus on building partnerships, enhancing user experiences, and driving collaborative initiatives. Recent work in research infrastructure and data services has supported national innovation through impactful engagement strategies, stakeholder mapping, and cross-functional collaboration. Proven ability to influence senior decision-makers, lead teams, and deliver outcomes aligned with strategic goals. Seeking senior leadership opportunities that leverage expertise in stakeholder strategy, data-driven innovation, and long-term partnership development.
Discover how Australia’s National Research Infrastructure (NRI) can support you in your research journey. NRI is a network of tools, data platforms and expert support designed to make research easier and more effective. Through a series of lightning talks, you will be introduced to key NRI tools and services, including high performance computing, national scale data platforms, bioinformatics, data linkage, high-quality data assets and cloud computing. You will learn how these can help you optimise your workflow, overcome common research challenges and save time on routine tasks. You will also find out where to access training and support, so you can confidently use these national resources to accelerate your research. Co-Speaker details - Meirian Lovelace-Tozer, Skills Development Lead (Services), Australia Research Data Commons (ARDC) - Sarah Thomas, Portfolio Manager, Australian Access Federation (AAF) - Dr Sara King, Training and Engagement Lead, AARNet - Mzingisi Mqhum, Stakeholder Engagement Manager, Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network (AURIN) - Dr Ludovic Capelli, Training and Education Manager, Pawsey Supercomputing Research Centre - Dr Kate Miller, Coordinator, Senior Specialist, Science and Partnerships, Population Health Research Network (PHRN) Contributed to content - Dr Abduallah Shaikh, Digital Skills Development Manager, National Computational Infrastructure (NCI) - Dr Paige Martin, Team Lead, User Training, ACCESS-NRI - Dr Melissa Burke, Training Manager, Australian BioCommons
TBC , LabArchives
LabArchives Introduces Luma Lab Connect — Enterprise Research Data Management (RDM) Gateway for Shared Resources. Academic and Research institutions are not short on data. They are short on attribution, continuity, context, standardization and institutional visibility across the data their Shared Research Resources and lab-owned instruments already generate. Join LabArchives for a webinar on how the Luma Lab Connect service is designed to help institutions aggregate, harmonize, standardize, and govern instrument data to support reproducibility, grant funding & accountability, FAIR readiness, AI-readiness, and stronger operational intelligence - without rip-and-replace infrastructure changes.