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Welcome

Welcome

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Every effort has been made to ensure that this program is free from error or omissions. However, there may be modifications of participants, speakers and the program between the date of publication and the Dialogue day.

Australia India Institute @AIinstitute @AIinstitute Australia India Institute

It is our pleasure to welcome you to the fourth annual Australia India Leadership Dialogue in Melbourne

Welcome from the Co-Chairs

The centre of the world’s economic and political gravity is shifting ever further towards the Indo-Pacific region. As it does so, new opportunities are being identified – and with them, new challenges.

Our countries, which face each other across the Indian Ocean, are ideally placed to develop a close, comprehensive partnership to take advantage of those opportunities and to confront those challenges.

Few countries in the Indo-Pacific have more in common than India and Australia. We speak the same language. We respect the same system of law. We are both multicultural, federal democracies. We even follow the same sport.

Our economic and strategic interests are converging strongly. India’s rapid economic growth and its burgeoning demand for energy, resources and education have made it one of Australia’s largest export markets. Today, Indians are welcomed as the largest national group among skilled migrants to Australia.

Beyond our joint economic interests, our countries have a shared strategic interest in ensuring a balance in the Indo-Pacific so that the region is not dominated by any one hegemonic power. This shared interest in regional security and stability is fundamental to our joint economic interests.

Relations between India and Australia have deepened dramatically over recent years, with the relationship set

to grow exponentially with the launch of Australia’s India Economic Strategy 2035 and the reciprocal Australia Economic Strategy expected to be launched by India in January 2020.

The Australia India Leadership Dialogue brings together senior leaders from our nation’s government, business and civil society. We will be discussing the mutual interests that lie at the very heart of our relationship – economic priorities such as energy, education and skills, health, agriculture and agro-processing, and infrastructure; and our converging geostrategic and security interests.

Through the Dialogue, we seek to build deeper co-operation, closer friendships and stronger relationships based on trust between leaders in government,

business and civil society from India and Australia. We will do this through the open discussion, which will now follow, and by identifying new ways and new opportunities to work together in coming years. We are delighted to host you in Melbourne, and we look forward to working with you all for the mutual benefit of our two great nations.

Ross Fitzgerald and Amitabh Mattoo Co-Chairs Australia India Leadership Dialogue

Program

Program


Sunday 8 December 2019: Opening Dinner6:00 pm - 9:30 pm

Queen’s Hall, Parliament House Melbourne

Keynote Speakers:

Steve DimopoulosParliamentary Secretary to the TreasurerState Government of VictoriaThe Hon Anumala Gitesh Sarma High Commissioner of India to Australia Government of India

Tony Abbott Former Prime Minister of Australia

Note: A bus will be departing from main entrance of the Langham Hotel at 5:30 pm sharp for Parliament House. The bus will return to the Langham Hotel at 9:30 pm.

Monday 9 December 2019: Dialogue Discussions8:45 am - 9:00 am

Clarendon Ballroom Podium Level Hotel Langham

Arrival of Guests

9:00 am - 9:20 am Welcome and Introductory Remarks

Ross Fitzgerald Co-Chair, Australia India Leadership Dialogue

Amitabh Mattoo Co-Chair, Australia India Leadership Dialogue

Australia India Leadership Dialogue 2019 Melbourne, Australia

PROGRAM

9:00 am - 9:20 am Welcome and Introductory Remarks (cont’d)

The Hon Anumala Gitesh Sarma High Commissioner of India to Australia

Craig Jeffrey Director and CEO, Australia India Institute

Tanya Spisbah Director, Australia India Institute Delhi

9:20 am - 10:00 am Roundtable Introductions Discussion Moderated by Co-Chairs

10:00 am – 11:15 am Bilateral Economic Strategies

Ashok Jacob Chair, Australia India Council and Leader of Australian Prime Minister Trade Delegation to India January 2020

Anil Wadhwa Former Senior Diplomat and Chair of CII Task Force on Australia Economic Strategy for the Indian Government

11:15 am - 11:30 am Break

11:30 am - 12:30 pm Increasing Australia India Economic Cooperation

Discussion Moderated by Co-Chairs

12:30 pm - 1:30 pm

Alto Room Level 25 Hotel Langham

Lunch Address

Penny Wong Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs Government of Australia

DD Saxena Managing Director Riverina Oils and Bio Energy

1:30 pm - 2:45 pm Evolving Security Architecture in the Region


2:45 pm - 3:00 pm Break

3:00 pm - 4:00 pm Domestic Politics and Bilateral Opportunities


4:00 pm - 4:45 pm Closing Session: Summary of Key Points and Next Steps

Ross Fitzgerald Co-Chair, Australia India Leadership Dialogue

Amitabh Mattoo Co-Chair, Australia India Leadership Dialogue

4:45 pm - 5:00 pm Vote of Thanks and End of Formal Dialogue Discussions 2019

Monday 9 December 2019: Closing Dinner7:30 pm - 9:00 pm

MCG – Melbourne Cricket Ground Olympic Room Entrance: Gate 3

Keynote Speakers:

Dan Tehan Minister for Education Government of Australia

Swapan Dasgupta Member of Parliament Rajya Sabha India

Jim Chalmers Shadow Treasurer Government of Australia

Note: A bus will be departing from the main entrance of the Langham Hotel at 6:45 pm sharp for the MCG. The bus will return to the Langham Hotel at 9:30 pm.

With special thanks to the supporters of this event:

Delegates & Observers

Delegates & Observers


DELEGATESTony Abbott Former Prime Minister of Australia

Ted Baillieu Former Premier of Victoria State Government of Victoria

Chris Bowen Shadow Minister for Health Australian Parliament

Penny Burtt Group CEO Asialink

Jim Chalmers Shadow Treasurer Australian Parliament

Swapan Dasgupta Presidential Nominee to the Rajya Sabha and Senior Journalist and Political Commentator Rajya Sabha

Karen Day Distinguished Malaria Geneticist University of Melbourne

John Dewar Vice Chancellor LaTrobe University

Steve DimopoulosParliamentary Secretary to the Treasurer State Government of Victoria

Shaurya Doval Director India Foundation

Ross Fitzgerald Co-Chair Australia India Leadership Dialogue

Gordon Flake CEO Perth USAsia Centre

Penny Fowler Chair The Herald and Weekly Times

Dawn Freshwater Vice-Chancellor The University of Western Australia

Jennifer Hewett National Affairs Columnist Australian Financial Review

Ashok Jacob Chair Australia India Council

Jeyakumar Janakaraj CEO and Country Head Adani Australia

Craig Jeffrey Director and CEO Australia India Institute

Robert Johanson Chairman Australia India Institute

Mitu Lange Director and Founder Mind Blowing Films

Greg Lewin Executive Director Sapphire Global

Milind Sudhakar Marathe Former National President ABVP India

Duncan Maskell Vice-Chancellor The University of Melbourne

Amitabh Mattoo Co-Chair Australia India Leadership Dialogue

Zoe McKenzie Principal Trade and Investment Advisory

Sid Myer Businessman and Philanthropist

Allan Myers Chancellor The University of Melbourne

Sheba Nandkeolyar CEO Multiconnexions Group

Barry O’Farrell Former Premier New South Wales

Bruce Rodgerson CEO Rubicon Water

Jang Bahadur Sangha Managing Director Sangha Group

Anumula Gitesh Sarma High Commissioner of India to Australia Government of India


Ashvini Shekhar Owner and Managing Director Global Pacific Nominees

Greg Sheridan Foreign Editor The Australian

Manuraj Shunmugasundaram Chair of the Australia India Youth Dialogue and National Media Spokesperson for the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam Party

Stephen Smith Former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Former Minister of Defence University of Western Australia

Tanya Spisbah Director Australia India Institute @ Delhi

Appu Esthose Suresh Senior Fellow The Atlantic Institute - Atlantic Fellows

Dan Tehan Minister for Education Government of Australia

Jim Varghese National Chair Australia India Business Council

Samir Vora COO and Executive Director Adani Australia

Anil Wadhwa Former Senior Diplomat and Chair of CII Task Force for the Australia Economic Strategy Government of India

Michael Wesley Deputy Vice-Chancellor International The University of Melbourne

Penny Wong Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs Australian Parliament

OBSERVERSMosiqi Acharya Journalist and a Digital Content Producer SBS Radio

Muthupandian Ashokkumar Assistant Deputy Vice Chancellor International (India) University of Melbourne

Molina Asthana Principal Swarup Asthana Lawyers and Business Advisors

Karen Barker Executive Manager and Senior Advisor Engagement Australia India Institute

Marcus Best Head of India Desk/Partner MinterEllison Legal and Consulting

Souvik Biswas International Relations and Partnerships Deakin University

Priya Chacko Senior Lecturer University of Adelaide

Susan Coles Deputy State Director Victoria State Office Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

Melissa Conley-Tyler Director Diplomacy Asialink

Andrew Cumpston Director Victoria State Office Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Government of Australia

Preeti Daga Vice-President Australia India Business Council (Victoria)

James Edwards Manager South Asia and MENA (and Regional Specialist for India), Global Victoria

Simon Evans Provost, College of Arts, Social Sciences and Commerce La Trobe University

Nathan Grills Senior Research Advisor Australia India Institute

Anoushka Gungadin CEO Global CQ

Gregory Harper Business Director and Director for India, Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences University of Melbourne

Robin Jeffrey Distinguished Fellow Australia India Institute Emeritus Professor ANU College of Asia and the Pacific

Tasia Karlis Business Development Officer City of Melbourne

Jasmin Kaur Managing Director PwC Melbourne

Vinayak Kolape Advisor, Office of the Premier of Victoria Government of Victoria

Raj Kumar Consul General Consulate General of India in Melbourne

Anita Kumari Trade Manager (Education) Victoria Government Trade and Investment Office Bengalaru

Alopi Latukefu Counsellor Public Diplomacy (Designate) Australia High Commission, New Delhi

Michael Lemieszek Assistant Director, International Engagement DPC Government of Victoria

David Linke Managing Director EduGrowth

Abhay Mehta Chief Representative CII Australia - Confederation of Indian Industry

Jessie Mitchell Manager South and Southeast Asia Team, International Engagement DPC Government of Victoria

Ashok Mysore Vice President Infosys Australia

Sally Nimon Director Policy Go8 Group of 8 Universities

David Norman Deputy Director UWA Public Policy Institute

Milind Oza CEO Wollongong Steel

Gaurav Patel General Consul Bluescope Steel

Jai Patel Head of India Business Practice KPMG Sydney

Merinda Petersen Asialink

David Phipps Director International Markets Trade and Investment Queensland

Travis Power Branch Manager Department of Education Government of Australia

Harish Rao Global Head – Business Development Sundaram Business Services

Shamit Saggar Director Public Policy Institute University of Western Australia

Sara Sahely Director Global Engagement Global Victoria

Sanushka Seomangal Partner Thomson Geer Lawyers and National Vice Chair Australia India Business Council

Ashok Sherwal President Australia India Business Council (Victoria)

Andrew Sholl Principal Hennessy Advisory

Ian SilkChief ExecutiveAustralian Super

Lisa Singh Former Senator for TasmaniaAustralian Parliament

Anuradha Sundaramurthy Consul and Head of ChanceryConsulate General of India in Melbourne

Arjun Surapaneni CEO Victoria Institute of Technology

Pradeep Taneja Lecturer in Asian Studies School of Social and Political Studies University of Melbourne

Petula Thomas Director Indo-Australian Chamber of Commerce

Raghu Dharmapuri Tirumala Senior Research Advisor Australia India Institute

Srini Vasan CEO The Jewellery Group and Chair CPA Australia India Group

Jagvinder Singh Virk Chairman India Australia Strategic Alliance

Tim Watts Federal Member for Gellibrand Australian Parliament

Geoff Whelan Counsellor (Industry) Australian High Commission in Delhi

James Wiblin Assistant SecretaryIndia and Indian Ocean Branch Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Government of Australia

Bios

Bios


Pratap Bhanu Mehta Vice Chancellor Ashoka University

Pratap Bhanu Mehta is an Indian academic. He was the president of the Centre for Policy Research, a New Delhi-based think tank and one of India’s most distinguished think tanks. He was a Professor at NYU Law School’s Global Faculty. He has previously Visiting Professor of Government at Harvard University; Associate Professor of Government and of Social Studies at Harvard, and for a brief period, Professor of Philosophy and of Law and Governance at Jawaharlal Nehru University. He became the Vice-Chancellor of Ashoka University on July 1, 2017. He has been described as “one of India’s more thoughtful intellectuals.”

Pratap Mehta has also done extensive public policy work. He was Member-Convenor of the Prime Minister of India’s National Knowledge Commission; Member of the Supreme Court appointed Lyngdoh Committee on Indian Universities and has contributed to a number of reports for leading Government of India and International Agencies. He was on the Board of Governors of IDRC. He was Vice-Chair of the World Economic Forum’s Council on Global Governance. He has also served on the Board of NIPFP, NCAER and NIID. He is also on the Editorial Board of numerous journals including the American Political Science Review and Journal of Democracy.

Pratap Mehta has published widely in the fields of political theory, intellectual history, constitutional law, politics and society in India

and international politics. His scholarly articles have appeared in leading international referred journals in the field, as well as numerous edited volumes. His early work was on eighteenth century thought, particularly on Adam Smith and the Making of the Enlightenment. He has also written on issues of Cosmopolitanism, Liberalism, Rights, Judicial Review, International Governance and Democratic Theory. His most recent publications include, The Burden of Democracy and an edited volume India’s Public Institutions. He is also a member of the group that produced Non-Alignment 2.O (Penguin 2013) and co-editor of Shaping the Emerging World: India and the Multilateral Order (Brookings Press, 2013). He and innovation, agriculture and resources, and creative industries.

Delegates

In his time as PM, the carbon tax and mining tax were repealed, free trade agreements were finalised with China, Japan and Korea; the people smuggling trade from Indonesia to Australia was halted; Australia became the second largest military contributor to the US-led campaign against Islamic State in Iraq; the biggest federally-funded infrastructure program in Australian history commenced; and Australia hosted the G20 meeting of global leaders in Brisbane in November 2014.

In 2014, and again in 2015, he spent a week running the government from a remote indigenous community.

As opposition leader at the 2010 election, he reduced a first-term Labor government to minority status before comprehensively winning the 2013 election.

Between 1996 and 2007, he was successively parliamentary secretary, minister, cabinet minister, and leader of the House of Representatives in the Howard government. As health minister, he expanded Medicare to include dentists, psychologists and other health professionals and resolved the medical indemnity crisis. As workplace relations minister for Workplace Relations, he boosted construction industry productivity through the establishment of a royal commission against union lawlessness. And as employment minister, he developed private-

sector job placement services and work-for-the-dole for long-term unemployed people.

Tony Abbott served as the member for Warringah in the Australian parliament between 1994 and 2019. As the local MP, he was instrumental in the creation of the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust to preserve the natural and built heritage of his electorate and elsewhere.

Prior to entering parliament, he was a journalist with The Australian, a senior adviser to opposition leader John Hewson, and director of Australians for Constitutional Monarchy. He has degrees in economics and law from Sydney University and in politics and philosophy from Oxford which he attended as a Rhodes Scholar.

He is the author of three books: The Minimal Monarchy (1995), How to Win the Constitutional War (1997), and Battlelines (2009).

Since 1998, he has convened the Pollie Pedal annual charity bike ride which has raised nearly $7 million for organisations such as Soldier On, Carers Australia, and other charities. He still does surf patrols with the Queenscliff Surf Life Saving Club and serves as a Deputy Captain with the Davidson Rural Fire Brigade.

He is married to Margaret and they are the parents of three daughters – Louise, Frances and Bridget.

Tony Abbott Former Prime Minister of Australia

Ted Baillieu is a former Premier of Victoria, entering Parliament in 1999 as Member for Hawthorn. He was elected Leader of the Liberal Party in 2006, becoming Victoria’s 46th Premier and Minister for Arts from 2010 to 2013, and retired from Parliament in 2014.

As a former architect and Fellow of the Australian Institute of Architects, Ted uses his knowledge and experience to explore Victoria’s challenges and build a better future for all Victorians.

He pursues a significant International Engagement Strategy to provide increased opportunities for Victorian business to grow the economy. He is the recipient of the Aust. India Business Council’s 2013 Ashoka Medal, the 2014 Asian Leadership Special Public Service Award, and is Melbourne University’s Honorary Enterprise Professor associated with the Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning.

Ted is currently Co-Chair of the Victorian Government’s Cladding Task Force, and has been Chairing the Victorian Government’s ANZAC Centenary Committee – coordinating Victoria’s commemorations. Ted is passionate about connecting as many Victorians as possible with our original ANZACs.

In 2017, Ted joined the Committee of the Melbourne Cricket Club, and was appointed Adjunct Professor, Swinburne University.

Ted is Patron of a number of groups including Multicultural Arts Victoria, Public Record Office of Victoria, The Sovereign Hill Museums Association, Queenscliffe Historical Museum and Cancer Council Victoria: Relay for Life Hawthorn. He is also Chieftain of the Victorian Highland Pipe Band Association.

Well known for his love of swimming, Ted tries to find time for a few laps or a swim in the ocean. Ted and his wife Robyn have three children.

Ted Baillieu Former Premier of Victoria

Chris Bowen entered Parliament in 2004 and has held a wide range of portfolios including serving as Treasurer, Minister for Human Services, Minister for Immigration, Minister for Financial Services, Assistant Treasurer, and Minister for Competition Policy, Minister for Small Business and Minister for Tertiary Education. Chris has been responsible for a range of significant policy reform programs in these portfolios.

He served as Interim Leader of the Labor Party and Acting Leader of the Opposition following the 2013 Federal election and served as Shadow Treasurer. He is now the Shadow Minister for Health.

Chris served on Fairfield Council for nine years, was a former Mayor of Fairfield Council, and former President of the Western Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils (WSROC).

He has a Bachelor of Economics, a Master’s Degree in International Relations and a Diploma in Modern Languages (Bahasa Indonesia).

He lives in Smithfield with his wife Rebecca, children Grace and Max and his Labradors Ollie and Toby.

Chris Bowen Shadow Minister for Health

Australian Parliament

Penny is the Group CEO of Asialink at the University of Melbourne, Australia’s leading center for the promotion of public understanding of the countries of Asia and of Australia’s role in the region. She joined Asialink from global payments company Visa, where she served on the Asia Pacific leadership team based in Singapore. Prior to Visa, Penny led External Relations and Client Service Risk for the Asia Pacific with global management consultancy, McKinsey&Company.

Penny is a former diplomat and represented Australia at a senior level in Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia and at the United Nations in Geneva and New York. She previously served as an Adviser to the Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs.

In the course of her career, Penny has participated in regional economic and trade initiatives, including bilateral and regional trade negotiations, and served as a senior business representative in key regional forums. She has served on the Boards of the U.S. National Center for APEC, the American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore, the Singapore Institute of International Affairs and the Singapore Committee of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD). She was appointed to the India-Australia CEO Forum by the Minister for Trade in 2018.

Penny Burtt CEO Asialink

Jim Chalmers MP has been the Member for Rankin since 2013, proudly representing the people and suburbs of southern Brisbane and Logan City where he was born, grew up and made a home with Laura, Leo, Annabel, and Jack.

After the 2019 election Jim was appointed Shadow Treasurer.

He first joined the Shadow Cabinet as Shadow Minister for Finance from 2016 to 2019. From 2015 to 2016 he was Shadow Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, Shadow Minister for Sport and Shadow Assistant Minister for Trade, Investment and Productivity. He was also Shadow Assistant Minister for Resources in 2016 after a stint as Shadow Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Opposition, and for Trade and Investment.

Before Jim’s election to Parliament, he was the Executive Director of the Chifley Research Centre and prior to that, Chief of Staff to the Deputy Prime Minister and Treasurer.

He has a PhD in political science and international relations and a first class honours degree in public policy, and is a qualified company director.

Jim is also a member of the Griffith University Logan Campus Development Advisory Group; the Griffith University School of Government and International Relations Advisory Board, and the Board of Advisors at the Center for Australian, New Zealand and Pacific Studies at Georgetown University in Washington D.C.

Jim’s most recent book, Changing Jobs: the Fair Go in the New Machine Age, is co-authored with Mike Quigley and was published in 2017. His earlier book about the Global Financial Crisis, Glory Daze, was released in July 2013.

Jim Chalmers Shadow Treasurer


Swapan Dasgupta Presidential Nominee to the Rajya Sabha Senior Journalist and Political Commentator

Swapan Dasgupta is a political columnist and public policy analyst with 27 years’ experience based in New Delhi, India. His columns on contemporary India are published in The Telegraph, Sunday Times of India, Asian Age, Deccan Chronicle, Pioneer, Jagran and Free press Journal. In addition, he is a regular commentator on politics on Indian TV news channels, NDTV, CNN-IBN, Times Now and Headlines Today. He has participated in roadshows on India’s political economy hosted by Deutsche Bank Equities and CLSA in Mumbai, Singapore and Hong Kong.

Educated at La Martiniere College (Kolkata) and St Stephen’s College (Delhi), Swapan Dasgupta was awarded a PhD by the School of Oriental and African Studies (London) in 1980.

Subsequently he was elected a Research Fellow at Nuffield College, University of Oxford from 1982 to 1985.

Swapan Dasgupta has occupied important editorial positions in major Indian newspapers and weeklies including Times of India, Telegraph, Indian Express and India Today. He was the London correspondent of Indian Express from 1995 to 1996. He was Managing Editor of India Today until 2003. In addition, he has been published in the Wall Street Journal, Tehelka, The Hindu and New Statesman, A specialist in Indian politics, Swapan has been on TV panels in every general election since 1998.

Karen Day Distinguished Malaria Geneticist

University of Melbourne

Professor Karen Day is a distinguished malaria researcher dedicated to improving global health. Born in Melbourne, she was educated at the University of Melbourne and completed her PhD studies in molecular parasitology at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute. Her research has described the diversity of malaria parasites globally to improve disease surveillance and control. She has extensive international experience leading field studies in malaria endemic areas of East, West and Southern Africa, India, Southeast Asia, Papua New Guinea and South America. She is a founder of the scientific discipline of genomic epidemiology studying malaria parasite variation in humans and mosquitos by combining laboratory, field and computational approaches. Professor Day is also an experienced academic administrator in medicine and science having worked in

the UK, US and Australia. Highlights include being recruited to University of Oxford in 1993 where she was soon promoted to Professor for her scholarship and leadership. She is an Emeritus Fellow of Hertford College, Oxford having been one of the first women science “dons” at that College. In 2004, Professor Day moved to New York University School of Medicine where she led the development of interdisciplinary global public health programs as Chair of the Department of Medical Parasitology and Director of the Institute of Urban and Global Health. Most recently she has been the Dean of Science at University of Melbourne from 2014 to 2019. She was made Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor for research distinction and leadership. She now continues to run her malaria research group in the Bio21 Institute at the University of Melbourne.

Professor Dewar is the Vice-Chancellor and President of La Trobe University, a position he has held since January 2012.

Professor Dewar is a graduate of the University of Oxford, where he was also a Fellow of Hertford College from 1990-1995. He taught at the Universities of Lancaster and Warwick in the UK, and worked for the London law firms Allen & Overy and Farrer & Co.

Professor Dewar came to Australia in 1995 and held senior leadership positions at Griffith University and the University of Melbourne, where he was Provost, before taking up the position of Vice-Chancellor of La Trobe.

Professor Dewar is a Deputy Chair of Universities Australia, UA Lead Vice-Chancellor on Health workforce issues and a member of the AHEIA Executive Committee. He holds a number of other Directorships, including Education Australia Pty Ltd, The Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute, AARNet, The Committee for Melbourne, and the Foundation for Australian Studies in China. He is a member of the University of Lincoln’s 21st Century Lab Higher Education Reference Group, and a Male Champion of Change. He is an Honorary Fellow of Hertford College, Oxford, an Adjunct Professor in the Melbourne Law School and the La Trobe Law School, and a Visiting Professor at the Helena Kennedy Centre for International Justice at Sheffield Hallam University.

His previous appointments include member of the Attorney-General’s Family Law Pathways Advisory Group (2000-1), Chair of the Family Law Council (2001-4), Chair of the Queensland College of Teachers (2006-9), member of the Advisory Council of the Australian Institute of Family Studies (2007-11), Chair of the Victorian Vice-Chancellors’ Committee (2014-5), Chair of the Innovative Research Universities (2014-6), and Chair of the Victorian Student Planning Advisory Group for the Victorian Department of Health (2016-7). He was a member of the Advisory Board for the Centre for Ethical Leadership at the Melbourne Business School and Ormond College from 2010-2016. In 2014, he chaired the Legislation and Finance Working Group for the Federal Education Minister.

John Dewar Vice-Chancellor and President La Trobe University

Shaurya Doval is a Managing Director at Zeus Caps wherein he leads the investment business in India. He has over 20 years of international investment banking experience during which time he has worked for over a decade in London with the leveraged finance business of GE Capital and the Investment Banking Division of Morgan Stanley. He has also worked with Corporate Finance Advisory at Arthur Andersen in India. Mr. Doval is a qualified Chartered Accountant and holds an MBA from London Business School. He is a recipient of the ‘Udyog Ratna Award’ in 2012 for his contribution to the growth of the Indian power sector.

Mr Doval is also a Director of India Foundation, a think tank based in New Delhi, with strong nationalistic credentials.

Mr. Doval was the Eisenhower Fellow from India for 2015 .

Shaurya Doval Director

India Foundation

Ross Fitzgerald Co-Chair Australia India Leadership Dialogue

Ross Fitzgerald is a Director of Visy Industries, and the Founding CEO of Spectrum Venture Management. Ross is committed to promoting greater friendship, mutual understanding and co-operation between Australia and India. To this end he is:

Co-Chairman, the Australia India Leadership Dialogue; and the India Australia Israel Food and Water Security Dialogue; Board member of the Australia India Institute; the Australian Friends of ASHA; and the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne.

Ross was formerly a consultant with McKinsey & Co., and he has an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Professor Gordon Flake is the founding CEO of the Perth USAsia Centre at The University of Western Australia.

Having built an internationally recognised profile over 25 years of think-tank expertise and leadership in Washington DC, Professor Flake relocated to Perth in 2014 to establish the Centre, and to build a broader world-class Indo-Pacific strategic community.

Prior to joining the Centre, he was the Executive Director of the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation, a Senior Fellow and Associate Director of the Program on Conflict Resolution at The Atlantic Council of the United States and prior to that Director for Research and Academic Affairs at the Korea Economic Institute of America.

Professor Flake is one of Australia’s leading authorities on the Indo-Pacific, with a particular specialisation on Korea having spent nearly three decades focused on the Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia. Gordon has edited several volumes and authored numerous chapters on developments in the region.

Gordon holds a number of strategic leadership roles including currently serving on the United States Studies Centre Board and as Fellow of the College at St Catherine’s College at The University of Western Australia. He has previously served on the Board of the United States Committee of the Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific (USCSCAP) as co-Vice Chair of the Board of the US Committee for Human Rights in North Korea, on the Advisory Council on the Korea Economic Institute of America, and on the International Advisory Board of the David M. Kennedy Centre at Brigham Young University.

He received his BA degree in Korean with a minor in international relations from Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. He completed his MA at the David M. Kennedy Centre for International and Area Studies, also at BYU. He speaks both fluent Korean and Laotian.

Gordon Flake CEO

Perth USAsia Centre

Penny Fowler Chair The Herald & Weekly Times

Penny Fowler is Chairman of the Herald & Weekly Times, a role she was appointed to in July 2013.

Penny acts as News Corp Australia’s Community Ambassador. Her involvement in building on the company’s legacy of supporting the communities within which we live and work is an area she is passionate about.

Penny is Chairman of the Royal Children’s Hospital Good Friday Appeal, is a Board member of The Australian Ballet, Deputy Chairman of The Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria and a Board Member of The National Portrait Gallery.

She is also on the Advisory Board of Visy, the Advisory Board of the Bank of Melbourne and has recently been appointed to the Board of Tourism Australia.

A graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, Penny holds a Bachelor of Business degree from Monash (Chisholm) University and is a CEW member.

Dawn Freshwater Vice-Chancellor

The University of Western Australia

Professor Dawn Freshwater was appointed Vice-Chancellor of The University of Western Australia in January 2017. The UWA 2030 vision and accompanying Strategic Plan 2020-2025 have been established under her direction, following widespread consultation and collaboration.

Dawn is Chair and Director of the Group of Eight, Chair of the Matariki Network of Universities, Vice-Chair of the Partnership Board of the Worldwide Universities Network and the Australian Higher Education Industrial Association, a Governor of the Forrest Research Foundation, Board Director of Lifeline WA, Board Director Research Australia and a member of the National Health and Research Medical Council Women in Health Science Committee.

Professor Freshwater was also instrumental in leading the creation and development of the UWA Public Policy Institute, which creates a bridge between academic research and government, public and business needs – nationally and globally.

A strong advocate of industry engagement and of the role of higher education in supporting trade agreements, Professor Freshwater maintains strong professional ties with key figures in education and industry in Asia, Europe and the United States, and is a member of the Federal Minister’s Higher Education Industry advisory group. Her academic research in Public Health and Leadership Practices won her the highest honour in her field – Fellowship of the Royal College of Nursing.

Jennifer Hewett National Affairs Columnist Australian Financial Review

Jennifer Hewett is the National Affairs Columnist for The Australian Financial Review, Australia’s national financial and political paper. She writes a daily column for page two of the paper focussed on business and political issues. Jennifer has been a journalist for more than three decades, working in Canberra, Sydney and the US for major Australian papers owned by News and Fairfax. She also appears regularly on tv and radio. Originally from Western Australia, she lives in Sydney.

Mr Jacob is the Executive Chairman and Portfolio Manager of Ellerston Capital.

He is also a Director of MRF Ltd, one of India’s largest tyre companies based in Chennai.

Mr Jacob is a director of Thorney Opportunities Limited. Mr Jacob was the Managing Director of Thorney Holdings, the investment arm of the Pratt Group, from 1991 to 1998, after joining in 1984.

He was previously a member of Australia’s Trade, Tourism and Investment Policy Advisory Council chaired by the then Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment. He was also a former director of Malayala Manorama, one of India’s largest media companies.

Mr Jacob holds an MBA from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania and a Bachelor of Science from St Joseph’s College, Bangalore, India.

Ashok Jacob Chair, Australia India Council and Leader of Australian Prime Minister Trade Delegation to India January 2020

Jeyakumar Janakaraj CEO and Country Head Adani Australia

Jeyakumar Janakaraj, better known as JJ, serves as the Chief Executive Officer and Country Head of Adani Group’s Australian operations. JJ joined the Adani Group in 2013 and is responsible for Adani’s business in Australia including the Carmichael coal mine, rail and port projects. JJ has a Mechanical Engineering degree from PSG College of Technology, in Coimbatore and a rich experience of 25 years in the mining industry; building and developing world-class mining projects and resource companies.

JJ began his career in the steel sector in India as a mechanical maintenance engineer before joining Sterlite Industries, where he remained and progressed for 18 years. During this tenure he held a number of executive roles, including CEO and Director of Konkola Copper Mines in Zambia, at Copper Mines of Tasmania and also President of Hindustan Zinc. JJ has proven that hard work, dedication and the right attitude are key traits that have facilitated him to thrive in his professional career and grow through the ranks. He was responsible for the concept to completion of all the expansion projects of Hindustan Zinc and greatly supported the company to achieve excellence in business.

In 2006, JJ was awarded the Gold Medal by the Indian Institute of Metals for his significant contribution to the non-ferrous metallurgical industry and is also listed by the International Who’s Who of Professionals (2009). In 2008 he was awarded the DEMAG Gold medal for innovative leadership by the Indian Institute of Metals. He also is a member of the Global Mining Executive Council of Accenture. He is on the Board of CIAB of IEA.

Professor Craig Jeffrey is Director and CEO of the Australia India Institute, Professor of Geography at the University of Melbourne, and former Professor of Geography at the University of Oxford where he was also an Official Fellow of St. John’s College. He works on South Asia, youth, and the politics of development.

Building on long-term social research in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Professor Jeffrey has made a major contribution to scholarly and popular understanding of India and youth. He has written seven books related to India, including Timepass: Youth, Class and the Politics of Waiting in India (Stanford University Press 2010), which is one of the most highly cited research monographs published on India during the past ten years. He has also written India Today: Economy, Society and Politics (with Stuart Corbridge and John Harriss; Polity 2012); and India: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press 2017).

Professor Jeffrey’s scholarship has influenced the thinking of organisations such as the United Nations, World Bank, Department of International Development (UK), and Commonwealth Government of Australia. In 2014 he was elected a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences (UK) in recognition of “the outstanding impact of his work”. In 2017 he was elected as Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia and in 2019 he was elected Fellow of the Australian Academy of Humanities. Professor Jeffrey has advised over 20 PhD researchers several of whom are now in senior academic and policy positions globally.

Craig Jeffrey Director and CEO

Australia India Institute

Robert Johanson is the Chair of Australia India Institute Board and Australian Friends of Asha; as well as Director of Neuclone Ltd and Robert Salzer Foundation. He was the chair of Bendigo and Adelaide Bank until 2019. He was the Deputy Chancellor of University of Melbourne (2007-2017) and member of Takeovers Panel. He worked at corporate advisory firm Grant Samuel and since 1993 was responsible for its Melbourne office. Robert has 35 years’ experience in corporate finance and investment banking, including the corporate division of Macquarie Bank, and has been involved in a wide variety of capital markets transactions for leading corporations.

Robert Johanson Chairman Australia India Institute

Mitu Bhowmick Lange is the Director & Founder of Mind Blowing Films. She is also the Director of Mind Blowing World, which is an independent film distribution company that specialises in the distribution of quality local content to Australian, New Zealand and Fiji audiences.

Mitu Bhowmick Lange is one of the most renowned names contributing to the global outreach of Indian cinema in the past decade. She is the Festival Director of the Indian Film Festival - Bollywood and Beyond and the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne.

Mitu began her career in Bombay where for six years she directed several TV shows including entertainment, news and fashion magazine programs and a daily breakfast show for leading channels including BBC World, Star Plus, Zee TV and Sony TV.

Since living in Australia, Mitu has produced and introduced several Indian productions to Australia, including producing 13 episodes shot in Australia of India’s number 1 daily television serial Kahani Ghar Kii (similar to Neighbours), Bollywood film Koi Aap Saa and blockbusters like Salaam Namaste, Chak De India, Bachna Aye Haseeno, Main Aurr Mrs Khanna, Thoda Pyar Thoda Magic, Love Aaj kal and several leading television commercials with international cricketers made for the Indian market. She also produced the film Spice Girls of India, which was screened at the London Feminist Film Festival.

In 2016, Mitu produced the multi award-winning documentary, Raising the Bar which was directed by renowned Indian filmmaker, Onir. The film depicts the trials, tribulations and joys of six individuals from Australia and India with Down Syndrome who meet the World Down Syndrome Conference in Chennai, India.

In 2017, Mitu received the Jill Robb Award from Film Victoria recognising her achievements, leadership and mentorship of other women from the sector.

In 2018, Mitu designed and curated an Australian film showcase at the 2018 Kolkata International Film Festival. The showcase focused on 100 years of Australian Cinema with a poster exhibition and film screenings, as well as a retrospective of Phillip Noyce Films and the best of Australian films. The festival hosted guests such as Simon Baker, Phillip Noyce, Jill Bilcock, Sue Maslin, Garth Davis and Benjamin Gilmore and had over 120,000 attendees. She continues to curate films from Australia and New Zealand for the International Film Festival of India in Goa and the Kolkatta International Film Festival.

In 2018, Mitu was appointed to the Board of Film Victoria, becoming the first Indian in Australia to be offered this prestigious role.

In 2019, Mitu produced a music video called ‘Ode to love’ for World Down Syndrome Day to celebrate the love between 20 different fathers and their daughters across two continents. The video has already had over 400,000 views and reached over 57 million people.

Mitu Bhowmick Lange Director and Founder

Mind Blowing Films

Greg graduated in Chemical Engineering from Melbourne University in 1975. He joined Shell and then completed his MBA at Melbourne University, graduating as the Clemenger Award winner in 1984. During his tenure with Shell he worked in Shell Australia’s Retail and Manufacturing businesses, was Manufacturing Director for Norske Shell, became Vice President Manufacturing, Supply and Distribution for Shell Europe, and Executive Vice President Strategy and Portfolio for Royal Dutch Shell’s Oil Products Business. In 2003 he was appointed as Executive Vice President of Shell Downstream and President of Shell Global Solutions.

Greg has served as a Sasol Non-Executive Director, a Non-Executive Director of Alinta Energy, a Non-Executive Director of CO2CRC, Chairman of Molopo Energy, Chairman of Latrobe Valley Power, Chairman of the Industry Advisory Group: Faculty of Chemical and BioMolecular Engineering, Melbourne University, Chairman of Leofwine, President of The Institute of Chemical Engineers and President of the World Chemical Engineering Council.

Greg is currently Executive Director of Sapphire Global, Chairman of Loy Yang B, Chairman of the WAMA Foundation and Chairman of Emerald Experiences. He is an International Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, a Fellow of The Institution of Chemical Engineers and a Fellow of Engineers Australia.

In 2012, Greg was awarded the Order of Australia for his service to the profession of Chemical Engineering through senior roles in the petroleum industry, to business and commerce, and to professional organisations. He was awarded the CHEMECA medal in 2013 for outstanding service to Chemical Engineering.

Greg Lewin Executive Director Sapphire Global

Milind Sudhakar Marathe Former National President, ABVP India

Associate Professor, Department of Electronics Engineering, K.J.Somaiya College of Engineering, University of Mumbai

Milind Marathe is an active member of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, popularly known as ABVP, since his college days. He worked as an honorary for ABVP from June 1984 to June 1990 in the capacity of area Organising Secretary of Shivaji University and State Organising Secretary of Rajasthan. In this period he was instrumental in conceiving, planning and executing multipronged activities for students and youths. He was Secretary of ‘Vidyarthi Nidhi Trust’, a Mumbai based NGO working for overall development of students.

He is deeply interested in policies regarding Higher Education in India. Represented ABVP in forming the Draft National Education Policy (NEP) 2019. He has a deep knowledge of NEP 2019 and its impact on Indian education.

His present responsibility in ABVP is Special Invitee, National Executive Council.

Some noteworthy assignments in ABVP:

• President of ABVP, Maharashtra State (from December 1998 to January 2003)

• National President of ABVP (from 2008 to 2012)

Milind Marathe is also:

• Member, of Institute of Engineers India.

• Life member, of Indian Society of Technical Education, New Delhi.

• Former Member, Academic Council, University of Mumbai.

• President’s Nominee, Executive Council: North-Eastern Hill University (NEHU), Shillong and Meghalaya.

Professor Duncan Maskell became Vice-Chancellor of the University of Melbourne in October 2018.

Professor Maskell believes firmly in universities’ leadership roles in public discussion and debate, and in fostering critical reflection across all knowledge areas. He is a strong supporter of a diversity and inclusion agenda, and Indigenous partnerships.

Professor Maskell believes in universities’ unique role in supporting basic discovery research but is also committed to translation and commercialisation of new knowledge.

Previously holding professorial and leadership roles at the University of Cambridge, in a distinguished academic career Professor Maskell has published extensively on bacterial infections in livestock and people. He has co-founded four biotech companies, and been a non-executive Director of Genus plc, a global FTSE250 company.

He is an elected Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences and an Honorary Associate of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.

Duncan Maskell Vice-Chancellor The University of Melbourne

Amitabh Mattoo Co-Chair

Australia India Leadership Dialogue

Professor Amitabh Mattoo is Professor of International Relations at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi and Chair of the Board of India’s top ranked College: Miranda House, University of Delhi. He is also Chief Mentor of StratFirst and Honorary Professor of International Relations at the Faculty of Arts, University of Melbourne.

Prof Mattoo has been the Vice Chancellor of the University of Jammu, the youngest to hold the position in Independent India, and a Member of the National Knowledge Commission. He has been a foundation Director of the Australia India Institute, and cabinet-ranked Advisor to the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir and a member of the National Security Council’s Advisory Board.

A D.Phil. from the University of Oxford, he has received an Honorary Doctorate from Hindustan University and the Padma Shri - one of India’s highest civilian awards.

Zoe McKenzie Principal Trade & Investment Advisory

Zoe McKenzie is Principal of Trade and Investment Advisory, a firm which advises Australian and international entities on their market expansion into Australia or into one of Australia’s current or future Free Trade Agreement partners.

Prior to this role, Zoe was Chief of Staff to the Hon Andrew Robb AO, former Trade and Investment Minister, where she worked on the China, Japan, South Korea and Singaporean trade deals, as well as the Trans Pacific Partnership and lead-in work on future FTAs with Europe and Indonesia. She has also held policy development roles in education, the arts and the law.

Before working in Government, Zoe practiced as a commercial lawyer in one of Australia’s largest law firms, and was a strategic adviser to the CEO of a major professional services firm.

Zoe is a board member of the Australia Council for the Arts, the French Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the University of Melbourne Humanities Foundation.

Sidney Hordern Myer Businessman and Philanthropist

Sid Myer is the Chairman of Myer Family Investments Pty Ltd, and the Chairman of the Estate of Sidney Myer.

After 20 years as the Chief Executive Officer of The Yulgilbar Group of Companies, Mr Myer stepped down in 2016 and remains a non-executive director of the Group. He is also a Director of boutique fund manager, Copia Investment Partners, and family office business, Mutual Trust.

Mr Myer graduated in economics and marketing from Monash University. He has over 35 years’ experience in retailing and investment management industries in Australia and overseas.

Mr Myer has built diverse global networks across business, government, academia and the arts. He has particularly strong associations with Asia, having lived and worked in Asia over many years.

Mr Myer is an active contributor to, and supporter of, many charitable projects. Since his retirement as Chairman of Asialink, after 12 years in the role, he continues to serve as a Patron. Mr Myer is also a Director of the Yulgilbar Foundation and a Trustee of The Sidney Myer Fund, which funds initiatives across a wide range of social and community projects in Australia.

Most recently, Mr Myer joined the Heads-over-Heels National Advisory Board. He is also a Member of the Advisory Council for the World Mosquito Program. Both are not-for-profit organisations.

Mr Myer joined the Board of the National Portrait Gallery of Australia in July 2013, and in 2016 was appointed Deputy Chairman and the President of the National Portrait Gallery Foundation.

After a three-year term as a Trustee of Asia Society New York, Mr Myer retired in February 2013 and was appointed to the Asia Society Global Council.

Previously, Mr Myer has served as the Chairman of Zoos Victoria Foundation, as a Member of the Australia-Thailand Institute and as the Chairman of the National Asian Languages and Studies in Schools Ministerial Reference Group.

Sid Myer is married to Fiona and has three children. He is a competitive horseman, a keen skier, golfer and a participant in number of other sports.

Allan James Myers Chancellor The University of Melbourne

Allan Myers

Allan Myers is one of Her Majesty’s Counsel in all States and Territories of Australia and New Zealand and a barrister in England and Papua New Guinea. For 40 years he has practised continuously as a barrister, principally in Victoria, although his professional work has led to appearances in all jurisdictions within Australia, Papua New Guinea and England. His practice has been predominantly in aspects of commercial law. He has frequently advised in relation to transactions under the laws of other countries. He sits as an arbitrator in many international arbitrations.

Mr Myers holds degrees from the University of Melbourne (BA, LLB (Hons)) and Oxford University (BCL). He holds the honorary degrees of Doctor of the University from the Australian Catholic University (DUniv (ACU)), conferred in May 2004, and Doctor of Laws from the University of Melbourne (Hon LL.D. (Melb)), conferred in March 2012. He was appointed the first Fellow of the University of Melbourne in 2015. On 1 January 2017 he became the Chancellor of the University of Melbourne.

Mr Myers was awarded a Centenary Medal in 2001, the centenary of the Commonwealth of Australia, for service to philanthropy and business achievements. In 2007 he became an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO). In January 2016 he became a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC).

Sheba Nandkeolyar Founder & CEO

MultiConnexions Group

Sheba founded Australia’s leading and largest independent multicultural and diaspora communication and marketing company – MultiConnexions. In fact, she is the first Australian-Indian businesswoman in the advertising & communications industry and is a sought-after global marketer for her diaspora experience.

In 2018, Sheba founded Global Connexions, part of MultiConnexions Group, which delivers cross-border business and cross-cultural consultancy to Australian companies working with Asia. The company also selectively represents business groups from Asia in Australia and offers marketing and distribution rights for Asia for companies interested in expanding to Asia.

Sheba’s board positions include DFAT Board Member - Australia India Council, DFAT Board Member – NCP, Board Member of International Advertising Association – Australia Chapter (IAA) – Headquartered in New York, USA among others.

Sheba has been at the forefront in organising Trade Missions to and from India and other Asian countries. She actively contributed to FTA/ CECA/ IES 2035 inputs and has been advising Prime Ministers, Premiers, Ministers and Government officials and Australian companies on trade and business matters pertaining to India.

Sheba is passionate and keen to fast track Australia’s bilateral relationship with India.

Her dream is to see India as one of Australia’s top 3 bilateral business partners.

Barry O’Farrell Former Premier New South Wales

Mr O’Farrell was a member of the New South Wales Parliament from 1995 until 2015 and served as the Premier of New South Wales from 2011 until 2014. Mr O’Farrell initiated and led annual trade missions to India to promote and grow economic, cultural and social links between New South Wales and the states of India. In 2012 his government established a Sister State relationship between New South Wales and the Indian state of Maharashtra.

In 2013 during a visit to India Mr O’Farrell began work towards a similar agreement with Gujarat at a meeting with then Chief Minister Narendra Modi. In October 2016 Mr O’Farrell was appointed as the Special Envoy for the NSW-India Relationship. Mr O’Farrell is currently the Independent President and Board Chair of Diabetes Australia.

Bruce Rodgerson Chief Executive Officer

Rubicon Water

Bruce Rodgerson is a founding director and current Chief Executive Officer of Rubicon Water, an innovative technology company providing irrigation solutions that manage the supply of water from catchment to crop to increase agricultural productivity.

Prior to becoming CEO, Bruce’s contributions to the company included establishing the manufacturing and project delivery business units. He also played a significant role as part of Rubicon’s business development team, assisting the formation of commercial operations and managing the R&D programs.

In 2010 Bruce was appointed CEO, following on from founding Chief Executive David Aughton, to lead the company through its next stage of international growth. Bruce has been a regular visitor to India with a direct role in the development of Rubicon’s presence in India, which now contributes 40% of global revenues for the company.

Rubicon has been operating since 1995 and has more than 180 customers globally, including; Australia, China, India, Latin America and USA.

Mr Jang Bahadur Singh Sangha is the Director of Sangha Group based in the state of Punjab in India. The state is also known as food bowl of India for its high agricultural output and inclination towards world class agricultural technologies.

The Sangha group has been the largest producer of seed and table potatoes in Asia since 40 years. It is located at Jalandhar in the state of Punjab, an area known for the highest quality of seed production in India. The group is producing over 55,000 tons of high quality potato seed annually which is the largest volume produced by a single group in India. The disease-free seed potatoes are produced under a limited generation seed program on an area of about 5000 acres in Punjab which is leased from farmers. In addition to potato, Sangha group is one of the major producers of maize in the country.

Mr. Sangha, has a Bachelor’s Degree in Agriculture (Honours) from Punjab Agricultural University, India & a Master of Science degree from Cornell University, USA in Fruit & Vegetable Science with specialization in Biotechnology based seed-potato production. He is a renowned businessman & a progressive farmer who sits on various Boards in advisory capacity.

Jang Bahadur Sangha Managing Director Sangha Group

Anumula Gitesh Sarma High Commissioner of India to Australia

Government of India

Anumala Gitesh Sarma High Commissioner of India to Australia

Government of IndiaBorn on 25th March 1961. Completed his B.A. (Hons) and M.A. in Political Science from Delhi University.

Joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1986. Worked in Ministry of External Affairs as Under Secretary (Europe East) and Director (Central Asia).

Mr. Sarma’s overseas assignments include Indian Missions in Russia, Ukraine, Hong Kong, Pakistan and United Kingdom. He has been Ambassador of India to Uzbekistan and High Commissioner of India in Fiji.

Additionally, served as the Officer on Special Duty (IT Enabled Services) in the Information Technology Department of the state of Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad, India. He was also Joint Secretary (External Relations) in the Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India. Mr.Sarma was Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs until November 2019.

Born on 25th March 1961. Completed his B.A. (Hons) and M.A. in Political Science from Delhi University.

Joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1986. Worked in Ministry of External Affairs as Under Secretary (Europe East) and Director (Central Asia).

Mr. Sarma’s overseas assignments include Indian Missions in Russia, Ukraine, Hong Kong, Pakistan and United Kingdom. He has been Ambassador of India to Uzbekistan and High Commissioner of India in Fiji.

Additionally, served as the Officer on Special Duty (IT Enabled Services) in the Information Technology Department of the state of Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad, India. He was also Joint Secretary (External Relations) in the Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India. Mr. Sarma was Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs until November 2019.

DD is Promoter Director and Founder of ROBE, one of the largest Food/Agri Investment ($150 million) in an oilseed crushing & refining plant in Wagga Wagga, Australia. He has also successfully set up current only Cottonseed Crushing Plant in Australia making blended cottonseed-based animal feed products. He is currently MD of Oilseeds Australia Pty Ltd.

He has successfully set up multiple green-field projects in four countries, has exceptional entrepreneurial flair and has senior management experience with quality organisations such as Unilever, Thapar Group of Companies (Ballarpur Industries) and was Managing Director of Bakrie International which is a multi-billion dollar company in South East Asia. DD is the only Australian who has established a greenfield project both in Australia and India which has been successful.

DD is also a member of the Australia India CEO Forum which is conducted by DFAT and the Chair of India Business Forum which is an initiative of CII launched 2018 in Australia.

DD was honoured with the prestigious Indian Australian Ambassador of the Year Award for 2015 at the Annual India Australia Business and Community Awards (IABCA) 2015 and was awarded the Asia Pacific Entrepreneur of the Year (NRI of the Year Award) by Times Now 2016. DD was also awarded the CEO of the year for Energy and Resources Category in 2016. The Award was instituted by Hancock Investments.


Ashvini Shekhar Owner and Managing Director

Global Pacific Nominees

Ashvini Shekhar is founder and CEO of Ascent Yarns, a leading speciality yarns manufacturer with operations in Australia, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and India.

Ascent is the world’s largest supplier of yarns for branding. It has pioneered solutions to meet global fashion houses’ branding and security needs. Ascent was the first company in the world to recycle plastic waste to make woven labels. It is currently leading efforts to make cotton production more sustainable, reducing its waste and water footprint.

Ashvini, an engineer by training, has also successfully started and exited businesses in renewable energy and consumer electronics. Outside work, he is a husband, a father, and a student of Buddhism.

Greg Sheridan Foreign Editor The Australian

Greg Sheridan AO, The Australian’s foreign editor, is the most influential foreign affairs commentator in Australia. He is the author of six books on international relations and has been foreign editor since 1992. He entered journalism in 1979 as a staff writer for The Bulletin and joined The Australian newspaper in 1984 as an editorial writer and in 1985 was appointed the paper’s first ever Beijing correspondent. After postings to Washington and Canberra he took up the position of Foreign Editor in 1992.

Greg Sheridan’s work has appeared in newspapers and journals around the world, including the Sunday Times, The Wall Street Journal, the South China Morning Post, the Jakarta Post and the Hindustan Times. In 2001 he was awarded the Centenary of Federation medal by the Australian Government for services to journalism. In 2015 he was appointed as an Officer in the Order of Australia.

Greg has interviewed Presidents and Prime Ministers in the Republic of Korea, Japan, India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, New Zealand and Israel, and cabinet secretaries and vice presidents in China, the United States and numerous countries in the Middle East and Europe. He is a frequent commentator on TV and radio and a sought-after speaker at regional conferences. His work has been anthologised in many books and has been translated into many other languages.

Greg has written six books, most of them on Asian politics and foreign affairs. His most recent book is a memoir, When We Were Young and Foolish, and he has a new book scheduled for publication in September.

Manuraj Shunmugasundaram Chair of the Australia India Youth Dialogue and National Media

Spokesperson for the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam Party

Mr. Manuraj Shunmugasundaram is the National Media Spokesperson for the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam party. He is, currently, the Chair of the Steering Committee for Australia India Youth Dialogue, the premier Track-II dialogue between the two countries.

Mr. Shunmugasundaram is also a lawyer and practices at the Madras High Court. He is the Managing Partner of Ganesan and Manuraj Legal LLP, a boutique law firm with cross-jurisdictional specialization. He is also a part of the Steering Committee for the School of Policy and Governance.

In the past, he has also served as a Policy Advisor to Members of Parliament. In No-vember of 2010, Mr. Shunmugasundaram was selected as a Fellow with the Legislative Fellows Program, organized by the U.S. State Department, in 2010. He also participated in the European Union Visitor Program in 2013 as well as the Australia-India Youth Dialogue in 2014. He was a part of Project Interchange Indian delegation to visit Israel & Palestine in 2017. Mr. Shunmugasundaram works to advance the cause of responsible politics, participatory governance, and evidence-based public policy. He is a regular contributor to The Hindu, Times of India, Indian Express, Huffington Post and The Print.

Mr. Shunmugasundaram holds a B.Sc. (Honours) as well as a M.Phil from the Australian National University, where he was the recipient of the International Undergraduate Scholarship and Masters Departmental Research scholarship. He also holds a graduate law degree from the University of Delhi.

Stephen Smith Former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Former Minister of Defence University of Western Australia

Professor Stephen Smith has been a Professor of Public International Law at the University of Western Australia since 2014. He is currently the Chairman of archTIS, Chairman of the Advisory Board of Sapien Cyber, Chair of the Advisory Board of the UWA Public Policy Institute, a member of the Board of the Perth USAsia Centre and a Member of the Board of the LNG Marine Fuel Institute.

Professor Smith was Federal Member for Perth for the Australian Labor Party from March 1993 until September 2013. In a distinguished career spanning 20 years in the Australian Federal Parliament, Professor Smith served as the Minister for Defence, and prior to that, as Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Trade.

Following upon his retirement from the Australian Parliament in 2013, Professor Smith was a member of the EY (Ernst and Young) Oceania Government and Public Sector Advisory Board (2014 - 2017), Chair of the Asia Desk and a member of the Advisory Board of Perth Law firm Lavan (2014 – 2017), and a member of the Board of Hockey Australia (2013 - 2016).

Professor Smith completed his Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws at the University of Western Australia, and has practised as a Barrister and Solicitor in Perth. He then completed a Master of Laws in Public International Law at London University, and subsequently lectured and tutored in Law in London.

Tanya Spisbah Director

Australia India Institute @ Delhi

Tanya Spisbah is a renowned and influential expert on Australia-India relations, particularly with respect to health and sustainable development. A career diplomat with the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade for more than a decade, Ms Spisbah served from 2014-17 at the Australian High Commission, New Delhi, specialising in health and technology diplomacy for inclusive, sustainable growth. She notably led the health agenda resulting in the Australian and Indian Prime Ministers exchanging an MoU for Health and Medicine, paving the way for cooperation on digital health. Other areas of policy leadership include smart cities and infrastructure, governance and investment. Previous roles in the Department include placements in Moscow and Baghdad. She

has negotiated free trade agreements with a number of Asian partners, including China, South Korea and ASEAN, led Australia’s education agenda in the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation and represented Australia at the World Trade Organization on intellectual property and environment. Ms Spisbah was formerly a lawyer with Minter Ellison, specialising in IP and technology. Most recently, Ms Spisbah was Head, Strategic International Engagement, at the University of New South Wales, Sydney. Ms Spisbah is passionate about the Australia-India relationship and sustainable development. She holds degrees in law, philosophy and economics and a Master of Laws from University of Melbourne in International Trade and Development.

Appu Esthose Suresh Senior Fellow, Atlantic Institute Rhodes House, University of Oxford

Appu joined India’s second largest English daily, Hindustan Times, in 2016 as its Editor (Special Assignments) to spearhead the newspaper’s investigative efforts. There he has promoted evidence-based journalism while reporting on social issues. Traditionally, reporting on riots in India tends to be episodic in its examination of the local causes of Hindu-Muslim conflict. However, Appu secured a vast database of police and intelligence records, spanning over five years from three communally sensitive states of India and, using field reporting to illuminate trends that were evident in the data, he made a significant contribution to public understanding of a sensitive and complex topic. Most importantly, Appu mapped the shifting paradigm of communal conflict from large scale violence to high intensity low-key communal tensions, which remained unnoticed till then.

Appu also has a deep interest in the political economy and followed the rise of crony capitalism in India. In documenting this, he has produced an original estimation of the size of the black economy in the country, based on previously unavailable data.

Appu graduated from St.Stephen’s college, Delhi where he started reporting while still a college student. During the same time, he was associated with civil society movements, particularly land struggles and campaign against state led human rights violations.

In a decade long career, he has reported from 20 provinces on issues ranging from conflict to corruption. Prior to joining the Hindustan Times, Appu was an Assistant Editor with Indian Express and was part of the team that collaborated with International Consortium of Investigative Journalist to work on tax havens.

Appu is currently working on two book projects. In his spare time he likes to travel, play golf and swim.

Dan Tehan Minister for Education

Government of Australia

The Hon Dan Tehan MP is the Member for Wannon in Victoria. He is Minister for Education and was sworn in on 28 August 2018.

Mr Tehan served as Minister for Social Services from 20 December 2017. Prior to this, he was the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs, Minister for Defence Personnel, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Cyber Security and Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for the Centenary of Anzac.

Mr Tehan was elected to Federal Parliament in 2010 and has held positions as the Chair of the

Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security; Chair of the Victorian Consultative Panel for the Black Spot Programme; Chair of the Coalition Policy Committee on Economics and Finance; Co-Chair of the Parliamentarians Supporting Cancer Causes; Co-Chair of the Parliamentary Friends of Youth Mental Health, and; Chair of the Coalition Friends of Tourism.

Prior to entering Parliament, Mr Tehan worked in agriculture in Australia and overseas. He has worked in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade where he held various roles, including as a diplomat at the Australian Embassy in Mexico. Mr Tehan worked at senior levels of the Australian Government, including as a Senior Adviser to the Deputy Prime Minister and Chief of Staff to the Minister for

Small Business and Tourism. He also worked as the Director of Trade Policy and International Affairs at the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and as Deputy State Director for the Victorian Liberal Party.

Mr Tehan has Masters Degrees in International Relations and Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Mr Tehan is married and lives in Hamilton. He is a passionate supporter of the Richmond Football Club and enjoys spending time outdoors with his family.

Jim Varghese National Chair Australia India Business Council

Jim Varghese is Chairman and owner of the Leadership Company Qld Pty Ltd and Executive Director of the Springfield City Group. He is also National Chair of the Australia India Business Council. Jim is also Director of MindHive Pty Ltd, a crowdsourcing platform harnessing the power of collective intelligence to solve our most pressing issues with the power of many and Deputy Chair of the Puuya Foundation serving the indigenous community of Lockhart River in North Queensland. He is Chair of the Gandhi Salt March Ltd which delivered the successful 2017 Power of Peace Festival.

Jim has 30 years’ experience as a Chief Executive in leading government agencies covering Transport, Main Roads, Education, Training, Employment and Primary Industries in both the Victorian and Queensland public sector. He was commissioned by the Queensland government to chair and deliver the 2017 independent review of the personalised transport industry in Queensland. He has chaired and completed an independent White Paper on the Australia’s red meat industry for the red meat advisory council and the Australian Government.

For over three years, Jim has served as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Queensland. His contribution to education includes serving on the Council of Queensland University of Technology, the Senate of University of Queensland and the Council of the University of Southern Queensland.

Jim has received the Centenary Medal for services to the Public Sector and the Order of Australia for Services to Public Sector Reform and Services to the Community. He is a Fellow of CPA Australia, Australian Institute of Management, Royal Institute of Public Administration and Australian Marketing Institute. He has a Bachelor of Ars (Honours) and a Bachelor of Divinity from the University of Queensland and a Diploma of Education and an MBA from the University of Melbourne.

Samir Vora

Samir VoraChief Operating Officer and Executive DirectorAdani Australia

Samir serves as the Executive Director of Adani Group Australia. Samir has over 20 years’ experience in the International Trading and the Resource sector, with his main area of expertise in Coal Mining and Infrastructure and holds a Bachelor of Science (Computer Science) from the California State University (US).

Appointed to his current position with Adani Australia in 2011, Samir is responsible for the development of the Carmichael Coal Mine, North Galilee Basin Railway and Abbot Point Port (T0) expansion with a total capital outlay of AUD 10 Bn. Samir on the board of Adani Mining Pty Ltd & Adani Abbot Point Terminal Pty Ltd.

Previously Samir was CEO of Mundra Solar PV Ltd for which he was responsible for establishing and operating India’s largest integrated solar factory, producing 1.2GW of solar cells and modules.

Prior to this, Samir was CEO of PT Adani Global (Indonesia), responsible for the development & operation of the green-field coal mine “Bunyu” which is located in East Kalimanthan. Concurrently, he held the position as Director Mining of Adani Mining Pvt Ltd (India) and was responsible for development of Parsa East and Kente Basan Coal Mine.

Born in the United States, Samir migrated to Brisbane in late 2010 immediately after the acquisition of Carmichael Coal mine and has been instrumental in the establishment of Adani Australia organization.

Samir serves as the Executive Director of Adani Group Australia. Samir has over 20 years’ experience in the International Trading and the Resource sector, with his main area of expertise in Coal Mining and Infrastructure. He holds a Bachelor of Science (Computer Science) from the California State University (US).

Appointed to his current position with Adani Australia in 2011, Samir is responsible for the development of the Carmichael Coal Mine, North Galilee Basin Railway and Abbot Point Port (T0) expansion with a total capital outlay of AUD 10 Bn. Samir is on the board of Adani Mining Pty Ltd & Adani Abbot Point Terminal Pty Ltd.

Previously Samir was CEO of Mundra Solar PV Ltd for which he was responsible for establishing and operating India’s largest integrated solar factory, producing 1.2GW of solar cells and modules.

Prior to this, Samir was CEO of PT Adani Global (Indonesia), responsible for the development & operation of the green-field coal mine “Bunyu” which is located in East Kalimanthan. Concurrently, he held the position of Director Mining of Adani Mining Pvt Ltd (India) and was responsible for development of Parsa East and Kente Basan Coal Mine.

Born in the United States, Samir migrated to Brisbane in late 2010 immediately after the acquisition of Carmichael Coal mine and has been instrumental in the establishment of Adani Australia organization.

Samir Vora COO and Executive Director

Adani Australia

Anil Wadhwa Former Senior Diplomat and Chair of CII Task Force for the Australia Economic Strategy Government of India

Ambassador Anil Wadhwa was born on 26 May, 1957 and was a member of the Indian Foreign Service from 1 July, 1979 to 31 May, 2017.

In his previous diplomatic assignments, he served as Third Secretary in the Commission of India, Hong Kong (Sep.1981 to Sep.1983); Second Secretary/ First Secretary in Embassy of India, Beijing (Nov.1983 to Feb.1987); Under Secretary/Deputy Secretary in Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi (Feb.1987-May 1989); UN Disarmament Fellow in Geneva (July-Nov.1989); First Secretary (Disarmament) at the Permanent Mission of India in Geneva (Dec.1989-Dec.1992); Counsellor in Embassy of India, Beijing (Jan.1993 – Jul.1993); Director/Joint Secretary on deputation to the Provisional Technical Secretariat and later the Technical Secretariat for the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in The Hague (July 1993-July 2000; Chief Adviser, Ministry of External Affairs (Earthquake Relief) in Gujarat State, (Dec.2000 to Jan.2001), Joint Secretary, Central and Eastern Europe, Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi (Mar.2001 to Feb.2004). Ambassador Wadhwa served as the Indian Ambassador to Poland and Lithuania (March 2004 to August 2007), to the Sultanate of Oman (August 2007 to September 2011), to the Kingdom of Thailand (Nov 2011 to Jan 2014) and to the Republic of Italy and San Marino ( March 2016 to May 2017 ).

During this tenure, Ambassador Wadhwa has also served as a Permanent Representative of India to the Rome-based UN Agencies – FAO, IFAD and WFP. He was appointed President of the WFP Board on 22nd February, 2017.

Ambassador Wadhwa was Secretary (East) in the Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi from 2014 - 2016 looking after South-East Asia, Australasia and Pacific, Gulf and West Asian regions, among other responsibilities. He was also the leader of the Senior officials to all meetings of ASEAN, ASEM, ACD, Arab League, Mekong-Ganga Cooperation, ARF and East Asia Summit. During this period he coordinated the evacuation of Indian nationals from Iraq, Libya, and Yemen.

Ambassador Wadhwa represented the OPCW in inter-agency meetings with the IAEA in Vienna, with the OECD in Geneva and NATO and WEU and World Customs Organization in Brussels. He has attended disarmament related meetings of the Biological Weapons Convention, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and ENMOD Convention and was involved in negotiations on the Chemical Weapons Convention as well as on Climate Change.

He is married to Ambassador Deepa Gopalan Wadhwa and the couple have two sons.

Michael Wesley Deputy Vice-Chancellor International

The University of Melbourne

Michael Wesley is Deputy Vice-Chancellor (International) at the University of Melbourne. Previously he was Dean of the College of Asia and the Pacific at the Australian National University; Executive Director of the Lowy Institute for International Policy; Director of the Griffith Asia Institute at Griffith University; and Assistant Director-General for Transnational Issues at the Office of National Assessments, the Australian government’s peak intelligence agency.

His research interests include Australian foreign policy, security dynamics in Asia and the Pacific, and the politics of statebuilding interventions. His 2011 book, There Goes the Neighbourhood: Australia and the Rise of Asia won the John Button Prize for the best writing on Australian politics and public policy. Professor Wesley holds a B.A. (Hons) from the University of Queensland and a PhD from the University of St. Andrews.

Penny Wong Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs Australian Parliament

Penny Wong was born in Malaysia. As an eight year old she moved to Australia with her family and settled in Adelaide.

Penny graduated in law and arts from the University of Adelaide. She went on to practice labour law, advocating for the rights of workers. She also secured better pay and conditions for workers as a union representative, and served as a policy adviser in Government the New South Wales.

Penny was elected to the Australian Senate in 2001, with her first term commencing in 2002. She was re-elected in 2007, 2013 and in the double dissolution election of 2016.

After just two years in the Senate, Penny was promoted to the Shadow Ministry.

Upon the election of the Labor Government in 2007, Penny was appointed Minister for Climate Change and Water. In Labor’s second term, Penny served as Minister for Finance and Deregulation.

In 2013 Penny was appointed Leader of the Government in the Senate, the first woman to hold this role. After the change of government she became Leader of the Opposition in the Senate.

Since 2016, Penny has served as Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Penny lives in Adelaide with her partner and their two daughters.

Observers

Muthupandian Ashokkumar Assistant Deputy Vice Chancellor International (India)

University of Melbourne

Professor Muthupandian Ashokkumar (Ashok) has the responsibility for international strategy and relationships with India in his Assistant Deputy Vice Chancellor role at the University of Melbourne. He is also the Deputy Head of School of Chemistry, Faculty of Science. Prior to his current Chancellery position, Ashok was the Associate Dean International (ADI) in the Faculty of Science from 2013 to 2017.

During his ADI tenure, he helped to establish the Melbourne India Postgraduate Program, Melbourne India Postgraduate Academy and BSc Blended program involving partner institutions across India. He has served on a number of University of Melbourne management committees and scientific advisory boards of external scientific organizations. Ashok has made major contributions to the Materials, Food and Dairy industries through his research in the field of Ultrasonics & Sonochemistry.

He has received about $ 15 million research grants to support his research work that includes several industry projects. He is the Editor-in-Chief of Ultrasonics Sonochemistry, has published approximately 400 refereed papers (H-Index: 57) and is the President of the Asia Oceania Sonochemical Society.

Molina Swarup Asthana Principal Swarup Asthana Lawyers and Business Advisors

Molina Swarup Asthana is the Principal of Swarup Asthana Lawyers, practicing in commercial law. Her previous Australian experience includes working for The Victorian Government Solicitor’s Office (Major Projects) and in top tier firms Minter Ellison (Mergers & Acquisitions) and Clayton Utz (Banking & Finance). Molina’s areas of expertise include commercial law, tendering and procurement and contract management.

Molina has been working on creating a link between the Indian and Australian legal and sporting communities. She has accompanied Trade Missions to India and has made submissions to DFAT on legal services in the Australia India FTA at their behest and she speaks at various forums both in India and Australia on the regulation of legal markets and FTAs.

She has received awards from multiple organisations for her work as a solicitor, including the Victorian Multicultural Award for Excellence in 2014 and also 2016. She was the winner of the Spirit of Sport Award at the India Australia Business and Community Awards 2017 and was a finalist for the Law Institute of Victoria- Access to Justice Award 2016 and the Inspirational Women of Yarra Award 2017. She was profiled in the Top 50 of the Indian Community in Melbourne in 2012, 2013 and 2014.

Molina sits on numerous boards including the Law Institute of Victoria, Graduate House of the University of Melbourne and Good Sheppard Australia NZ. She is the President of the International Law Association Victorian Chapter, and the Vice President of the Asian Australian Lawyer’s Association, Victorian Convener of the Asian Australian Alliance, the Chair of the Women in Business Victorian Chapter of the Australia India Business Council and also sits on the board of a few community organisations working on diverse issues facing the Asian Community. Molina speaks on SBS Hindi radio regularly on legal issues of interest to Indians living in Australia.

She is a Commissioner for the AFL South East Commission and was on the AFL advisory Committee for multicultural engagement. She was awarded the Regional Ambassador of the Year Award in 2015 and Fair Play Award in 2016 by AFL for her contribution and initiatives in promoting the game within the multicultural communities. She has also been a Cricket Australia ‘Sport for All’ Community Ambassador and Commonwealth Games Ambassador. Molina is also a member of the Football Federation of Victoria Tribunal.

Karen Barker Executive Manager and Senior Adviser


Karen Barker leads project management at the Australia India Institute, with a focus on projects supporting the bilateral education relationship. She also leads the operations team that supports the Institute’s work, including research and engagement activities.

Dr Barker has over a decade of experience in international education and, until 2017, led the International Partnerships team, part of the University of Melbourne’s International Relations Office. Previously she has worked in a strategic planning and operational management role at the divisional level at the University of Melbourne and as a government solicitor with expertise in contract negotiation and drafting.

Dr Barker has a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws from the Australian National University. She obtained a Bachelor of Letters, Masters in Tertiary Education Management and a PhD from the University of Melbourne.

Marcus Best Head of India Desk / Partner MinterEllison Legal and Consulting

Marcus Best brings nearly 30 years’ experience in corporate, mergers and acquisitions and equity capital markets matters involving over 200 transactions. He focuses on building relationships with companies from a range of industries such as mining and resources, construction & infrastructure and private equity.

Marcus is recognised as flexible and agile thinker, with proven capacity to offer commercially strategic insight creating long term value.

Marcus has co led Global and National divisions at Minter Ellison in Mining & Resources, China Inbound Investment and Private Equity, where he successfully positioned Minter Ellison as a leader in each sector, attracting significant increases in market share and revenues over the last 10-15 years.

As head of Melbourne’s Mining and Resources group, his practice offers extensive expertise to the mining industry with experience in major deals across this sector. He has acted for many Australian and international clients in IPOs/ASX listings and capital raisings, takeovers, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and project exploration and development. He is a respected corporate advisor to boards and independent directors.

Marcus currently co-Chairs the India Desk within the International Countries Group at Minter Ellison.

As a Core Team Leader within the Firm’s China Group, he advises a number of China’s State-owned and private enterprises in takeovers, mergers and acquisitions, IPOs/ASX listings, joint ventures and project exploration and development. His experience extends to cross-border investments and divestments in Australia and overseas, including China.

Marcus is the author and editor of respected handbooks on International Securities laws and regularly presents on developments in M&A and foreign investment law.

Priya Chacko Senior Lecturer

University of Adelaide

Priya Chacko is Senior Lecturer in International Politics in the Department of Politics and International Studies at the University of Adelaide, Non-Resident Fellow at the Perth US Asia Centre and Academic Fellow at the Australia India Institute.

Her current research projects focus on the intersection of populism, neoliberalism and ethnoreligious nationalism in India and the political economy of foreign policy with a focus on India and the Indo-Pacific region. She has published extensively on these issues in academic outlets and contributes commentary on these topics for the Australian and international media.

She serves as Co-Editor-in-Chief of Contemporary Politics, is President of the South Asian Studies Association, South Asia Councillor for the Asian Studies Association of Australia and Vice President (academic) of the National Tertiary Education Union-Adelaide Branch.

She holds a Bachelor of Arts (International Relations) (Honours) from the University of Queensland and a PhD in Politics from the University of Adelaide and previously worked at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa and the Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.

Andrew Cumpston Director, Victoria State Office Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

Andrew Cumpston, a senior career officer with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, took up his position as Director of the Victoria State Office of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade on 26 August 2019. From October 2015 until July 2019, Mr Cumpston was Australia’s Deputy Head of Mission in Wellington, New Zealand.

In Canberra, Mr Cumpston has held a range of positions including the Assistant Secretary, Banks and Funds Branch and was a Board Member of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Mr Cumpston has previously served overseas as First Secretary and Economic Advisor Manila (2007-2009) and Honiara (2006) and as a Senior Adviser to the Foreign Minister. Mr Cumpston also worked at the Australian Department of Finance and was seconded to the World Bank.

Mr Cumpston holds a Bachelor of Economics and a Bachelor of Arts from the Australian National University and a Masters of Finance (Economic Policy) from the University of London.

Preeti Daga Vice-President

Australia India Business Council Victoria

A seasoned Communications Strategist with over 15 years of experience of working in Media and Communications across private, public and not for profit sectors - Preeti Daga is an award-winning professional who has been trail blazing the path for younger generations through her versatile body of work.

Besides heading Corporate Communications for a global Australian not for profit, Community Housing Ltd, Preeti is also the Vice President of Australia India Business Council Victoria, the peak body fostering bilateral and trade relations between India and Australia for over 33 years.

She has been recognised as the 2018 ‘Pride of Australia’, ‘Emerging Leadership in Multiculturalism’ by Victorian Multicultural Commission (VMC) and ‘Non-Resident Indian Achiever’ Award for her leadership and community work.

She has also been recently appointed to the VMC’s Regional Advisory Council for the North West Metropolitan Region until 2021 and is the Chair of the Industry Advisory Committee for PR & Marketing at RMIT and on the management committee for Public Relations Institute of Australia – Victoria.

Passionate about social issues Preeti has also acted in close to a dozen short and feature movies on topics of mental health and domestic violence. Her films have won accolades at domestic and international film festivals.

A respected community and business leader, a youth role model and a passionate advocate for diversity, she is the official Brand Champion for the ICC T20 World Cup 2020 to be hosted in Australia and an Ambassador for the AFL, Cricket Australia & Bully Zero Foundation.

Preeti has a Post Graduate Degree in Arts (English Literature), Business and Management and is a Australia India Youth Dialogue 2019 Alumni.

James Edwards Manager South Asia and MENA (and Regional Specialist for India) Global Victoria

James is the Special Adviser for India Engagement at Global Victoria. He leads the coordination of Victoria’s economic engagement with India from Melbourne, working directly with the Victorian Government Trade and Investment offices in Bengaluru and Mumbai. He led the development of Victoria’s India Strategy – a ten year plan, released in 2018. He has worked with the Victorian Government in the Department of Premier and Cabinet, Regional Development Victoria and Global Victoria. He is also a member of the Australia India Youth Dialogue Steering Committee. James is passionate about creating global connections for Victoria through economic outcomes, youth leadership and cultural understanding.

Simon Evans Provost, College of Arts, Social Sciences and Commerce

La Trobe University

Professor Simon Evans is Provost, College of Arts, Social Sciences and Commerce, La Trobe University, leading the College that houses La Trobe’s schools of Humanities & Social Sciences, Business, Law and Education.

Before joining La Trobe in August 2018, he was Pro Vice-Chancellor (International) at the University of Melbourne, working on international strategy and partnerships across the institution, and a Professor in the Melbourne Law School. He was elected as a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Law in 2018.

His research is in the field of comparative public lawyer, with broad interests in constitutional and administrative law, particularly in common law and Commonwealth countries. He has worked on the powers and accountabilities of the executive branch of government, the capacity of parliaments to protect human rights, the effectiveness of the Commonwealth model of human rights protection, the implementation of the Victorian Charter of Human Rights, constitutional property rights and a range of topics in private law.

Nathan Grills Senior Research Advisor (Health), Australia India Institute and Associate Professor, Nossal Institute for Global Health University of Melbourne

Associate Professor Nathan Grills’ extensive international engagement has generated various international research collaborations, 44 peer reviewed journal articles 3 books and 12 book chapters.

As a Public Health Physician he is involved in public health training, research and advocacy and is a regular media commentator on public health issues. Nathan’s research expertise relates to the areas of non-communicable diseases, disability inclusion, community health evaluation/monitoring, primary health care systems and understanding faith based development agencies and programs.

In the area of disability he works closely with the Government of India (GoI) and has facilitated a high-level partnership between the University of Melbourne and the Department of Empowerment of People with Disability (GoI). At the field level Nathan led the implementation of the Rapid Assessment of Disability tool in India. In the field of tobacco control Nathan has worked extensively in India to inform the development of preventative tobacco packaging interventions.

The research methods that Nathan has utilised include realist methodologies, social network analysis, participatory methods, qualitative evaluations and large-scale prevalence surveys. He has supervised and hosted more than 45 students and volunteers through his research programs in India. Nathan also helped establish five health and development focused NGOs and undertakes applied research with these projects. Although India has been the focus for much of his work he has also worked in international health and development in Africa, Fiji, East Timor, PNG, Bangladesh and Nepal.

Nathan obtained his MPH and DPhil at Oxford University under a Rhodes Scholarship and also completed a DPH on the impact of public health partnerships.

Anoushka Gungadin CEO

Global CQ

Anoushka Gungadin is an experienced CEO, Board Director, International Speaker and Author. She is the CEO of the Australia India Chamber, founder of GlobalCQ and Non-Executive Director for Anglo African Investments.

Anoushka is the former CEO of The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award in Victoria and has worked with global brands including UNESCO and L’Oreal. Multilingual, Anoushka has lived and worked across Asia, Africa, Europe and Australia, including more than a decade in China.

Recognising the emergence of new markets in Asia and Africa, increasingly globalised talent pool and customer base, Anoushka set up GlobalCQ to help businesses build and benefit from cultural intelligence to grow in the modern economy. GlobalCQ is a proud winner of the Westpac 200 Businesses of Tomorrow 2018 Award.

Anoushka is currently working on her new book on Cultural Intelligence which will be released early 2020. Anoushka is a trained Economist, a finance professional in the legal industry, holds an MBA from Melbourne Business School and a Certified Coach with the International Coach Federation.

Gregory Harper Business Director and Director for India, Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences University of Melbourne

Gregory Harper is a biological scientist who focusses on the translation of scientific discoveries into commercial, environmental and social benefits for the global community. He is Director of Indian Engagement and Business Development Director for the Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences within the University of Melbourne and he leads the STEM Faculties’ business development team. The team is part of a broader University-wide initiative to increase the impact of research, through teaching and learning, engagement and knowledge transfer.

Gregory has spent his career working in the global life sciences community and has professional expertise in management of public and private R&D funds. He holds a PhD in Biochemistry and spent 10 years working in medical research, before redirecting his efforts toward ag & food sustainability. He has held senior executive roles within the Victorian State government, the Australian research agency CSIRO, a Non-executive Director role within a Rural Research and Development Corporation, as well as within a private consultancy scale-up called Crondar P/L. He also serves on several not-for-profit boards.

Gregory has worked in the United States, Sweden and also Japan. His relationship with Indian institutions began in 2009, and the focus has been building links with Universities and government Institutes with strengths in agriculture and food research, to achieve research collaborations, researcher exchanges, and community impact. He was made Director, Indian Engagement in 2018, in recognition of this work, and as an initiative under the University of Melbourne’s Engaging with India 2020-2024 strategy. His impact has been supported strongly by the Austrade India, Agribusiness team.

Gregory has held the prestigious Fogarty International Fellowship for collaborative research in Bethesda MD, a Wenner Gren Foundation grant for basic research in Uppsala, and a JSPS Invitational Fellowship for his work in Kobe, Japan. His work in the transfer of technology and knowledge in complex innovation systems has been recognised internationally through the Registered Technology Transfer Professional accreditation (RTTP) and locally through Fellowship with the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD).

Jasmin Kaur Managing Director

PwC Australia

Jasmin Kaur, Managing Director at PwC Australia. Jasmin is a highly qualified senior executive with over 20 years of international business experience in the consulting, financial services and automotive industry spanning across 3 continents.

Jasmine has exceptional expertise in strategy, business development, marketing, sales, and cooperation management. She also has strong communication and interaction skills in cross-functional and intercultural teams. Jasmine has MSC in International Political Economy from Warwick University. BSC International Relations from London School of Economics and Political Science.

Raj Kumar Consul General Consulate General of India in Melbourne

Raj Kumar

Consul General of India in Melbourne

During the span of over 33 years’ of service in the Ministry of External Affairs, Government

of India, Mr. Raj Kumar served in different capacities at the Ministry of External Affairs in

New Delhi as well as in Indian diplomatic missions in Libya, Malaysia, Kenya, United

Kingdom, Nigeria, Panama, Sri Lanka and Jalalabad.

His diplomatic assignments include administrative and diplomatic work covering Political,

Commercial, Consular and Cultural desks in Indian Missions. He also worked as Head of

Office at the Office of the High Commission of India, Lagos (Nigeria), Charge d’Affairs in

Embassy of India, Panama and Consul General at Consulate General of India,

Hambantota (Sri Lanka) and Consulate General of India Jalalabad(Afghanistan).

He is fond of travelling, listening music and watching movies.

He is Commerce Graduate from University of Delhi.

He is married to Usha Shakya and they have two daughters.

During the span of over 33 years’ of service in the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India, Mr. Raj Kumar served in different capacities at the Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi as well as in Indian diplomatic missions in Libya, Malaysia, Kenya, United Kingdom, Nigeria, Panama, Sri Lanka and Jalalabad.

His diplomatic assignments include administrative and diplomatic work covering Political, Commercial, Consular and Cultural desks in Indian Missions. He also worked as Head of Office at the Office of the High Commission of India, Lagos (Nigeria), Charge d’Affairs in Embassy of India, Panama and Consul General at Consulate General of India, Hambantota (Sri Lanka) and Consulate General of India Jalalabad(Afghanistan).

He is fond of travelling, listening music and watching movies.

He is Commerce Graduate from University of Delhi.

He is married to Usha Shakya and they have two daughters.

Alopi Latukefu Counsellor

Public Diplomacy (Designate) Australia High Commission, New Delhi

From mid-January 2020, Alopi Latukefu will take up his role as Counsellor for Public Diplomacy at the Australian High Commission in New Delhi. As part of his role Mr Latukefu will have responsibility for public diplomacy, public affairs, and people-to-people outreach and engagement (including alumni) with the High Commission in New Delhi. Prior to taking on this role Mr Latukefu was Director for Japan (2018-19), the inaugural Director for the East Asia Engagement Unit in the China Branch (2017-18), as well as State Director for Tasmania in DFAT (2014-17).

Prior to joining DFAT Mr Latukefu worked on Australia’s aid program (AusAID) and as an adviser and Chief of Staff to the Parliamentary Secretary for Pacific Island Affairs. Earlier in his career Mr Latukefu worked in the university, private, and community sectors – including as Chief Executive Officer forGoolarri Media in Broome.

Michael Lemieszek Assistant Director, International Engagement DPC Government of Victoria

Michael was appointed Assistant Director of International Engagement in the Department of Premier and Cabinet (DPC) in March 2017.

Prior to taking up his current role, Michael was the Manager of Industry Policy within DPC (since October 2013). Michael has also had senior roles within the areas of regulatory, health and infrastructure policy and intergovernmental affairs with the Victorian and Commonwealth Governments.

Michael has a Bachelor of Arts from Monash University and a Master of Public Policy and Management from the University of Melbourne.

David Linke Managing Director

EduGrowth

David leads EduGrowth, Australia’s education technology and innovation industry hub. Through connection and collaboration EduGrowth is accelerating Australia’s EdTech ecosystem globally.

For the past 20 years, David has led the regional operations of a Google-invested global education technology vendor. With deep education sector experience, David is uniquely placed to connect the EdTech companies, to education providers and the education industry participants to grow the Australian EdTech sector locally and globally.

“Bringing together all the education technology and innovation ecosystem participants together to connect, collaborate and accelerate is a great honour”

Key Career Highlights

• More than 15 years K-12 education sector experience across Australia, Asia Pacific, the UK and USA

• Extensive experience establishing and growing SaaS businesses supplying curriculum focussed tools to K-12 Schools

• Founder and Managing Director of numerous education technology and innovation focussed businesses with international operations

• Executive and Non-Executive Director experience if listed and unlisted companies in Australia and internationally

• 10 years of leadership experience in the NFP sector of organisations working with children and K-12 schools

Abhay Mehta Chief Representative Australia Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)

Abhay Mehta is the Chief Representative - Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) for Australia. Abhay started the CII operations in Australia and has been with them for three years.

He did Economic (Hons) at St Stephens College, Delhi University after which he joined Tata Steel as a Management Trainee. After spending 8 years at Tata Steel, he did an MBA at the Melbourne Business School, Melbourne University.

Abhay has extensive experience in the Sports marketing Industry where as the CEO of Worldtel and then Sporting Frontiers he has managed some of India’s most famous cricketers and golfers and secured large sponsorships revenue for Instadia Advertising and sponsorship rights.

He has also had experience in the olive industry in Australia where he was the General Manager for Treetops Plantation, one of the largest table olive selling Companies in Australia, managing operations, sales and marketing for Treetops.

Jessie Mitchell Manager, South and Southeast Asia

International Engagement Department of Premier and Cabinet

Government of Victoria

Jessie Mitchell was appointed to the role of Manager, South and Southeast Asia in August 2018. Her role includes leading the implementation of Victoria’s India Strategy: Our Shared Future.

Prior to her current appointment, Jessie worked in international engagement roles within higher education for fifteen years, most recently for the University of Melbourne and RMIT University.

Jessie holds a BA in History and Political Science from The University of Melbourne and a Grad Dip from RMIT University in Public Policy.

Ashok Mysore Vice President Infosys Australia

Ashok Mysore has over 29 years of industry experience across Telecommunications, Financial Services, Logistics, Energy, Utilities and Services industries. Ashok as Vice-President and Regional Head - Delivery and Operations for Australia and New Zealand, is responsible for developing a performance driven culture among a group of diverse and talented individuals to achieve accelerated profitable growth by delivering value while continuously improving internal efficiencies.

Ashok joined Infosys in 2004 to lead the telco, media and entertainment business and has held numerous roles before taking up the leadership of delivery and operations across Australia and New Zealand. Ashok has wide experience in sales leadership, general management and consulting across Australia, New Zealand, the United States, India and South-East Asia.

Ashok is recipient of IABCA Business Leader of the Year 2019 Award that recognizes outstanding achievements of a business leader. He is an advisor to the Australia India Institute – Education Body, an advisory body that advises on issues relating to the Institute’s work to support the education relationship between Australia and India. He is part of the Global Steering Committee on Blockchain, sits on multiple customer steering committees and program boards, has been actively involved with the Australian Computer Society and is a sought after speaker amongst industry, academia and partner ecosystem.

Ashok completed his Executive Leadership Program from the Stanford Graduate School of Management, has an MBA in Strategy & Leadership from the Mt Eliza Business School, and a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science & Engineering.

Ashok is based in Melbourne.

Sally Nimon Director, Policy

Group of Eight (Go8)

Dr Sally Nimon is an experienced policy analyst and higher education professional, with tertiary qualifications including Bachelors of Physiotherapy and Arts and a research PhD. She has over ten years’ experience working in data and policy analysis within complex higher education settings. Her current role is the Director, Policy at the Group of Eight, the peak body organisation for Australia’s oldest, most research-intensive universities.

David Norman Deputy Director Public Policy Institute UWA

David Norman is Senior Policy Advisor to the Vice-Chancellor at the University of Western Australia. With the Hon Stephen Smith, he created UWA Public Policy Institute, which works to increase the translation of UWA research into evidence-based policy, and to increase the impact of UWA’s work in Australia, the Indian Ocean Region and the Indo-Pacific. He leads UWA’s nodes of the Australia India Institute (Aii) and the Australia Indonesia Centre (AIC), and is a member of the AIC’s Board. David has worked in public and private tertiary education in Australia, the UK, Japan and Spain, and in government in the UK.

Jai Patel KPMG - Head of India Business Practice Asia & International Markets

Jai is a Director at KPMG and is Head of KPMG’s India Business Practice (IBP) in Australia – single national liaison point for all matters relating to Australia – India business for the Australian firm.

As Head of IBP, Jai assists Indian companies with their investments into Australia and vice versa, working closely with Partners across both KPMG in Australia and India. Jai is in India 2-3 times per year visiting clients, Government and KPMG India. He has also worked with numerous visiting Indian Government and business delegations to Australia and vice versa.

Jai has undertaken a 12 month secondment with KPMG India (Mumbai) and has strong working relationships across the KPMG India network as well as broader business, social and cultural connections in India.

Jai has over 18 years of Tax experience with KPMG, including 10 years’ experience in assisting companies access Australia R&D tax incentives, in particular several of the large Indian IT services companies operating in Australia.

Qualifications

• Bachelor of Business and Bachelor ofLaws from the University of Technology,Sydney

• Graduate Certificate in ProfessionalLegal Practice

• Graduate Diploma of CharteredAccounting (ICAA)

• Asialink Leaders Program 2015

David Phipps Director International Markets

Trade and Investment Queensland

David Phipps currently works for Trade Investment Queensland as Director of International Markets and provides support to The Trade Commissioner based in Bengaluru as one of the markets he is responsible for. His role at TIQ is to ensure initiatives under the Queensland-India Trade and Investment Strategy 2018-2023 are implemented on time and in such a way as to achieve discernible results for Queensland companies.

Prior to this he worked for Simtars (Safety in Mines Testing and Research Station) as the Business Development Manager and was involved extensively in building relationships across both private and Government companies as well as Government departments and was instrumental in securing the MOU between Simtars and DGMS.

Travis Power Branch Manager Department of Education Government of Australia

Travis is a Branch Manager in the International Division of the Australian Government Department of Education and Training.

Travis is an experienced senior government official with broad experience across international, agriculture and education issues. Travis started his career working on water policy, one of Australia’s most critical resource challenges for the future. Since then he has worked extensively on agricultural policy issues, including food regulation, trade issues, natural resource management, biofuels and research and development.

From 2009-2012, Travis was the Minister Counsellor in the Australian Embassy in Rome. As a part of this role, Travis served as the Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation and as a member of the Australian Delegation to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). In these roles, Travis worked with partner countries from around the world to improve global food security and agricultural development issues.

Travis holds a Bachelor of Science (Resource and Environmental Management) from the Australian National University and is a graduate of the Australian Rural Leadership Program. He joined the Department of Education in late 2017 in the Quality Framework Branch, International Group. His branch is responsible for the regulatory frameworks and systems that underpin Australia’s well respected international education sector. Travis’s branch also leads on our partnerships with India and other South Asian countries as well as North America, Europe, Japan and Korea.

Travis is married with two daughters.

Harish Rao Global Head – Business Development

Sundaram Business Services

Educated at Melbourne Grammar School & the Australian National University, Harish is has an MBA (Finance) from Monash and is Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Harish established the Chennai based Sundaram Finance Group’s presence in Australia in 2004 and is the head of their outsourcing arm, Sundaram Business Services in Australia & New Zealand.

He is currently the Chair of the Australian World Orchestra, Board Member of Guide Dogs Victoria and Australian Friends of ASHA and sits on the Advisory Board of the Australia India Institute, India-Australia Business & Community Awards and the World Mosquito Program.

Shamit Saggar Director Public Policy Institute University of Western Australia

Shamit Saggar is the Director of the Public Policy Institute and Professor of Public Policy at the University of Western Australia.

He was previously a Senior Policy Advisor in the Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit, Cabinet Office; an ESRC Knowledge Exchange Fellow with HM Government; Associate Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research) at the University of Essex; Professor of Political Science, University of Sussex; Reader in Political Behaviour at Queen Mary, University of London; Harkness Fellow at UCLA; Yale World Fellow at Yale University; and Visiting Professor of Public Policy at the University of Toronto.

In 2015 he was elected as a Fellow of Academy of Social Sciences, and in 2017 became Chair of the Campaign for Social Science. In 2017 he was awarded a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours for services to social science and public policy.

He takes an active part in public leadership roles at board level. These include the Financial Services Authority; the Solicitors Regulation Authority; the Law Society Legal Complaints Board (Chairman); the National Asylum Commission; the Better Regulation Commission; the National Consumer Council; the Whittington Hospital Trust; the Peabody Trust; the Accountancy Foundation Ethics Standards Board; the Institute for Citizenship; the Foreign Policy Centre Global Britons Program; the Royal National Institute for the Blind; and the RSA Migration Commission. He was previously Non-Executive Chairman of UPP Group Holdings Ltd.

He has also held advisory and board roles with Unbound Philanthropy, Demos, Policy Exchange, the Institute for Public Policy Research, Policy Network, Fabians and British Future. Professor Saggar has also been a Special Advisor to the Commonwealth Secretariat/Sen Commission and to the House of Common’s Speaker’s Conference on Parliamentary Representation.

Sanushka Seomangal Partner, Thomson Geer and

National Vice Chair Australia India Business Council

Sanushka Seomangal specialises in equity and debt capital markets, corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions (M&A). She assists her clients with a combination of technical expertise and personalised service in public and private equity and debt fundraising, initial public offerings (IPOs), and M&A involving both private and listed companies in Australian and cross-border transactions.

Her legal expertise includes advice on the Corporations Act, compliance with ASX listing rules, corporate restructuring, corporate governance issues and the duties of directors across various industry sectors including resources, financial markets, technology, internet products and aviation.

Her practice is largely cross-border with an Asia-focus and she has expertise in capital markets and M&A transactions involving clients in the People’s Republic of China, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Indonesia and India, as well as capital markets and M&A transactions involving clients in the USA and the UK.

Amongst her professional achievements, Sanushka was named by the Australian Financial Review as one of the 100 Women of Influence in Australia 2018.

She has a particular interest in India and is a co-founder and director of the School of Policy and Governance (SPG), co-founder of the Australia India Youth Dialogue (AIYD), National Vice Chair of the Australia India Business Council (AIBC) and member of the board of the Australia India Council (AIC).

Sanushka is a member of Women on Boards and UN Women, and was a finalist in the 2019 Lawyers Weekly, Women in Law Awards for Mentor of the Year. She is also a mentor in Macquarie University’s Lucy Mentoring Program and the Diverse Women in Law Program.

In the past she has also been a member of the NSW Government Ministerial Consultative Committee representing the Indian community in NSW, Chair of the Young Professionals Chapter AIBC and a member of Philanthropy Australia’s New Generation of Giving (New Gen).

Ashok Sherwal President Australia India Business Council Victoria

Ashok Sherwal holds B.E. (Hons.) and M.E. (Research) from RMIT University Melbourne Victoria. He has completed PG diploma in mobile communication from Amity University. He has also completed an MBA cert in General and Financial Management.

Ashok Sherwal has years of experience in international business development, having held senior roles in the private sector overseas and in Australia. He has worked in telecommunication, finance, agribusiness and real estate.

Ashok was a qualified financial planner holding a Diploma of Financial Planning though International Institute of Technology. He also holds an Advanced Diploma of Financial Planning though Mentor Education. Ashok has also completed Agents Rep course from Real Estate Institute of Victoria.

He works as a consultant to hoteliers, land developers and other businesses seeking funds or strategic partnership for expansion in Australia and overseas.

Andrew Sholl Principal

Hennessy Advisory

Andrew Sholl is Founder and Principal of Hennessy Advisory. He is a leader in corporate communications counsel and provides personal counsel to board members and senior executives at the most critical moments for their companies.

He has advised global companies including Google, Walmart, Tata and REA Group, and media groups Sky, RTL and The Guardian, and has worked in politics in Australia and the United Kingdom.

After 18 years abroad, he returned to Australia in 2011 to head the communications function for Australia’s largest infrastructure project, the National Broadband Network.

He started his career as a journalist for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. He is the author of a best-selling book on English usage, The Name Game.

Lisa Singh Former Senator for Tasmania Australian Parliament

The Hon Lisa Singh served as an Australian Senator for Tasmania from 2010 until June 2019. Lisa is the first woman of South Asian heritage to be elected to the Australian Parliament; her great-grandparents migrating from India to Fiji as indentured labourers under the British Scheme around the turn of the 20th century. She follows in the footsteps of her late grandfather who was a member of the Fiji Parliament.

In 2014, the President of India awarded her the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman award for her exceptional and meritorious public service as a person of Indian heritage in fostering friendly relations between India and Australia. Lisa has also been awarded Hobart Citizen of the Year.

Lisa’s parliamentary career and advocacy has focused on the promotion and protection of peace and human rights, foreign policy, the environment, governance and access to justice, and law reform. She has published widely and speaks regularly on these issues.

Her advocacy also includes advancing Australia’s economic ties with India and the wider Indo-Pacific and she has been outspoken on these issues. She has participated in a number of inter-country ‘round tables’ and dialogues with the Australia India Institute, the Lowy Institute and the Australia-India Youth Dialogue. As a regular visitor to India, she has assisted members of the Indian parliament in creating an Indian TB Caucus.

In 2016 Lisa was appointed as a Board Member of the Centre for India Australia Studies (CIAS) at O.P. Jindal Global University in New Delhi. That same year Lisa was seconded to the United Nations General Assembly in New York as a delegate from the Australian parliament.

Prior to being elected to the Australian Senate, Lisa served in the Tasmanian Parliament as a Labor Member for Denison from 2006 to 2010 and was a Minister in the Tasmanian Labor Government. Lisa holds a Bachelor of Arts with Honours from the University of Tasmania and a Masters in International Relations from Macquarie University.

Anuradha Sundaramurthy Consul and Head of Chancery

Consulate General of India, Melbourne

Mrs Anuradha Sundaramurthy is in Diplomatic service for more than 15 years and her previous diplomatic assignments include postings in Bangladesh, Vice Consul in Sydney, Attache (Labour) in Malaysia besides her stint in headquarters in New Delhi.

Anuradha assumed her current assignment as the Consul and Head of Chancery in July 2019 in Consulate General of India Melbourne

She is married to Sundaramurthy and has a son and twin daughters.

Arjun Surapaneni CEO Victoria Institute of Technology

Arjun has extensive education, technology and commercial experience with over 29 years’ experience in senior executive and Chief Executive Officer roles. His expertise straddles strategy, business growth, international business development, marketing, technology commercialisation, business transformation, change management and sustainability. Arjun has coordinated IT project implementation and training with organisations such as: Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, Covansys, IBM Global Services, Ernst & Young, Computer Science Corporation, WA Police Services, Metropolitan Fire Brigade, Telstra, Health for Aged (Australian Federal Government) & Dresdner Bank (UK) and BHP Australia.

Although a third-generation educator, Arjun become a dedicated educator in 1998 after he chanced up on a research paper published in USA. It stated that when many of the near dead, or people who were thought to be dead, ‘came back to life’ were questioned “what was their first thought when they came back to consciousness?” An amazing 87% said they wish they studied/learned more.

Arjun is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of VIT (Victorian Institute of Technology) since 1998.

Arjun is appointed as Member of Multicultural Business Ministerial Council (MBMC) by the Baillieu Government in Victoria from 24 October 2011 to 23 October 2013 and further extended till October 2015 by Dr. Napthine Government, Arjun is also former the Chair of Export and Human Capital (Including Education) working groups of the MBMC.

Pradeep is an Academic Fellow of the Australia India Institute and a specialist in Asian Politics at the University of Melbourne. He has worked in senior roles with a number of organisations in Australia and Asia. Born and educated in India, he lived and worked in China for more than six years. In addition to his work on China, he continues to maintain teaching and research interests in Indian politics and foreign policy and regularly writes about it. He was a Visiting Senior Research Fellow at the East Asian Institute, National University of Singapore, in 2016 and a Visiting Fellow at the Mercator Institute for China Studies in Berlin from May to July 2019. He also worked in Bangkok for two years to help establish a new private university. Earlier he was Director of International Programs in the Graduate School of Management at La Trobe University.

His professional career has combined teaching, consultancy and research. Pradeep is frequently interviewed by Australian and foreign media on developments in the Asia-Pacific region. He has published in a variety of journals, including International Politics, European Studies, South Asia, and Asia Policy. He is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Asian Security and International Affairs. His forthcoming book (OUP) looks at India’s China Challenge. Pradeep studied at JNU, Peking University and the University of Oslo before being awarded a PhD from Griffith University in Australia.

Pradeep Taneja Lecturer in Asian Studies, School of

Social and Political Studies University of Melbourne

Petula Thomas Director IACC Indo-Australian Chamber of Commerce

As Director for India and for its members in Australia, Petula leads on creating the Chamber’s strategic vision and management of its key initiatives and operations Pan-India.

The Indo-Australian Chamber of Commerce, a national Chamber established in 1989, brings together over 500 companies in India and Australia, representing almost the entire range of the Indo-Australian Business community.

Prior to joining the Indo-Australian Chamber of Commerce in November 2018, Petula worked with the British Deputy High Commission, Australian Trade and Investment Commission and British Airways over the past 15 years and brings a wealth of experience in strategic leadership, international relations and business development.

Petula has held an exceptional track record throughout her career, winning four global and regional performance awards from the Foreign & Commonwealth Office in London, commendation from the Deputy CEO Austrade and a Regional Central Asia South Asia Middle East & Africa award from British Airways Plc.

Petula was University topper for her Bachelor of Science degree and has a First Class Master’s Degree in Science. She was on the jury for the India Australia Business and Community Awards 2019 in Brisbane and for Womennovator Chennai 2019. Petula is passionate about Women in Leadership and enjoys travelling.

Raghu Dharmapuri Tirumala Senior Research Advisor (Infrastructure)


Dr Raghu Dharmapuri Tirumala is a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning at the University of Melbourne. Raghu’s research focusses on infrastructure development and finance, public-private partnerships, property finance, and managing transformation of cities. Raghu holds a PhD in Built Environment, MBA in Marketing and Finance and Bachelor of Technology in Mechanical Engineering.

Previously, as the Professor and Director at RICS School of Built Environment, Raghu had set up the School of Infrastructure and designed the MBA program in Infrastructure Management. Prior to that, he was the CEO of Infrastructure Development Corporation (Karnataka) Limited, a joint venture of Government of Karnataka, IDFC and HDFC.

With nearly 24 years of experience, Raghu had partnered with various government, multi-lateral agencies (including the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, International Finance Corporation, GIZ, UN Habitat), international development organizations (IDFC Foundation, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation), academic institutions, policy thinktanks and private sector clients in the urban infrastructure (water supply, sanitation, solid waste management), property and housing, integrated transportation, tourism, energy, commercial and industrial infrastructure sectors. Raghu had authored numerous policy documents and research reports. He was a member of many committees and taskforces in India in the infrastructure sector, is an invited speaker at numerous professional and industry conferences and conducts training courses on public private partnerships and infrastructure development.

Jagvinder Singh Virk Chairman India Australia Strategic Alliance

Dr Virk is an inspirational community leader with a strong background in Trade & Investment, International Education and Infrastructure Development.

He is passionate about improving human relations, both in local and international communities. These experiences and well developed sensitivity to cultural differences allowed him to take a leading role in the formation of the India Australia Strategic Alliance (IASA) and to become its founding Chairman.

Another passion is his desire for technology to be brought to market in a much more seamless way. He is using his endeavors and relationships to explore ways research and its resulting technologies can be implemented in appropriate and meaningful ways to ensure equity and relevance in the marketplace. To this end he has been an active member of the University of NSW ‘Industry Engagement Committee’.

Mr Virk is also the Chairman on L&ND- Land and Property Development. He has a medical degree (MBBS) from Donetsk State Medical University, Ukraine.

As Chairman of India Australia Strategic Alliance, steering committee member, delegate and guest speaker at conferences and events, Dr Virk has been actively engaged in promoting Australia into the international market since 2007 in key industry sectors such as International Education, Real Estate, Innovation and Trade Investment

Tim Watts Federal Member for Gellibrand


Tim has been the Federal Member for Gellibrand in Melbourne’s west since 2013 and is the Shadow Assistant Minister for Communications and Cyber Security.

During his time in the Federal Parliament, he has been a consistent advocate for greater Australian engagement with Asia. Tim attended the Australia China Youth Dialogue in 2015, the India Australia Youth dialogue in 2016 and was a 2017 Asialink Leader. Tim is also passionate about protecting the harmonious multicultural society in which we live. In his recently published book, The Golden Country: Australia’s Changing Identity, he explores Australia’s history of migration from Asia and confronts outdated notions of Australian identity.

Tim has worked in the IT and telecommunications sector for the better part of a decade, as a Senior Manager at Telstra and a Solicitor at Mallesons Stephen Jaques. He has a Bachelor of Laws (Hons) from Bond University, Master of Public Policy from Monash University and Master of Politics and Communication from the London School of Economics.

James Wiblin Assistant Secretary, India and Indian Ocean Branch Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

James is the Assistant Secretary, India and Indian Ocean Branch. Prior to taking up this role, James was the Assistant Secretary of the Investment Branch in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Investment and Economic Division. In this position, James was responsible for DFAT input into foreign investment review board applications, domestic and global investment issues and Australia’s trade finance agency, Export Finance Australia. James has worked overseas as Australia’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the OECD and in the Australian Embassy in Tokyo.

He has also negotiated several free trade agreements including the Japan-Australia Economic Partnership Agreement, the China Australia Free Trade Agreement and the Trans Pacific Partnership. Prior to joining DFAT in 1996, James worked as an economist in government think tanks and in the banking industry.

Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements


Pratap Bhanu Mehta Vice Chancellor Ashoka University

Pratap Bhanu Mehta is an Indian academic. He was the president of the Centre for Policy Research, a New Delhi-based think tank and one of India’s most distinguished think tanks. He was a Professor at NYU Law School’s Global Faculty. He has previously Visiting Professor of Government at Harvard University; Associate Professor of Government and of Social Studies at Harvard, and for a brief period, Professor of Philosophy and of Law and Governance at Jawaharlal Nehru University. He became the Vice-Chancellor of Ashoka University on July 1, 2017. He has been described as “one of India’s more thoughtful intellectuals.”

Pratap Mehta has also done extensive public policy work. He was Member-Convenor of the Prime Minister of India’s National Knowledge Commission; Member of the Supreme Court appointed Lyngdoh Committee on Indian Universities and has contributed to a number of reports for leading Government of India and International Agencies. He was on the Board of Governors of IDRC. He was Vice-Chair of the World Economic Forum’s Council on Global Governance. He has also served on the Board of NIPFP, NCAER and NIID. He is also on the Editorial Board of numerous journals including the American Political Science Review and Journal of Democracy.

Pratap Mehta has published widely in the fields of political theory, intellectual history, constitutional law, politics and society in India

and international politics. His scholarly articles have appeared in leading international referred journals in the field, as well as numerous edited volumes. His early work was on eighteenth century thought, particularly on Adam Smith and the Making of the Enlightenment. He has also written on issues of Cosmopolitanism, Liberalism, Rights, Judicial Review, International Governance and Democratic Theory. His most recent publications include, The Burden of Democracy and an edited volume India’s Public Institutions. He is also a member of the group that produced Non-Alignment 2.O (Penguin 2013) and co-editor of Shaping the Emerging World: India and the Multilateral Order (Brookings Press, 2013). He and innovation, agriculture and resources, and creative industries.

Partners

The Australia India Institute, established in 2008, is the premier Australian centre dedicated to the study of India and the bilateral relationship. The Institute produces quality, high impact research on contemporary India specialising in the areas of equity, education, health, infrastructure, and governance. The Institute builds Australia’s capacity for India-related research that addresses key social, political and environmental challenges guided by the principles of bharosa (trust), maryada (respect), and kalyan (welfare).

National partners include the University of New South Wales and La Trobe University, both founding partners, with an affiliate centre at the University of Western Australia. The Institute is funded by grants from the Australian Government, the State Government of Victoria and the University of Melbourne, and is hosted at The University of Melbourne.

The Institute plays a crucial role in activating bilateral relationships between government, industry and the community. It provides strategic advice to federal and state governments on India engagement. Over the past 10 years it has established itself as a place where students, academics, policymakers and business can learn about the grand challenges facing the Indo-Pacific.

The Australia India Institute hosts the annual Australia India Leadership Dialogue, the preeminent Track 1.5 bilateral forum for informal diplomacy. We acknowledge and thank all our partners and participants in this year’s AILD and look forward to an interesting, constructive and stimulating step forward in the further development of Australia-India relations.

Aii@Delhi is proud to co-host the Australia India Leadership Dialogue.

The Australia India Institute @ Delhi facilitates bilateral research collaboration and establishes Australia as a nation of research excellence. It is also a hub for dialogue and partnerships between India and Australia. Nodes of the growing AII network currently exist at The University of Melbourne, La Trobe University, the University of New South Wales and the University of Western Australia.

Aii@Delhi is committed to enriching the Australia India relationship, facilitating research collaboration that builds on nationally devised strategies for economic engagement under key pillars. Australia’s India Economic Strategy and India’s Australia Economic Strategy both highlight opportunities for engagement in health, education, renewable energy, smart infrastructure, water and agriculture – joint research in these areas would contribute knowledge to these education, infrastructure and climate change, forging greater links between Australia and India in these areas.

Our flagship event, the annual Aii Delhi Oration was delivered by Dr. Shashi Tharoor late last month where he spoke about Liberal Arts and Leadership. We hosted a roundtable to take forward discussions on liberal arts collaboration with Professor Duncan Maskell, Vice Chancellor, The University of Melbourne with Dr. Shakila Shamsu, Secretary of the National Education Policy Committee and other education luminaries.

Aii Delhi works closely with the Victorian Government of Australia. We have co-hosted a range of events in edtech, higher education and sustainability in schools, and supported the visit of the Victorian Deputy Premier and Minister for Education, James Merlino, earlier in the year.

With these and many more ongoing new projects and programs, we at Aii@Delhi are committed to taking the Australia India relationship from strength to strength.

Visy is a proud signature partner of the Australia India Leadership Dialogue. Visy Global Chairman, Anthony Pratt, is also the Patron of the Dialogue.

Visy is a leading, privately owned packaging and resource recovery company, with more than 120 sites across Australia, New Zealand, Thailand and Vietnam, and trading offices across Asia, Europe and the USA.

Visy also plays a major role in the India- Australia-Israel Track II Trilateral Dialogue, which seeks to improve food and water security in India.

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) works to create and sustain an environment conducive to the development of India, partnering industry, Government, and civil society, through advisory and consultative processes.

CII is a non-government, not-for-profit, industry-led and industry-managed organization, playing a proactive role in India’s development process. Founded in 1895, India’s premier business association has more than 9100 members, from the private as well as public sectors, including SMEs and MNCs, and an indirect membership of over 300,000 enterprises from 291 national and regional sectoral industry bodies.

CII charts change by working closely with Government on policy issues, interfacing with thought leaders, and enhancing efficiency, competitiveness and business opportunities for industry through a range of specialized services and strategic global linkages. It also provides a platform for consensus-building and networking on key issues.

Extending its agenda beyond business, CII assists industry to identify and execute corporate citizenship programmes.

Partnerships with civil society organizations carry forward corporate initiatives for integrated and inclusive development across diverse domains including affirmative action, healthcare, education, livelihood, diversity management, skill development, empowerment of women, and water, to name a few.

India is now set to become a US$ 5 trillion economy in the next five years and Indian industry will remain the principal growth engine for achieving this target. With the theme for 2019-20 as ‘Competitiveness of India Inc - India@75: Forging Ahead’, CII will focus on five priority areas which would enable the country to stay on a solid growth track. These are - employment generation, rural-urban connect, energy security, environmental sustainability and governance.

With 68 offices, including 9 Centres of Excellence, in India, and 11 overseas offices in Australia, China, Egypt, France, Germany, Indonesia, Singapore, South Africa, UAE, UK, and USA, as well as institutional partnerships with 394 counterpart organizations in 133 countries, CII serves as a reference point for Indian industry and the international business community.

The University of Melbourne is a leading global institution, consistently ranking among the top universities in the world and number one in Australia. With $460 million in research income (2018) and a student population over 52,000, comprising of 140 nationalities, the University continues make significant social, economic and cultural contributions to the world.

Established in 1853, the University of Melbourne’s world-class research and teaching places its researchers at the forefront of international discoveries, bringing together inquiring minds, exciting ideas and diverse disciplines to help address the big questions of our time.

The Australia-India relationship is an important relationship for the University of Melbourne. In August 2018, the University’s first-ever bilateral engagement plan, Engaging India 2020-2024, was launched by the Vice-Chancellor at the Australian High

Commission in Delhi. Engaging India 2020-2024 advances the University’s commitment to developing its partnerships in India, to build capacity across our societies and meet the challenges of our shared future.

Firmly committed to strengthening the Australia-India relationship, the University of Melbourne has operated an office in India to support engagement for the past decade. The University is home to the India-focussed research institute, the Australia India Institute and regionally-focussed centres, such as the Asia Institute and Asialink. Policy-specific institutes, such as the University’s Melbourne Disability Institute, are also leading substantive partnerships with Indian counterparts to improve the lives of people with disability in both countries.

The University of Melbourne is a proud sponsor of the Australia India Leadership Dialogue.

General Info

General Info


The Australia India Leadership Dialogue 2019 will take place in the Clarendon Ballroom of the Langham Hotel in Melbourne.

A help desk will be available in the foyer should you require any assistance during the day of the conference on Monday 9 December 2019.

Wifi password at the Langham: AILD

Main Contacts for AILD:Marianna Sarris AILD Coordinator m: +61 401 098 520 e: [email protected]

Charlotte Hart m: +61 481 152 709 e: [email protected]

Dilpreet Kaur m: + 61 452 230 934 e: [email protected]

Other contact details and information:

Australia India Institute 147-149 Barry Street Carlton VIC 3053 t: (03) 9035 8047 w: aii.unimelb.edu.au

Australia India Institute @AIinstitute

@AIinstitute Australia India Institute

The Langham, Melbourne 1 Southgate Ave, Southbank VIC 3006 t: (03) 8696 8888 w: www.langhamhotels.com/en/the-langham/melbourne

Indian High Commission (Canberra) 3-5 Moonah Pl, Yarralumla ACT 2600 t: (02) 6273 3999 w: www.hcicanberra.gov.in

Consulate General of India (Melbourne) 344 St Kilda Rd, Melbourne VIC 3004 t: (03) 9682 7836 w: cgimelbourne.gov.in

International County Codes:Country code for Australia: +61 Country code for India: +91 For calls from Australia to India dial 0011 + 91 + area code + telephone number

General Emergency in AustraliaCall 000 for Police, Fire & Ambulance

CurrencyExchange Rate: AUD$1 = 50 Indian rupee (INR) approximately

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