Board Member Profiles
Professor Peter Andrews, AO, President
Professor Peter Andrews is an eminent Queensland scientist and bio-entrepreneur whose role as Queensland Chief Scientist involves advising government on policy and economic development issues associated with science, research and innovation.
Author of more than 100 publications and inventor of two patents, he has led multifunctional scientific teams at research institutions in Victoria and Queensland.
Peter has been at the forefront of initiatives to develop the Australian biotechnology industry and is an active participant in the commercialisation of Australian science and research. Since 1985, he has founded, co-founded or been a director of more than 10 scientific companies. He currently serves as a director of two Australian biotechnology companies and is President of TropLinks Inc, a newly formed tropical expertise industry organisation.
Geoff Plante, Secretary
Geoff is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Architects and in practice since 1978. This work has involved the establishment of offices in Townsville, Port Moresby and Shanghai. As Chairman of Planpac Group Geoff works on Architectural, Urban Planning and Project Management commissions in Australia, Papua New Guinea and China.
Community and business commitments have included Chairman of Townsville Enterprise Limited, Chairman of Harbourside Sercices Pty Ltd a cold storage and logistics company in Northern Australia, Chairman of Townsville Changshu Business Association, member of the Townsville City Council City Image Committee and Master Planner Community Partnerships Limited. Geoff is married to Linsey with daughter Vivienne and has lived in Townsville for 32 years.
Professor Sandra Harding, Treasurer
B Sc (Hons), M Pub Admin, PhD, FAICD, FAIM
Professor Sandra Harding is Vice Chancellor and President of James Cook University. Her key scholarly interests reside around the sociology of work, industry and organisation. She has a keen professional interest in education policy and management and has undertaken a wide variety of external roles within the higher education sector and the business community. She is currently the Chair of the Innovative Research Universities (IRU) alliance and a Board Member of Universities Australia. She has also served on a number of review panels and accreditation committees within the Higher Education Sector. Professor Harding is also a Director of the Australian Institute of Commercialisation Pty Ltd, Townsville Enterprise Limited, Advance Cairns, the Australian Institute of Marine Science, TropLinks Inc, the Australian Learning and Teaching Council, and the Queensland Premier’s Smart State Council.
Andrew Johnson
Dr Andrew Johnson is Group Executive — Environment at the CSIRO and leads CSIRO’s water, land, climate, marine, biodiversity, regional development and natural resource management research. A former Rotary Foundation Ambassadorial Scholar to Harvard University, Dr Johnson is a Director of the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, Planet Ark Environmental Foundation and Reef and Rainforest Research Ltd. Previously Dr Johnson held positions as Executive Director, CSIRO Strategic Change Programs and Chief of CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems Division. Dr Johnson was a delegate to the Australia 2020 Summit.
Brad Webb
Brad Webb is the Managing Director of BM Webb Group, based in Townsville. BM Webb Group started in 1979 as a transport company. BM Webb Group now specializes in the construction and leasing of large Industrial Warehouses, and has branched out in the past 10 years to include a Concrete Plant, Quarry, Precast Panel Factory, Transport Fleet and Civil Division.
Brad helped establish and is still heavily involved in Food Relief NQ and BM Webb Group is proud to support many other local charities. Brad born in Townsville and still resides there with his wife, Robyn, and three Daughters.
Brad was also named in the Sunday Mail's "Queensland's top 100 Rich List".
Debra Burden
Debra Burden is an experienced business manager who understands the importance of community based enterprises. Her career has been largely shaped by her extensive involvement in the member owned credit union movement throughout Australia.
Debra’s background includes having held five separate CEO roles including the CEO role of Queensland Country Credit Union and Queensland Country Health Fund. Railways Credit Union was awarded the 2006 Australian Human Resource Institute National People Management Award whilst Debra held the role of CEO.
She is a Fellow of both the Australian Institute of Company Directors and the Australian Institute of Managers, has a degree in Accounting and Business Management and was named the 2005 Queensland Telstra Business Woman of the Year Award (Corporate Sector) and won the 2007 Queensland Business Review Women in Business Award.
Debra’s was recently appointed as the General Manager of ASX listed, Townsville based, dental company 1300SMILES Ltd and is the Deputy Chair of tec-nq (formerly known as the Australian Technical College of North Queensland).
Debra joined the Board of TropLinks in December 2009, as she has a particular interest in tropical sustainability and believes that North Queensland has the potential to be a world leader in tropical environmental services.
Dr Ian R. Poiner BSc (Hon), PhD, FTSE
Dr Ian Poiner is the Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Institute of Marine Science. Dr Poiner has significant experience in strategic development and planning of science, both as a practicing scientist and at the organisational level. This is reflected in his successful large-scale, multi-disciplinary research projects and his establishment of national and international research programs to support the sustainable use, conservation and management of marine ecosystems. Dr Poiner’s scientific background is research into tropical fisheries and ecological systems, including in Australia’s northern Great Barrier Reef, Torres Strait and the Gulf of Carpentaria. He has also worked in Jamaica, Papua New Guinea and Southeast Asia. Dr Poiner serves on a number of national and international committees. He is currently Chair of the International Scientific Steering Committee of the Census of Marine Life, a ten year international research program to assess and explain the diversity, distribution and abundance of marine organisms throughout the world’s oceans. As CEO of AIMS, he is responsible for managing the day-to-day affairs of the Institute.
Mario Pennisi
Chief Executive Officer, Queensland Clinical Trials Network Inc. (QCTN)
Mario has extensive experience managing laboratory medicine services. In the mid 1990s, in affiliation with US and German-based organisations, he established the first Queensland-based ‘central laboratory’ in order to service international trials in the Asia-Pacific region. He was also a founding member of Queensland’s first contract research organisation.
Later, as National Business Development Manager for an Australian multinational pharmaceutical/diagnostics company, he collaborated with numerous international sponsors and service providers to achieve significant clinical trials growth in Australia.
Mario believes that the comprehensive range of high quality services available, together with the relatively untapped potential of numerous investigators and patient populations, provide exciting opportunities for the development of clinical trials in Queensland, and has overseen QCTN’s growth to nearly 100 Queensland-based service providers.
Ron Tong
Managing Director, Tong Sing; Bbus, MBA, MAICD, DipEd; Appointed September 2005
Ron is the Managing Director of Tong Sing Pty Ltd, a major horticulture export and transport company with extensive Queensland interests. He has held numerous positions on regional, state and federal committees and is currently a director of the Regional Council of Queensland Chamber of Commerce & Industry and is a board member of the Air Freight Council of Queensland as well as a board member of a public unlisted company with a turnover of approx $150m in which he is also the chairman of the Remuneration Committee.
