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Andy, from CSIRO, and the BioPlastics Innovaton Hub aim to remove Australia’s dependence on fossil fuel derived polymers in plastic packaging and replace them with fully compostable and sustainable alternatives.
Biography
Professor Andy Whiteley is the Research Director for CSIRO’s Industry Environments (IE) Program based in Western Australia. The IE Program seeks to innovate and mitigate Australia’s wastes to build a sustainable future, especially in the key areas of Plastics and PFAS, two of Australia’s major pollutant and waste issues.
Professor Whiteley originally obtained a degree and Ph.D. in marine biology and spent 20 years in the UK as a research scientist and leader, developing a new generation of molecular biology, genomic and biotechnological solutions for the natural environment, including environmental monitoring, protection and cleanup. He moved to Australia in 2012 to become the tenth Premier’s Fellow and Winthrop Professor at the University of Western Australia, focussing on developing new technologies for mine-site rehabilitation. During the COVID pandemic, he moved to CSIRO, where his team was initially responsible for developing and monitoring COVID emergence in wastewater treatment systems for early warning population protection. Post COVID he resumed the core work in chemical and biological risks associated with Australia’s pollution and waste issues.
In 2022, Andy was the key representative for CSIRO in setting up the partnership with Murdoch University for what is now known as the ‘BioPlastics Innovation Hub’ (BiH). An 8 million dollar investment, launched in 2024, the BiH represents a unique collaborative effort that unites scientific research, industry expertise and the impact focus of Australia’s National Science agency, the CSIRO.
The aim of the BiH is to revolutionise plastic packaging and waste systems in order to remove Australia’s dependence on fossil fuel derived polymers and move us toward fully compostable and sustainable BioPlastics and BioPolymers.
Booking Link: https://www.trybooking.com/DDEFI
Booking
Lunchtime talks are held at 12.30 pm every Thursday from February to November. Talks last for 1 hour. We welcome donations by gold coins, notes, or electronically. The Friends use donations received at each talk to support Gardens’ programs and development and we thank all those who have donated.
Unless otherwise indicated, talks are held in the ANBG Theatrette.
It is a good idea to reserve a seat at the talks that you wish to attend; talks may be booked out very quickly. Bookings can be made from about 30 days in advance until the night before the talk or until seating limits are reached.
Booking Link: https://www.trybooking.com/DDEFI
The Friends of the ANBG thank the speakers who volunteer their time and talents to further the knowledge of all attending events in the Gardens. Many summaries or PowerPoint presentations of Thursday talks are available to Friends at the ANBG library. Please direct queries about the talks to the Thursday Talks Team: email talks@friendsanbg.org.au.