Swinburne appoints new Director of Innovative Planet Research Institute

Leading geodesy expert, Professor Allison Kealy, has been appointed as the inaugural Director of Swinburne University's Innovative Planet Research Institute.

The Innovative Planet Research Institute embodies Swinburne’s passion for sustainability and dedication to achieving a carbon neutral world by 2050 or earlier.

A key driver of Swinburne’s Horizon 2025 Strategic Plan, the Institute’s cross-disciplinary research brings together sustainable materials, clean energy and hydrogen, the circular economy, urban sustainability, smart energy management and supply chain decarbonisation, with social sciences and humanities, to help create a sustainable future.

Swinburne's Professor Karen Hapgood, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research, welcomed Professor Kealy to the new role.

"As the inaugural Director of the Innovative Planet Research Institute, Professor Allison Kealy will drive Swinburne’s sustainability research agenda, making progress and impact on critical sustainability challenges facing the world," Professor Hapgood said.

“I look forward to seeing engagement, collaboration and partnerships between research, industry and government within our flagship research area, Innovative Planet, and in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDG).”

A leader and expert in geodesy

Professor Kealy is a proven leader and expert in the field of geodesy – the science of measuring Earth’s shape, orientation and gravity. Professor Kealy has a specific research interest in sensor fusion, Kalman filtering and estimation theory, high precision satellite positioning, GNSS quality control, wireless sensor networks and located based services.

With an undergraduate degree in Land Surveying from The University of the West Indies, and a PhD in GPS and Geodesy from the University of Newcastle, Professor Kealy has had an extensive academic career creating impact across the world.

Additionally, Professor Kealy brings a raft of industry and government experience to Swinburne, most recently as the Executive Director of Surveying and Spatial at the Department of Transport and Planning within the Victorian Government. She has also held senior positions at SmartSat CRC, Sir Lawrence Wackett Centre, RMIT University and The University of Melbourne.

Utilising her wealth of research, industry and government experience, Professor Kealy will lead the Innovative Planet Research Institute in advancing ground-breaking technology solutions that tackle, head-on, the sustainability and regeneration challenges facing our society today.