Advance Award Finalists 2020

With a background in international law and a heart in the marginalised communities of Indonesia, Nukila Evanty works to place people at the centre of development and communities at the core of the decision-making process.

Working to shift the health paradigm in war-torn countries and disaster response situations, Dr Vandana Joshi is showing the world that good governance and community engagement are by far the most effective strategies to promote health.

Dr Christian Thompson AO is a contemporary artist whose work explores identity, cultural hybridity, gender & history. Christian himself made history when he became the first Aboriginal Australian to be admitted into the University of Oxford in its 900-year legacy.

As a maverick of global stage productions, Garry McQuinn operates at the heart of untold stories and new audiences. Adept at strumming the tension between the creative and commercial worlds, Garry has been instrumental in opening the world of commercial theatre to Australian talent.

Cat Thao Nguyen is a trailblazer. Cat Thao (Nguyễn Cát Thảo) is the Managing Director of Global Ready LLC, a consultancy that assists organisations and individuals to lead inclusively in a globalised world.

Thomas Ko is an internationally recognised expert in oral biological drug delivery and sports medicine. During his 45-year pharmaceutical career, he has embraced the attitude he says was instilled in him while studying in Australia: to be inventive and believe nothing is impossible.

A paradigm shifter in the global independent music industry, Charles Caldas has earned his reputation fighting to ensure artists share in the profits from the digital music revolution.

A global leader shaping film and television industry policy, Jess Conoplia has actively lead on-screen sector development, diversity and advocacy for members world-wide.

Described as one of Australia’s most unorthodox and influential academic exports, Professor Justin Wolfers shifts the lens on economic discourse and the stereotype of economics in equal measure.

In her formative years as a young teacher, Karen Thorpe was struck by the stark inequities in children’s early learning opportunities.

Dr Pichamon Yeophantong is Senior Lecturer in International Relations and Development and the Director of the Responsible Business Lab at the University of New South Wales (Canberra)—Australian Defence Force Academy.

Sam’s research has led to significant real-world impact. One example is the $1 trillion Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund increasing their equity mix, lowering their spending rule, and divesting stocks most exposed to the oil price, following recommendations from his work with Ton van den Bremer and Rick van der Ploeg.

Yong In Cho is a fintech expert, specialising in the payments industry, with deep knowledge of the financial technology market across Asia. 

Originally from Melbourne, Paul Chapman co-founded the game-changing ‘Moneytree’ platform, giving people greater control over their finances and disrupting Japan’s digital banking environment in the same beat.

An impact investment warrior, Shuyin Tang is a pioneer bringing fit-for-purpose financing to impactful businesses in Southeast Asia.

Professor David Hunter is undoubtedly the leading epidemiologist on cancer globally. His work at Harvard University uncovered genetic associations and gene-environment associations for breast and prostate cancers, and he has initiated and been a lead investigator in a series of large scale research studies to determine the links between genetics and cancers, in the USA, in Africa, and now the UK.

Professor Dr McHutchison AO has played a central and critical role in developing the curative treatments for Hepatitis C Virus (HCV). To develop this treatment is a remarkable accomplishment destined to improve the health of many millions of people.

A public health advocate and sustainable food architect, Dr Alessandro (Sandro) Demaio founded his career using nutrition as a platform for social change.

Professor Bryan Gaensler is an award-winning astronomer and author who is internationally recognised for his groundbreaking work on dying stars, interstellar magnets and cosmic explosions.

Professor Daryl Williams is the inventor and scientific pioneer of a new family of scientific methods for powder characterisation. Every solid drug substance developed globally in the past 15 years will have been tested for stability and moisture uptake using the instruments he has developed.

A manufacturing revolutionary, Dr David Pender has designed and run some of the most advanced manufacturing facilities in the world. He has started them up, debugged them and brought them to full capacity.

To meet crisis day in and day out, Executive Director and CEO of Crisis Action, Andrew Hudson, says honesty, trust and personal communication are constant allies.

A fearless campaigner, advocate and writer, Samah Hadid connects her own proud Arab and Muslim heritage to the global fight for greater equality.  Samah is as articulate as she is outspoken.

An Australian icon in the world of Children’s Books, Sophie Blackall creates places to escape to during stormy times, and return from wiser, calmer and changed. Needless to say, her work is relevant to children and adults alike in modern times.

A suit-wearing eco-warrior armed with a strategic mind and commercial rigour, Caroline Angoorly has earned her stripes operating, developing and financing large energy infrastructure projects.

Showing that science is an innately creative endeavour, Professor Jenni Evans has forged a brilliant career merging research fields and forging interdisciplinary partnerships to tackle complex hypotheses and society’s biggest challenges.