Speakers

Gillian Geraghty

Gillian is the Director-General and ACT Chief Engineer of Infrastructure Canberra. The position leads the procurement and delivery of the Territory’s infrastructure program. Gillian has dedicated almost 30 years to the building and infrastructure industry and has a Bachelor of Engineering (Civil), First Class Honours from the University of Sydney. She has a strong track record of leadership on major and complex infrastructure projects across multiple sectors and geographies and is passionate about enabling people to be their best as a solid foundation for high performing teams. Prior to her current role Gillian held senior executive roles in the NSW Public Service where she led planning, development and delivery teams for a number of NSW landmark projects for both NSW Health and Transport for NSW.

Craig Gillman

A proven and distinguished leader, Craig Gillman leads the City Renewal Authority as Chief Executive Officer, driving the future of Canberra's City Centre. Mr Gillman has been an integral part of the City Renewal Authority since 2019, serving as its Deputy Chief Executive before his appointment to Chief Executive in 2024. Prior to the Authority, Mr. Gillman honed his expertise in strategic leadership and project delivery as acting CEO at the Suburban Land Agency and Executive Director at Transport for NSW and EY Canberra. Possessing a deep understanding of central Canberra's development needs, Mr Gillman has been instrumental in shaping the Authority's operating model. He has a proven track record of success, spearheading transformative projects such as the City Walk revitalisation and the Acton Waterfront expansion.

Fiona Brockenshire

Fiona's career in the department spans 24 years. Her role is to build and maintain effective industry-government partnerships, with a particular focus on engaging with small and medium business. Fiona supports the implementation of the 2023–2030 Australian Cyber Security Strategy by raising awareness of cyber security initiatives.

Lok Potticary

Lok Potticary is the Assistant Secretary of the NSW and ACT Infrastructure Investment Branch in the Australian Government Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communication and the Arts. Lok is responsible for over $20 billion worth of investments in land transport infrastructure in NSW and the ACT under the Australian Government's Infrastructure Investment Program. With over 20 years of experience in the Australian Public and Parliamentary Services, including in the Parliamentary Budget Office and The Treasury, Lok has experience in policy development, delivering significant programs, Commonwealth-State relations and budget analysis

Sam Tindal

Sam is dedicated Charted Professional Construction Engineer with extensive experience working across large infrastructure projects and for major clients including Transport for NSW, Australian Rail Track Corporation and the ACT Government. He is highly adept working across multidisciplinary teams and complex projects. Sam’s expertise encompasses overseeing all aspects of project construction, delivered under various Contract models. Sam has demonstrated experience in multi construction disciplines including complex bridge structures, retainment structures, bulk earthworks, pavements, drainage and road infrastructure.

Dario Spralja

Amanda Fyfe

Adam Davey

Adam joined SLA with a wealth of experience in executive positions both in the Commonwealth government and private sector since 2011. Adam has come from the ACT Government’s Environment, Planning and Sustainable Development Directorate as the Chief Operating Officer and Executive General Manager for Corporate Services & Operations. Adam’s experience spans from executive leadership roles to operational and governance positions. His previous employment was the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust (Australia) CEO for a period of seven years.

Catherine Carter

Catherine Carter is a leader in the built environment, with a distinguished career spanning advocacy, urban policy and industry engagement. She is the CEO of leading national design practice DJAS Architecture, Founder and Managing Director of think-tank Salon Canberra and an Adjunct Professor at the University of Canberra. Catherine has made a significant contribution to shaping conversations about cities, design and Canberra’s future, bringing together leaders from government, business, academia and the arts along with the broader community. A regular media commentator, she has been recognised through a range of industry and community awards and continues to influence discussions about place, design, innovation and community, shaping the way we think about cities.

Mel Jones

Mel is an Associate Director with 15+ years experience and qualifications in both Urban Design and Regional Planning. Her experience includes award-winning work across a broad range of scales including master planning, greenfield development, strategic planning, project positioning, urban analysis and urban renewal. Over her career Mel has emerged as a leader in the areas of city centre urban renewal, education and health campus master planning. Balancing strategic thinking with practical human centric design, Mel has worked on a range of public and private sector projects that involve extensive collaboration across disciplines. Over the past few years, she has been delivering several significant projects for the ACT, including the Canberra City Centre Urban Design Framework (2021), the City Centre Design Guide (2023), and the ACT Urban Design and Housing Design Guides in (2023) and is currently preparing the ACT Missing Middle Design Guide

Muir Livingstone

Ashlee Berry

Anna Neelagama

Anna Neelagama was appointed the new CEO at Master Builders ACT in September 2025. Anna is an experienced industry leader with over nine years as a CEO, specialising in real estate and the built environment, and spent her formative career in state and federal agribusiness advocacy roles. Anna holds a Bachelor of International Relations from Griffith University and a Graduate Certificate in Property Development from the University of Technology Sydney. She lives in Canberra with her husband and two children.

Belinda Kendall

Belinda is an Aboriginal woman who identifies with the Barkindji, Wailan, Worimi and Wiradjuri peoples. She has extensive management and therapeutic care experience and is well known for her leadership and executive experience with a depth of understanding of strategic planning, management of multi-disciplinary teams and supplier diversity through relationship-based and trauma-informed approaches. Belinda has worked in state government legislative guidelines and has a comprehensive understanding of government operations, policies, and practices, along with genuine diversity and social inclusion requirements at both state and Commonwealth levels. She has grass roots through to senior executive levels and worked nationally with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, families, and communities as a lead Aboriginal Consultant on projects and she provides leadership, mentoring and support to others in relation to Cultural responsiveness and safety, protocols, therapeutic care, and leadership. Belinda is well known and regarded for her project management, community consultation, Aboriginal Cultural training, leadership and supplier diversity expertise within community, Government and corporate sectors.

Dr Nicholas Fearnley

Dr Nicholas Fearnley is Head of Global Construction Forecasting at Oxford Economics. Nicholas oversees the teams that produce the various global construction services, and also the Australian mining and maintenance outlooks. He works over the full construction spectrum, and has experience forecasting cost escalation and material demand. Nicholas has a PhD in economics from the University of Sydney, and regularly presents and provides commentary for the construction industry.

Rebecca Townsend

Rebecca is the founding Director of Creative Road. She has more than two decades of creative industry experience across cultural strategy, public art, placemaking and cultural tourism. She has led public art programs and provided advice to major Australian projects including Central Station Metro Sydney, 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, Brisbane Airport, Vivid Sydney and the Canberra Hospital Expansion Project. Rebecca works with clients to conceptualise art projects which creatively express their unique character and values. Working in partnership with artists to realise their vision, she has delivered hundreds of public artworks of diverse mediums, scale, and purpose. Rebecca is passionate about enabling high quality public spaces; democratic and inclusive. Places that encourage gathering, connection and exchange, promoting health and well-being.

Anthony Haraldson

Dr. Darius Danesh