Jennifer is a Senior Adviser in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet’s National Security and International Policy Group. Jennifer has experience advising government on a range of cross-cutting policy issues, including foreign interference, critical infrastructure, international defence engagement, and counter-terrorism.
Jennifer’s research will examine US-China competition for leadership over advanced and emerging technologies, and the implications for US allies including Australia. The findings of Jennifer’s research will inform the development of a policy framework which integrates security, economic and social considerations, and supports government decision-making in the long-term national interest.
Jennifer holds a Master of National Security Policy from the ANU’s National Security College. She was awarded First Class Honours and the University Medal for her research on urbanisation in India, as part of her Bachelor of Liberal Studies at Sydney University.
Helen is an economist and former diplomat, currently one of a cadre of senior experts providing strategic advice to the Prime Minister and rest of government. She is also the inaugural Non-Resident Fellow for Economic Security at the United States Studies Centre. Helen previously worked at Treasury and served Australia in New York, South Africa and Mexico with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. She is trained in analytical tradecraft and speaks Spanish, Portuguese and Japanese.
Helen’s research draws on her expertise fusing economics, geopolitics and security for government. Today, economic security issues involve supply chains, growth and innovation as much as deterrence, commitment and pressure. This leads to tensions between the aims of economic security and statecraft policies. Helen has developed a rigorous framework to guide policymakers through these issues to find policies that can drive prosperity and add to regional deterrence and influence that will help Australia manage threats and develop new energy and technology systems. Helen's framework helps policymakers to identify and calibrate policies that move Australia towards desired economic security outcomes and find off-ramps away from unintended consequences or dangerous outcomes.
Nikiforakis N, Mitchell H (2014) 'Mixing the carrots with the sticks: third party punishment and reward'. Experimental Economics, 17:1–23. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10683-013-9354-z
Nu Nu joined the Department of Treasury in 2005 and has a broad range of experience across tax policy and legislation as well as macroeconomic policy, modelling and forecasting. She has also worked in the Department in Industry’s business tax incentives area and at the ANU Crawford School as a research fellow. Nu Nu led the BHP’s macroeconomic team in Singapore to develop a new forecasting system to underpin commodity price forecasts, and worked in the World Bank’s macroeconomic modelling team in Washington DC.
Nu Nu’s research will leverage administrative datasets to look at business investment and the labour market in Australia. First, the research will examine the effectiveness of business tax policies in achieving macroeconomic stabilisation objectives and increasing business investment, taking explicit account of firm heterogeneity. Second, the research will look at intersectionality in the Australian labour market, including analysing the impact of diversity on promotion and wage outcomes.
PhD title: Political economy of cross-border electricity trading in Southeast Asia
Since joining the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in 2012, Hannah has worked in a variety of foreign policy and international development roles focusing on Southeast Asia and climate change. During a posting to Laos from 2014-18, Hannah managed political and economic bilateral relations and development projects. From 2018 to 2021, Hannah was part of Australia’s delegation to UN climate change negotiations and worked to integrate climate change across the Australian aid program.
Hannah’s research aims to improve understanding of the governance of the energy transition in Southeast Asia. Specifically, she is taking a case study approach to examining the growing trade in electricity in Southeast Asia. While regional electricity trade can support uptake of renewables, progress towards an ASEAN Power Grid has been incremental and its future development faces a complex set of political and economic barriers. Through her research, Hannah hopes to develop a better understanding of the factors supporting successful trading relationships, so as to inform regional diplomacy and technical assistance programs.
Office of the Minister for Indigenous Australians (formerly Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts)
Australian National University
Master of Public Policy
Kayannie is Aṉangu Luritja with strong family and cultural ties to Bagarrmuguwarra and Kuku Yalanji Bama of Cape York. She is an experienced executive level leader and has led policy, research, program and grants management teams since joining the APS. She also has experience as a political staffer and in the not-for-profit sector. Kayannie graduated with a Master of Public Policy from The Australian National University in 2022.
Kayannie currently works as a Senior Advisor to the Minister for Indigenous Australians, on leave from her position at the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications and the Arts. She joined the APS in 2015 after relocating from Far North Queensland and prior to moving to Canberra, had never considered a career in the public sector. Kayannie is passionate about creating and leading high-performing teams and championing the unique role that Indigenous staff play in mainstream APS agencies to deliver outcomes to all Australians.
Sharna Bartley is a dynamic leader with over a decade of public sector experience, specialising in community engagement, service delivery, fraud and compliance, human resources, and agency transformation. Currently, Sharna serves as the National Manager of Fraud and Identity Assurance at Services Australia, responsible for managing the agency's approach to fraud and customer identity. Her past roles include Director of Medicare Integrity Reform and Director of Debt and Integrity Projects, where she consistently demonstrated her ability to adapt, analyse data, and lead complex programs.
Sharna holds a Master of Public Policy from The Australian National University and a Graduate Certificate in Business from Queensland University of Technology, complemented by coursework in artificial intelligence from MIT. Her professional experiences are further enriched by her participation in international study tours at prestigious institutions including Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, and MIT, and selection for the U.S. Department of State International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP). Sharna continues to make significant contributions to public service and community development through her extensive expertise and commitment to continuous learning.
The Sir Roland Wilson Foundation is a partnership between The Australian National University, Charles Darwin University and the Australian Public Service.
