Professor Matthew Bailes appointed to CRC for Low Carbon Living Board

A new board member for the CRC for Low Carbon Living (CRCLCL) was announced today by Chairman, The Hon Professor Robert Hill AC as Professor Matthew Bailes, currently the Acting Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research & Development) at Swinburne University.

Professor Bailes, who also leads the Pulsar Group at Swinburne’s Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing, joins Kevin Cullen (UNSW) on the CRCLCL Board as the second Research Sector-elected Director, replacing Professor George Collins who passed away unexpectedly at the end of 2014.

Professor Hill said Professor Bailes brought a wealth of research experience to the position.

“We welcome Professor Bailes to the Board and know that his research experience and contributions to research discussion will be a great asset to the organisation,” he said.

Professor Bailes said he was very excited to be given the opportunity to work with the CRCLCL and play a role in meeting its objective to make low carbon living a part of the built environment.

“The remarkable increase in CO2 concentrations in our atmosphere since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution is an incredibly dangerous experiment for the world to be conducting and it is incumbent on the advanced nations to be working toward practical solutions to reverse the increase,” he said.

“I hope that I can help play my part by working with the other board members to optimise the use of the CRC’s resources but also by continuing to advocate for respect of the scientific method and the dangers of thinking we cannot change the planet.”

Professor Bailes founded the Centre for Astrophysics and Computing in 1998, an ERA-5 rated research centre that houses over 30 PhD scientists and engineers at Swinburne University of Technology. He is an acclaimed expert on the discovery and timing of relativistic objects known as pulsars, and his team is currently designing the supercomputer that will process radio data for the Square Kilometre Array. Bailes oversaw the formation of Swinburne Astronomy Productions, a sub-unit of the Centre which makes powerful 3D animations of the Universe on the Centre’s supercomputer for use in public outreach. Australia’s first 3D IMAX film was created in a collaboration between Swinburne and December Media and is already the 6^th highest grossing Australian documentary of all time. He writes regularly for the online academic magazine, ‘The Conversation’, and often on issues pertaining to science, technology and climate change.

The following now hold office as Directors of the CRC for Low Carbon Living Limited:

For media inquiries please contact:

Sharon Kelly

E: [email protected]

M: +61 414 780 077