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South Australian Defence Summit
7 July 2026
Adelaide Convention CentreAdelaide, SA
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Agenda - Australia/Adelaide
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9:00am - 9:05am
Welcome from ADM
9:05am - 9:10am
Opening Remarks from the Chair
  • Libby Day - Chief Executive Officer, Defence Teaming Centre
9:10am - 9:25am
Ministerial Address | South Australia: The Nation’s Defence & Space Powerhouse
  • Chris Picton MP - Minister for, Defence & Space Industries
9:25am - 9:50am
Federal Address | Ensuring Accountability in Australia’s Largest Defence Investments
  • Deborah O'Neill, Chair of Parliamentary Joint Committee on Defence
9:50am - 10:15am
Keynote Address | AUKUS and South Australia’s Strategic Role
  • Dave Johnson - Deputy Director General Nuclear Submarines, Australian Submarine Agency
10:15am - 10:45am
Morning Tea & Networking Break
10:45am - 11:10am
Keynote Address | Update on the Hunter Class Frigate Program and Destroyer Capability Enhancement Program
  • CDRE Scott Lockey, CSC - Director General Hunter Class Frigate, Royal Australian Navy
  • CAPT Dane Wilson - Surface Project Director, Royal Australian Navy
11:10am - 11:35am
Industry Keynote | From Regional Hub to Global Player: South Australia’s Defence Future
  • Leah Grantham - Acting Chief Executive Officer, Babcock Australasia
11:35am - 12:00pm
Keynote Address | Developing Australia’s Nuclear Submarine Workforce
  • Alex Walsh - Chief Executive Officer, ASC
12:00pm - 12:10pm
Welcome to Lunch
  • Charlie Reilly - Executive General Manager - Defence & Social Infrastructure, Service Stream
12:10pm - 1:25pm
Lunch
Showing 3 of 3 Streams
1:25pm - 1:30pm
Welcome back from the Chair
1:30pm - 1:55pm
South Australia’s Defence Infrastructure Pipeline
  • Darian Macey - Founder, DECNet
1:55pm - 2:30pm
PANEL | Building Australia’s Defence Future
  • Peter Anusas - General Manager, Empower Advisory AUS/UK
  • Gary Meaney - Defence Lead SA, Lendlease
  • Scott Olsen - Chief Executive Officer, Fendon
2:30pm - 3:00pm
Afternoon Tea & Networking Break
3:00pm - 3:35pm
PANEL | South Australia’s Infrastructure Requirements to Maximise the Potential of AUKUS
  • Rhys Hannan - Group Defence Manager, Symal
  • Matthew Theoharous - Executive General Manager, Defence and Social Infrastructure, Built
  • Rod Aves - Programme Director, Laing O'Rourke
3:35pm - 4:00pm
Defence Operations in South Australia
  • Naval operations and maritime security from SA
  • Regional engagement and international exercises
  • Future naval capability
  • Partnering with local industry
  • Rebecca Wilson - Commanding Officer – HMAS Encounter, Royal Australian Navy
4:00pm - 4:10pm
Closing Remarks from the Chair
4:10pm - 5:40pm
End of Conference & Networking Drinks
1:25pm - 1:30pm
Welcome back from the Chair
  • Mel McDowall - Director, DAIRNet
1:30pm - 1:55pm
What does the Ambitious Australia: Strategic Examination of Australia’s Research and Development Report Mean for the Defence Sector?
  • Incentives to build RD&I businesses
  • Investment and support
  • Building workforce capability
  • Georgia King-Siem - Partner – R&D incentives and Grants, KPMG Australia
1:55pm - 2:30pm
PANEL | Trust, Ethics and Governance; How Do We Responsibly Deploy AI?
  • Establishing clear accountability frameworks
  • Creating transparent AI systems with explainable outputs
  • Continuous monitoring and auditing
  • US-Aus Partnerships in the Current Climate
  • Damian Copeland - Founder, Article36legal
  • Dr Mel McDowall - Director, DAIRNet
  • Rob Hunjet - Chief Technology Officer, Praetorian Aeronautics
2:30pm - 3:00pm
Afternoon Tea & Networking Break
3:00pm - 3:25pm
AI and Autonomous Systems
  • Rob Hunjet - Chief Technology Officer, Praetorian Aeronautics
3:25pm - 3:50pm
Japan – Australia as strategic partners: moving from R&D to practical collaboration in dual-use technology
  • Guy Boekenstein - Government Relations, KVG (Australia)
3:50pm - 4:30pm
PANEL | Translating Advanced Manufacturing R&D into Defence and Space Capability
  • Accelerating technology transition
  • Skills and infrastructure requirements
  • Intellectual property and security considerations
  • Investment pathways and support for commercialisation
  • Support to pursue export markets
  • Daniel Hutchinson - Executive General Manager – Strategy, Corporate Development and M&A, Codan
  • Anamika Mishra - Acting Head of Defence and Critical Technology, Austrade
  • Graham Priestnall - President, AIDN SA
  • Dr Mel McDowall - Director, DAIRNet
4:30pm - 4:40pm
Closing Remarks from the Chair
  • Mel McDowall - Director, DAIRNet
4:40pm - 5:40pm
End of Conference & Networking Drinks
1:25pm - 1:30pm
Welcome back from the Chair
  • Libby Day - Chief Executive Officer, Defence Teaming Centre
1:30pm - 1:55pm
Strategy and Policy to Deliver South Australia’s Defence Ready Workforce
  • Workforce policies and strategies that prioritises defence industry
  • Industry partnerships and aligned efforts and investment
  • Education and training programs to ensure local talent meets emerging capability requirements
  • Reskilling and upskilling the workforce
  • Callan Markwick - Executive Director, Workforce, Population and Migration, Department of State Development SA
1:55pm - 2:30pm
PANEL | Expanding the Talent Pool: Attracting Women to Careers in Defence
  • Increasing workforce capacity to meet AUKUS skills demands
  • Strategies for recruitment, retention and advancement of women across defence industry
  • Educational partnerships and early engagement
  • Amanda Holt - Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director, Sypaq Systems
  • Olivia Agate - Industry Engagement, Navantia
  • Alexandra Steele - Site Engineer, Laing O’Rourke
  • Libby Day - Chief Executive Officer, Defence Teaming Centre
2:30pm - 3:00pm
Afternoon Tea & Networking Break
3:00pm - 3:25pm
Building Defence Career Pathways for the Next Generation
  • Specialised training programs in shipbuilding, advances manufacturing and emerging technologies
  • Deepening industry partnerships with major primes
  • Creating pathways from classrooms to employment
  • Attracting diverse talent
  • Leigh Farrow - Program Manager – National Security TAFE Centre of Excellence, TAFE SA
3:25pm - 3:50pm
Upskilling and Uplifting Defence Innovators and Entrepreneurs
  • Connecting researchers, startups and SMEs with Defence end users
  • Creating collaborative networks
  • Building entrepreneurial capability withing the defence ecosystem
  • Sanjay Mazumdar - Executive Director, Defence Trailblazer
3:50pm - 4:30pm
PANEL | Delivering a ‘Defence-ready’ Workforce
  • Pathways for transitioning workings from other sectors
  • Recruitment and security clearances for international workers
  • Naval shipbuilding and sustainment requirements of the future
  • Matt Kirk - Director, Worksec
  • Michelle De Palma - Manager Placements & Industry Engagement, PEER
  • Libby Day - Chief Executive Officer, Defence Teaming Centre
  • Romy Lawson - Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Flinders University
4:30pm - 4:40pm
Closing Remarks from the Chair
  • Libby Day - Chief Executive Officer, Defence Teaming Centre
4:40pm - 5:40pm
End of Conference & Networking Drinks
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