Independent Design Advisory Panel - current members

Martin has 25 years’ experience in urban planning and program management in QLD, NSW and the UK, including 13 years in senior leadership positions.

He holds a Bachelor of Regional and Town Planning from the University of Queensland, a Master of Infrastructure Management from Queensland University of Technology and earned additional qualifications from Oxford Saïd Business School, the NSW Public Service Commission and Australian Institute of Management. He has also been a member of numerous advisory boards and committees relating to planning, infrastructure and urban design.

Owner and director of WILD Studio, Andrew is a passionate landscape architect, Fellow of the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects and avid traveller. Andrew concentrates his energy on improving open space in our built environment and contributing to the vitality of urban life. This has been demonstrated throughout his career on many award-winning projects in Australia and abroad. Working in design studios in Tokyo, Vienna and Brisbane over the past two decades, Andrew is deeply committed to helping create some of Australia’s most resilient and memorable urban environments.

As Director at Arkhefield, Andrew drives the design direction of the practice. His extensive skills and experience in providing strategic direction and managing the design process ensures a keen vision and strong leadership for the studio. An advocate for the architecture profession and construction industry, Andrew is committed to innovative work practices that embrace collaboration and integration in how we design and deliver the built environment.

He has been an active member of numerous government and industry steering committees and is a regular speaker at conventions and forums nationwide. Andrew is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Architects.

Anne is the Director of Sustainable Futures Collaborative and the co-founder of the Brisbane Futures Collaborative with a focus on foresight methodologies for a more sustainable future. Anne has 25 years’ experience in building physics and sustainability advisory including strategy, workshops, computational analysis and ratings tools.

Anne is a Technical Director leading Sustainable Buildings and Precincts for Mott MacDonald Australia. Anne is a Green Star assessor and is on the Technical Advisory Panel for the Green Building Council of Australia. Anne is also on the WELL cities Advisory Panel for the International Well Building Institute and is on the WELL Faculty.

Anne’s project experience includes the multi-award-winning Global Change Institute, where she was the Green Star Accredited Professional. This project was the most sustainable education building in Australia of it’s time, designed in alignment with the Living Building Challenge. Anne also has extensive experience with commercial buildings, including 123 Albert Street, 480 Queen Street and public infrastructure such as the Townsville Stadium, the Anna Meares Velodrome and sustainability input to the Brisbane 2032 villages and venues.

Anne has been working with Economic Development Queensland to achieve a 6 Star Green Star Communities V1.1 rating for the Northshore Brisbane Precinct.

Ben is a respected town planning consultant with over 25 years of experience. His strategic advice, professional opinion and project leadership skills are highly sought after by both the private sector and government.  Ben is a Director of Planning at Urbis and is a past-President of the Committee for Brisbane. 

Ben is passionate about shaping cities and has contributed to the success of a wide variety of projects, from master planning and drafting planning instruments and policy, through to guiding development projects to secure approvals and appearing as an independent expert in the Queensland Planning and Environment Court. 

Bevan was a founding partner of McKerrell Lynch Architects and has 46 years practicing in Australia, the Pacific region, Asia and the Middle East. He was the first Chair of IDAP established in 2006 and continues to serve on this panel, is Specialist Advisor to Council on Urban Renewal and Design, and a Director of Oxley Creek Transformation Pty Ltd.

Brooke Williams is the Founder and Director of Brisbane based placemaking and community engagement consultancy Fourfold Studio. She is an experienced urban designer, event manager, and trusted placemaking advisor who, through her years of experience, has co-founded the not-for-profit organisation U.R{BNE} Collective, delivered internationally acclaimed activations and championed the placemaking movement in Queensland. Brooke has experience working on urban renewal and place-based economic regeneration strategies throughout Australia. She applies a highly participatory and evidence-based approach to designing places and delivering activation strategies that leave a legacy of more vibrant places with proud and connected communities.

Caroline is an architect and urbanist with over 35 years experience, with more than 20 of these as a Director or Principal of top-tier national and international design practices. She is an award-winning designer, bringing strong design and communication skills, strategic thinking and a collaborative ethos to projects.

She has led major projects around Australia, South East Asia and London, including integration of new infrastructure into urban settings, master planning new communities, transport hubs, centres regeneration, universities, designing public spaces, community buildings, station architecture, and social and affordable housing.

Caroline recently established ‘Pilot Places’, a project strategy and design practice helping clients to innovate in the design and procurement of community places and spaces.

She is an Adjunct Professor of Design in Creative Industries at QUT, and a member of the Queensland Board for Urban Design and Urban Places. She has served as a board member of the Southbank Corporation, and is an AIA Fellow and Chapter Councillor. She is a regular invited keynote speaker at conferences and workshops, and a strong design advocate.

Cathryn is an award-winning urban designer and landscape architect, and her contribution to the country’s-built environment spans the nation’s capital, New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia. With more than 30 years’ experience Cathryn has accumulated dual proficiencies in both policy and practice and is also an active member of several Design Review Panels nationally.

She is a passionate collaborator and highly effective project director and has led the design and delivery of large-scale projects for both public and private sector clients. Her project portfolio includes significant involvement in large-scale urban regeneration and master planning, including town and city centres, airports, and university campuses.

David is an Urban Designer, Registered Landscape Architect, and Precinct Sustainability Consultant with over 29 years’ experience. David has extensive experience in large to small scale landscape design, master planning projects and public realm projects including sustainable development and resilience advisory and is one of only a few Green Star Accredited Landscape Architects in Australia.

David is an advocate for good design outcomes and passionate about the sustainability, design and community dividend benefits that good development can bring to our cities. David is an AILA Fellow, current AILA Queensland Chapter Vice President and immediate past President of the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects.

Deb has over 25 years experience working as a Landscape Architect and Urban Designer, growing teams and collaborating to create beautiful places. Over her career she has worked across many landscape typologies from infrastructure, education, health and wellbeing, public realm, master planning, parklands, recreation and wetlands, retail, commercial and residential towers, community consultation, streetscapes and villages, visual assessments, and last but not least - play.

Deb’s legacy of projects include the Cross River Rail Bid – where she led the Urban Design and Landscape Team across four Inner city precincts and solidified strategic partnerships. Deb is passionate about ensuring city shaping projects create a legacy beyond the hard infrastructure by creating sustainable benefits for the health and well-being of the community through public realm and open space opportunities.

James Davidson is the Principal of JDA Co. He holds a Doctorate in Architecture from UQ and is a previous Director of Emergency Architects Australia and a Winston Churchill Fellow. Over the last 15 years, JDA Co. has become renowned as one of Australia’s leading climate adaptive architecture consultancies, specializing in flood resilience.

Currently working as the lead advisors for both the QLD & NSW State Governments’ Resilient Homes Programs, providing technical guidance for home raising and retrofitting works to more than 10,000 properties across Southeast Queensland, the Northern Rivers and Central West regions of NSW. In his approach to architecture, James has a strong belief that the discipline is by its very nature an empirical anthropology, where the making of architecture is directly linked to its social processes and material context.

James has over 25 years’ experience working in architectural practice and was a research academic at the University of Queensland for almost 15 years during this time. James has built a reputation for self-initiated, collaborative projects with a strong emphasis on design advocacy.

Dr Janice Rieger has been designing for inclusion across Australia, Canada and Europe for 25 years, and her work has won international universal design awards, three national awards, a Mayor’s Access Recognition Award, and a State-level disability award for her leadership in promoting access and inclusion. Janice has held appointments to international design juries, disability congress committees, international scientific advisory boards for inclusive design, and national council board positions.

Dr Rieger is a Fellow of The Queensland Academy of Arts and Sciences (QAAS), a Lifetime Member of the Centre for Universal Design Australia (CUDA), and the first non-European invited to join the European Institute for Design and Disability-Design for All (EIDD-DfA). Janice co-founded the National Certificate Program in Accessible Housing Design (CSAHD) in Canada and is an international member of the European Society for Disability Research (ALTER). Dr Rieger continues to practice as a designer to advocate for access, inclusion and design for all in Australia and globally.  

Jeff is a registered architect in Queensland with over 15 years of professional experience as an architect and urban designer. Jeff brings a broad range of architectural experience from an extensive portfolio of work both nationally and internationally.

His leadership of our Queensland studio is characterised by an emphasis on collaboration and innovation in design across all aspects and stages of the projects the practice undertakes nationally. He is equally proficient designing individual luxury homes as he is mixed-use residential and commercial buildings across all scales.

John Gaskell has over 35 years planning experience in the public and private sector and is currently a Director of GPC, who have a range of government, private sector and not for profit clients.  He has wide experience in strategic planning, planning scheme preparation, major development applications and as an expert witness.

John's standing in the planning profession has been recognised by the Planning Institute of Australia's elevation of John's membership to fellow in 2015. John has a strong reputation in leading multi-disciplinary teams in strategic planning and development approval projects.

Karen Ognibene is an architect and director of KO&Co Architecture, a Brisbane practice with a keen focus on socially responsible architecture and a belief that architects can, and should, make a difference to the way people live through good design. Karen’s portfolio of work includes social and affordable housing units, specialist disability and residential care accommodation, high end private residential, clever renovations, education facilities, commercial fit outs and cruise liner terminals. She has designed and delivered many awarding winning projects, including the Cairns Cruise Liner Terminal, recipient of the AIA National Lachlan Macquarie Award for Heritage.

Karen studied architecture in Brisbane and Milan before graduating with a Bachelor of Architecture (Hons) in 2002, completing her undergraduate thesis on architecture and homelessness. Throughout her career, Karen has contributed to architectural education through tutoring and guest critiques at four universities in South East Queensland and holds a position on the Board of Architects Queensland examination panel. She has participated in many panel discussions relating to social and affordable housing, mental health respite accommodation and specialist disability housing.

Karen is also a design review panel member for Economic Development Queensland and a member of the Queensland Urban Design and Places Panel.

Kirsti is an internationally recognised expert in workplace architecture with significant expertise in the design and delivery of major complex projects, drawn from over 25 years’ experience across the design and construction industry. With global architecture practice Woods Bagot, Kirsti holds the positions of Global leader – Workplace Interiors, Studio Executive Chair (Brisbane) and Principal. Throughout her 25-year tenure in the industry, Kirsti has designed ground-breaking workplaces for international and local clients, acting as a mediator in how design can foster organisational change.

Beyond this, Kirsti is an adjunct professor at the University of Queensland (UQ) School of Architecture. She is a Member of the Economic Development Queensland advisory panel and a member of the Division Council of the Property Council of Queensland.

Melissa has studied and worked in architectural practice for 20 years, building a diverse portfolio of experience in urban design, heritage, education, retail, commercial and public architecture. Her design focus is sustainability, integrating cultural heritage with environmental considerations to achieve enduring design outcomes that benefit both clients and the community.

As Practice Director at Wilson Architects, Melissa has delivered projects of State and Local Heritage significance, developing her expertise in conservation and adaptive reuse. She is actively involved in policy development for Queensland Heritage places and holds professional memberships with the Australian Institute of Architects (AIA) and the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS).

Natalie Hoitz is an urban designer with a background in architecture, planning and urban geography. With over 20 years of experience, she has worked on urban design and built-form projects around the world. Over many years she has helped provide strategic and practical design, master planning and placemaking advice for major urban renewal precincts, new cities, airports, university and health campuses and public spaces.

Natalie is a keen advocate for elevating the design agenda in our city and promoting human-centric outcomes in the built environment. She is involved in several industry bodies and organisations including the Property Council of Australia and the Council for Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat. Her most recent project work includes leading the Victoria Park Master Plan for Brisbane City Council, the Future South Bank Master Plan and The Dunwich (Goompi) Master Plan for the Queensland Government.

Natasha is an accomplished professional in the design and construction industries with over 15 years of experience in precinct development, project management and architecture.

On behalf of the Queensland Government, she facilitates major precinct developments, including the Queen's Wharf Brisbane, where she oversees all development and delivery aspects. Her expertise spans development agreements, stakeholder engagement, risk management, and design quality assurance, with a particular focus on realising public benefits through the delivery of precincts and public realm. Previously, Natasha project managed the delivery of high-quality commercial base buildings and workplaces, including associated transition management.

Nathalie is deeply concerned about the future of our planet and the legacy we leave future generations, bringing this focus to her influence on projects. Working in the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, and Australia for 30+ years, she has collaboratively engaged with multidisciplinary teams to produce award-winning outcomes on projects in the realms of urban design, infrastructure, park design, residential design, site rehabilitation and visual impact assessment.

Nathalie is a panel member of the Queensland Urban Design and Places Panel, the Brisbane City Council Independent Design Advisory Panel and the Sunshine Coast Urban Design Advisory Panel.

Nathalie was awarded a Fellowship from AILA for her contributions to the Landscape Architecture profession in 2017.

Dr Noel Robinson (OAM LFAIA) is the founder and CEO of Noel Robinson Architects, an eminent Australian Architectural practice with over 50 years of experience in innovative Architecture and Urban Design.

Noel Robinson is a Doctor of the University at QUT. He is also an Adjunct Professor at QUT. Noel was awarded an OAM in 2024 and the Prime Minister’s Centenary Medal in 2003 (Australian Honours System).

During his distinguished career in private practice, he has been the recipient of over 80 architectural and industry awards for design excellence.

Peter Richards is an architect and urbanist with over 40 years’ experience working on projects from small buildings to large cities. He is well-known and sought after for his collaborative design abilities and has contributed to more than 150 design workshops in Australia and internationally over the last 20 years. Peter is an Adjunct Professor at the QUT School of Design and a former chair of the Centre for Subtropical Design.

Shy Tay is an architect and urbanist with a proven record of leading city shaping projects in urban renewal, mixed-use precincts and transport infrastructure.

Through his work in practice on major projects, involvement on Design Advisory boards, and design jury roles, Shy has provided design stewardship, project leadership and strategic advice for a range of major development schemes, key infrastructure projects and design policies.

Invested in enhancing urban liveability through developing strategic design policy, Shy has co-authored several urban design guidelines for local governments including Brisbane City Council’s New World City Design Guide: Buildings that Breathe and Traditional Housing: Alterations and Extensions Design Guide.

Simon White specialises in high-density residential projects and brings a design-focused approach to development that is rooted in real-world expertise.

Simon graduated with a Bachelor of Architecture from the Queensland University of Technology in 1998 and has over 25 years’ experience in the industry that includes as the owner and Design Principal of a national architectural practice. He has also been the Head of Design for one of Australia’s premier residential developers, and most recently founded a design focused development advisory consultancy called Finegrain.

His notable projects include Southport Broadwater Parklands, Upper House and South Brisbane’s Fish Lane redevelopment.

Stephen Pate is a founding director of CUSP and a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects with over 30 years of experience in the design coordination of multi-disciplinary teams for the delivery of successful public realm. He has been recognised for his significant contribution to landscape architecture and urban design through numerous awards. His most notable works include the James Street precinct, River Quay at South Bank and the Outdoor Stage HOTA at the Gold Coast cultural precinct.  He is currently the lead designer of the riverfront Queens Wharf public realm.

Stuart Vokes lives, teaches and practices architecture in Brisbane and has over 30 years of industry experience. In 2015 Stuart co-founded the architectural practice Vokes and Peters with long-time collaborator Aaron Peters to focus on projects that respond to prevailing settings, cultural narratives, human occupation and the presence of nature. Vokes and Peters is recognised for its private houses and sustained research into suburban Brisbane, however the practice also works across a range of cultural and commercial projects, as well as heritage work. Stuart has served as a juror on the AIA national awards program and the Queensland Urban Design and Places Panel. He currently sits on the Design Excellence Panel: Queensland Social and Affordable Housing and the Abedian School of Architecture Industry Panel.