Governance
This page describes the Society’s governance and includes the following matters, accessible from the links below:
- Governance Arrangements
- Council and Office-Bearers
- Council Committees
- Royal Society of NSW Act and Rules
- Strategic Plan
- Society Policies
- Recent Annual Reports
Governance Arrangements
The current governance arrangements date from the formal incorporation of the Royal Society of New South Wales by an Act of the New South Wales Parliament in 1881. (For the period from 1821 to 1881, see History.)
The Society is governed by a Council that is elected annually. The Council manages all the Society’s business in accordance with its Act and Rules.
Under the current Rules, the Council comprises the President, the Vice-President, the immediate Past President (if available, and only for the first year after leaving the role of President), the Secretary, the Treasurer, the Librarian, the Webmaster, the Editor of the Journal, the chairperson (or nominee) of each of the Hunter, Southern Highlands, Western NSW, and the New England North West region branches, six elected Members or Fellows and two appointed members (See Rule 18 that described the transition arrangements in 2023–2024). All Council members must be Members or Fellows of the Society.
The Executive Committee comprises the President, the Vice-President, the immediate Past President (if available, for the first year after leaving the role of President), the Secretary, the Treasurer, and two Council member appointed by resolution of the Council.
Council and Office-Bearers 2025–2026
As of the close of the 2025 Annual General Meeting held on 2 April 2025, the current Council and office-bearers of the Society are:
| Patron | Her Excellency The Honourable Margaret Beazley AC KC, Governor of New South Wales |
| President | Emeritus Professor Christina Slade FRSN (until April 2027) |
| Immediate Past President | Dr Susan Pond AM FRSN (until April 2026) |
| Vice-President | Emeritus Professor Lindsay Botten FRSN (until April 2027) |
| Secretary | Emeritus Professor Trevor Brown FRSN (until April 2027) |
| Treasurer | Emeritus Professor Peter Wells FRSN (until April 2026) |
| Editor (JProc) | Emeritus Professor Robert Marks FRSN (until April 2026) |
| Librarian | Emeritus Professor Stephen Garton AM FRSN (until April 2027) |
| Webmaster | Emeritus Professor Graham Town FRSN (until April 2027) |
| Councillors | Professor Sean Brawley FRSN (until April 2026) |
| Professor Sally Cripps FRSN (until April 2026) | |
| Emeritus Professor Rosalind Croucher FRSN (until April 2027) | |
| Cdre (Ret’d) Vince Di Pietro AM CSC FRSN (until April 2026) | |
| Mr Medy Hassan OAM FRSN (until April 2026) | |
| Dr Davina Jackson FRSN (until April 2027) | |
| Dr Sarah Jones FRSN (appointed member until April 2027) | |
| Dr Elizabeth Killen MRSN (until April 2026) | |
| Branch Representatives | |
| Hunter | Adjunct Professor Robert Whittaker AM FRSN (until April 2026) |
| New England North West | Professor Vicki Bitsika AM FRSN (until April 2027) |
| Southern Highlands | Ms Ann Fieldhouse MRSN (until April 2027) |
| Western NSW | To be advised (until April 2027) |
Council Committees and Working Groups
The President chairs meetings of the Council and general meetings of the Society.
The Council appoints other committees and working groups from time to time to attend to specific matters. Committees and Working Groups may comprise both Council members and other Society members.
2025–26 Committees
The current Committees, together with the names of their Chairs and Secretaries are listed below. The link associated with each Committee name refers to the information page for that Committee— providing an outline of the Committee’s role, its Terms of Reference, and its current composition.
| Committee | Chair | Secretary |
| Executive | Emer. Prof. Christina Slade FRSN | Emer. Prof. Trevor Brown FRSN |
| Awards | Prof. Merlin Crossley FRSN | Emer. Prof. Annabelle Duncan PSM FRSN |
| Fellows and Members Assessment | Prof. Sean Brawley FRSN | Mr Trevor Danos AM FRSN |
| Library and Assets | Emer. Prof. Stephen Garton AM FRSN | TBC |
| RSNSW & Learned Academies Forum | Emer. Prof. Christina Slade FRSN | Dr Elizabeth Deane FRSN |
2025–26 Working Groups
| Working Group | Chair | Secretary |
| Future Fund | Mr Medy Hassan OAM FRSN | TBA |
| Activities with Impact | Emer. Prof. Christina Slade FRSN | Ms Debra Perik MRSN |
| Effective Communications | Dr Sarah Jones FRSN | TBC |
| Member Engagement | Prof. Sean Brawley FRSN | TBC |
| Operations | Emer. Prof. Lindsay Botten FRSN | TBC |
Strategic Plan
The 2024–2029 Master Plan of the Society, as approved by the Council in March 2024, is now online.