Ideas@theHouse: June 2023
Ideas@theHouse
presented by
Her Excellency the Honourable
Margaret Beazley AC KC, Governor of NSW
“Importance of scientific ideas and discovery to Australia’s future”
Dr Cathy Foley AO PSM DistFRSN FAA FTSE
Australia’s Chief Scientist
Date: Wednesday, 14 June 2023, 6.30 pm AEST
Video presentation: YouTube video
Entry: No charge
All are welcome
Summary: Science is humanity’s superpower. Because of our ability to be curious, deduce, and experiment, we humans have been able to discover how the world works and then use this knowledge to extend our lives with improved health and ways to fight disease. We have worked out how to use materials in the earth and air to construct buildings the height of mountains and electronics with features the size of an atom. But in doing this, we have not been careful enough about the impacts on our environment, and we are now at a point where we must look to science for solutions to the climate crisis. Australia’s Chief Scientist, Dr Cathy Foley, will speak about the importance of scientific discovery to making Australia the place it is now, and how science and the humanities can contribute to a future for us all. She will also consider what we can learn from Australia’s First Nations peoples about sustainability and care for country.
Dr Cathy Foiey AO PSM DistFRSN became Australia’s ninth Chief Scientist in January 2021 after an extensive career at Australia’s national science agency, the CSIRO, including as the agency’s Chief Scientist.
Dr Foley is an internationally recognised physicist with major research achievements in superconductors and sensors which lead to the development of the LANDTEM sensor system to locate valuable deposits of minerals deep underground.
Dr Foley’s scientific excellence and influential leadership have been recognised with numerous awards and fellowships, including election to the Australian Academy of Science in 2020, and an Order of Australia for service to research science and to the advancement of women in physics. She received the Australian Institute of Physics Medal for Outstanding Service to Physics in 2016. She is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Science and Engineering (2008), an honorary Fellow of the Australian Institute of Physics (2019), and a Distinguished Fellow of the Royal Society of NSW (2022).
Dr Foley is an inspiration to women in STEM across the globe and focused strongly on equality and diversity in the science sector.
15 May 2025
RSL Mittagong, Carrington Room 
