Robert is Secretary of the SSSI ACT Region and has been an active member of a number of the professional associations which have come together to form the SSSI for over 30 years. Commencing his career as a cartographer in Tasmania, Robert has worked in a number of branches of surveying and geographic information systems in the Tasmanian and ACT Governments and private enterprise, both in Australia and internationally. More recently, Robert has created his own consultancy firm and enjoys working across the range of disciplines encompassed by the SSSI.
Contact details are:
Email:
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Phone: 0409 840042
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Alister Nairn - Biography
Alister Nairn initially trained as a surveyor and after working privately for a number of years, joined the federal government in 1984. He worked in systems analysis and early GIS systems before moving to Perth, managing the AUSLIG operations there until 1996. On returning to Canberra he led the spatial information policy area then product development, and finally spent a year managing the maritime boundaries section and developing the Australian Marine Spatial Information System. Alister moved to ABS in March 2006 and as Director of Geography is responsible for producing the Australian Statistical Geography and utilising spatial technologies to improve production and dissemination of statistics.
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James Coffey - Biography
James graduated as a Bachelor of Geomatic Engineering from the University of Melbourne in 2002. From there, he moved to Canberra to begin a career in the Defence/Intelligence and Security industry, working as an Analyst in Defence. He interrupted his Defence tenure to take on a short-term contract with Geoscience Australia as a consultant to the Coastal Cooperative Research Centre (Coastal-CRC) before returning to Defence. In 2007, James graduated as Master of Arts (Intelligence) from the University of New South Wales, where he focused on the role of intelligence in the post-Cold-War international relations landscape. In 2008, James left public service to work for the private company, Geospatial Intelligence Pty Ltd in Canberra, and remains focused on the Defence/Intelligence and Security Industry.
James joined the SSSI ACT Regional Committee and began acting as the SIIC representative in 2009 (but only really started doing anything of use in 2010). He is also a regular guest lecturer to the Royal Australian Army School of Military Engineering where he lectures on Geomatic Technologies, Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance, and Decision Support.
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Mike Stapleton - Biography
Mike Stapleton has over 30 years Surveying experience. He graduated in South Africa and spent his first 10 years as a surveyor in that country before migrating to Australia in 1988.He has been employed in both the private and public sectors and is currently a partner in the Canberra based Surveying company, Landdata Surveys. Previous employers include Eskom (electricity commission in South Africa), Baulkham Hills Shire Council, Lean Lackenby and Hayward (Bowral), W.L Backhouse Pty Ltd (Sydney), Fisher Stewart and Earthtech (Canberra).
He has served on the committees of the Eastern Cape Institute of Surveyors, the Institute of Surveyors (Canberra Division) and the Spatial Sciences Institute (ACT).
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Craig Sandy - Biography
Born – Millicent South Australia 1964
Bachelor of Applied Science (Surveying) – South Australian Institute of Technology 1988
1988-1993
Surveyor with Electricity Trust of South Australia. Leigh Creek Coal Mine for 12 months, Adelaide Survey Branch for 5 years.
1993-1998
Surveyor in Queensland with private survey companies in Mackay and Townsville. Registered with a Cadastral Endorsement in 1995.
Surveyor in ACT and NSW with private survey companies.
1998-2002
Worked in the GPS field with OmniSTAR and Sigtec Navigation.
2003-
ACT Business Manager with ESRI Australia with responsibility for Federal and ACT Governments.
Other Roles and Interests
2002-Current Councillor Institution of Surveyors, Australia (ISA)
2003-2004 Board Member Spatial Sciences Institute (SSI)
2005-2006 President of the Institution of Surveyors, Australia
Currently ISA Treasurer
Assistant Congress Director for International Federation of Surveyors (FIG) World Congress Sydney 2010 with Responsibilities for Sponsorship and Marketing
1999-2007 President of the Institution of Surveyors, Australia Canberra Division
2003-2005 First Chair of the SSI ACT Region
Currently SSI ACT Regional Committee Member
Premier League Squash player and National Squash Referee
Officiated at 2 World Opens and the 2006 Commonwealth Games
Volunteer Rural Fire-Fighter with the Guises Creek Rural Fire Brigade ACT.
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Gypsy Bhalla - Biography
Gypsy Bhalla obtained her BAppSc (major in GIS and Remote Sensing) in 1995, followed by six years in the private spatial industry as a Remote Sensing and GIS manager, focussing on remote sensing (multi-spectral and radar) applications and integration of data into geographic information systems for a diverse range of government and private enterprise clients. In 2000 she moved into academia for a season, teaching third year remote sensing at the University of Canberra, before taking up various positions in remote sensing and delivery of web based remote sensing and GIS technology within the Australian Centre for Remote Sensing at Geoscience Australia. Her current position, intiated in 2007, is with Defence in a geospatial role, seeking to expand advanced capability for the organisation.
Gypsy has been involved with the SSI since 2005, taking up an ACT region committee member role as of 2006 and setting up the Women in Spatial initiative for the ACT region. More recently Gypsy has taken up role as chair of the SSI Remote Sensing and Photogrammetry Commission, previously held by Simon Jones.
Gypsy's research interests include: e-government policy for spatial data, legal theory in relation to spatial data usage, and impacts of globalisation on IP law for spatial data.
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Gareth Cann - Biography
CMDR Cann was born at Llwynypia, Mid Glamorgan in the United Kingdom on 14 February 1956 and joined the RN, becoming a Hydrographic Surveyor in 1980. He has participated in surveying duties in far flung areas of the world including Antarctica, the Arctic, Europe (particularly around the British Isles, the Red Sea and the Mediterranean), Gulf of Oman, Falklands, South Americas and mid-Atlantic prior to joining the Australian Navy in 1994.
CMDR Cann completed his Cat "A" course and obtained his Charge Surveying qualifications in 1987. CMDR Cann has seen service in a variety of Australian Navy survey ships, including LADS, and surveyed in many areas along the shorelines of Australasia.
CMDR Cann and his wife Sue have one son, Richard (25), and three daughters, Rhiannon (23), Sarah (18), and Kathryn (13); they live in Cairns. His interests include rugby union, soccer and hill walking.
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Maree Wilson - Biography
Maree commenced her spatial career with the Department of Defence in 2006 having completed eight years in the Royal Australian Navy and then a Bachelor of Technology (GIS) from the University of Southern Queensland. Maree currently works as a Technical Marketer for ESRI Australia in the Canberra office.
Maree is the chair of the SSSI YPs, the YP representative to the SSSI Board and Consultative Council and a committee member in the ACT. She enjoys the networking opportunities that the SSSI provides, in particular the ability to interact with spatial professionals of all levels. She is also dedicated to ensuring that YPs have representation in all facets of the SSSI and access to a wide variety of professional development opportunities.
Outside of the spatial industry, Maree is involved with her local brass band, playing trombone and fulfilling the role of secretary. She also enjoys playing softball on the weekends.
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David Hudson - Biography
David Hudson is based in Canberra and is responsible for Business Development within the Earth Observation area of Geoscience Australia. David has been involved with the spatial industry for over 5 years and, before joining GA, David worked at the Defence Science and Technology Organisation, Snowy Hydro and the Royal Melbourne Dental Hospital.
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Mike Lavis - Biography
After working in private surveying firms in Bathurst, Sydney, Albury, Forster and Cooma, Mike moved to Canberra in 1984 to commence work with the Australian Survey Office. He was involved in various projects including broad acre subdivisions, control surveys, dam deformation monitoring surveys and rural lease boundary surveys.
When ACT self-government came into being in 1989, most of his ACT Regional Office was transferred to the ACT Government's Department of Land and Planning. In the early 90s, he became the program operations manager for surveys using the Department's newly acquired dual frequency GPS receivers which involved organising field parties for control surveys in the ACT and region, notably the re-observation of the ACT's Precision Zone of Trigonometrical Stations around and within the ACT. He also participated in the AFN, ANN and TGN (Northern Territory) GPS observation programs, and other GPS programs in the NT for rural lease and photo control surveys.
In 1999 the ACT Government's surveying organisation was disbanded and Mike became a director of ACT Surveys Pty Ltd undertaking the full range of private consultancy work. In 2007 he set up Canberra Surveys as the sole director and continues working in the ACT for government and private clients.
First registered in NSW in 1981 and transferred to the ACT in 1984, he has served on the ISA Canberra Division committee for many years and is now the social and membership representative on the SSSI committee.
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Tony Hunter - Biography
Tony formalised his GIS credentials through the GIS Professional Asia Pacific (GISP – AP) Certification process run by the Spatial Sciences Institute and is the Secretary/Treasurer of the Spatial Information & Cartography Certification Panel. Currently Tony is Spatial Database/Information Manager for the National Exposure Information System (NEXIS); Tony formerly directed the design, development and delivery of Geoscience Australia's National Topographic Geodata 3 suite of products, and the MapConnect Web delivery system.
Tony's previous qualifications in IT, earned in 2002, followed a career in Marine Geoscientific Mapping and formal qualifications in Engineering Surveying. This experience in managing and manipulating spatial data utilised embryonic GIS packages. Outside work Tony enjoys spending time relaxing with his family, involvement with junior Soccer, mountain biking and other outdoor/mountain pursuits as time permits.
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John Gregor - Biography
John is a surveyor with almost forty years of varied experience, having graduated from the University of Queensland with a Bachelor of Surveying in 1971. Since then he has worked in the public, private and academic sectors.
Most of his experience has been gained in Queensland - except for a stint employed as a surveyor on the construction of North Sea oilrigs in Scotland - where he has been registered since 1974. However since moving to the ACT in 2001 and subsequent registration in the ACT and New South Wales, he has been surveying almost exclusively in these states.
He was a lecturer at the University of Southern Queensland (known then as the Darling Downs Institute of Advanced Education) from 1977-1980 and held an exchange position as Assistant Professor, School of Engineering, University of Alaska, during the period from January to June 1988.
His graduate qualifications include Graduate Diplomas in Photogrammetry and in Management as well as an Arts Degree majoring in history and social geography.
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