Dr Adi Paterson FTSE has a strong public science and senior management background. He has extenstive operational and strategic management expertise, in particular in nuclear programs and in the commercialisation of scientific research. He co-authored the post-Apartheid National R&D Strategy in South Africa and was Chief Operating Officer in the national Department of Science and Technology. Prior to this he was a foundation Member of the Academy of Science of South Africa, the first non-racial Academy.

From March 2009 to September 2020 Adi had strategic oversight and responsibility for ANSTO’s multi-facetted portfolio of activities. He anchored a values-based program of positive change and growth. Putting people first, with a focus on diversity and inclusion, helped underpin the transformation process. This has leveraged outcomes based on the nexus of public science investment and practical innovation with positive impacts on health, industry and the environment. He oversaw the integration of the Australian Synchrotron into ANSTO operations in 2016.

His focus on the importance of diversity and equity, particularly in STEM, led to his appointment in 2016 as a Male Champion of Change for STEM. He has experience in key policy areas including science, innovation, energy and the nuclear fuel cycle.  He is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering (ATSE), Engineers Australia (EA), and the Royal Society of New South Wales. The Sydney Division of Engineers Australia recognised him as the 2012 Professional Engineer of the Year. He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Wollongong in 2017.