Institute for Sustainable Futures (ISF) Associate Members

Alexandra Butler is a key member of the water futures research team at the Institute for Sustainable Futures at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS).

She creates restorative and sustainable water management solutions that address current and future challenges across Australia and internationally. Her work spans a diverse range of projects, including the development of water efficiency framework rating tools for NSW water utilities, evaluating efficiency standards in VIC, and implementing innovative risk stratification processes for water corporations in WA. Additionally, Alexandra has provided GIS expertise to support assessments of sea level rise impacts on coastal sanitation infrastructure in various Pacific cities.

Her technical knowledge consists of an interconnected understanding of systems including soil sciences, hydrology, statistical methods, environmental legislation and ethics, and geographic information systems. She has also been involved in research projects studying biodiversity in Peru and the palm oil industry in Indonesia.

Her role requires communicating research impact through advanced technical report writing founded on robust statistical data analysis. Alexandra is also skilled in data visualisation and research communication and regularly employs these services to enhance project outputs. This includes the development of intuitive graphs, logical infographics, and impactful presentations.

As an Adjunct Fellow in the Institute of Sustainable Futures Jo leads inter-disciplinary research projects, in Australia and internationally, across the areas of urban water, climate change adaptation, international development, ecosystem services, and wetland, catchment and river basin management.

Jo has extensive experience working with utilities and governments to strategically plan and manage urban water systems, including drought planning, pricing, water recycling and water efficiency initiatives. Jo has also conducted cross-jurisdictional programme evaluations and designed monitoring and evaluation plans in Australia and internationally, including for wetlands management, climate change adaptation, and WASH sectors. Jo has applied participatory socio-economic research methods and stakeholder engagement in a range of contexts including designing and facilitating deliberative processes to value urban water externalities.

Prior to joining ISF, Jo worked for the Australian Government Department of Environment and Heritage and as a senior research economist at the Productivity Commission. Jo has also spent time as a volunteer and consultant for the Asia Regional Environmental Economics Programme of IUCN - The World Conservation Union. At IUCN, Jo undertook community-based participatory social research, economic analysis, and project management for several wetlands management projects in south-east and south Asia.

Jay Falletta is a Research Principal at the Institute for Sustainable Futures (ISF), University of Technology Sydney, specialising in quantitative modelling and applied analytics for the water industry. He works closely with water utilities and government clients, focusing on the development of robust methodology to understand water demand and modernise industry standard approaches, including the incorporation of uncertainty. Recently this has included the analysis of benchmarking initiatives across non-residential sectors to support water efficiency.

Beyond his core program, Jay provides cross-team advisory support on statistical methods and analytical design, helping to improve the consistency and rigour of modelling approaches institute-wide. He also mentors junior staff, contributing to capability development within the organisation. In addition to this research leadership, Jay contributes to the strategic direction of ISF as a member of both the Institute Board and the operational excellence working group.

With over 2 decades experience in research management in the higher education sector and state government, I have a strong track record of delivering successful outcomes for diverse and multidisciplinary teams, engaging with industry, government, and community stakeholders, and facilitating mutual and transformational learning for sustainable development.

I am an Adjunct Fellow at the Institute for Sustainable Futures, where I have taught and mentored students and researchers across broad fields of sustainable development. I have a PhD in Sustainable Futures from UTS, a Masters of Educational Leadership from Monash University, and multiple publications and honors in the field of sustainability and environmental management. I am skilled in research, workshop facilitation, business engagement, and report writing, and I have a passion and vision for transdisciplinary research and education for sustainability. My mission is to foster a culture of innovation, excellence, and social responsibility at UTS and beyond, and to contribute to the advancement of knowledge and practice for a more sustainable and equitable world.

Maartje Feenstra is a Research Principal at the Institute for Sustainable Futures. As part of the Energy team, she focuses on developing net zero scenarios using the One Earth Climate Model for various countries, regions, and industrial sectors. In these projects, she leverages her quantitative expertise in net-zero scenarios and her technical knowledge in hydrogen, synthetic fuels, and hard-to-abate sectors.

Maartje brings a background in Chemical Engineering & Chemistry. She worked for 5 years at the national research institute of The Netherlands focusing on the development and scaling-up of novel process and reactor technologies, where she was the technical lead for the synthetic electrical based fuel (e-fuels) team. With a strong chemical engineering background, her expertise areas include synthetic e-fuels, green hydrogen, post-combustion CO2 capture and innovative sustainable process developments for hard-to-abate sectors such as the aviation, maritime, (chemical) industry, steel and cement sectors. She brings in-depth knowledge of technologies, techno- economic analysis, system views and modelling skills to the ISF team. 

Highlights of her practical experience include being the main writer for a multi-million Horizon Europe project focusing on sustainable aviation fuel, developer of innovative synthetic e-fuel reactor technologies (methanol, DME, ammonia, light olefins and longer hydrocarbons), working on process integration for hydrogen production by solid-oxide electrolysis, part of CO2 capture engineering designs up to pre-FEED level, being a co-inventor for patents in sustainable technology and a range of technology development projects in collaboration with industry.

Diana Gonzalez is a senior research consultant at the Institute for Sustainable Futures. Her applied research focuses on water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) and international development across Asia and the Pacific. She has specialised in collaborative research to achieve sustainable WASH outcomes in partnership with governments, civil society organisations and research institutes. Her current areas of research include WASH-related gender equality impacts; safely managed self-supply of drinking water; local government engagement towards practical application of the human rights to water and sanitation; and groundwater for climate-resilient inclusive water services. She has an academic background in environmental science, water security, and international development, and has specialised in transdisciplinary approaches to increase communities’ access to WASH services. Diana has outstanding implementation, MEL, and project management skills, and project experience in 18 countries.

Dr Ibrahim Ibrahim is an Adjunct Fellow with the UTS Institute for Sustainable Futures (ISF) and a Demand Management Program Development Manager at Ausgrid. He specialises in translating research into practice across renewable power systems, distributed/customer energy resources (DER/CER), flexible demand, and energy analytics. At ISF, Ibrahim has led national collaborations with ARENA, ENA, ECA and RACE for 2030—co-designing shared data frameworks, shaping metrics for network performance and utilisation, and delivering open-access decision-support tools, including an optimal-power-flow platform for techno-economic DER planning and tariff assessment. His project portfolio spans power-system and microgrid studies, network visibility and hosting-capacity optimisation, and methods to unlock CER value for customers, networks and markets.

In his current role at Ausgrid, Ibrahim applies this experience to demand-management innovation and customer-centric solutions that support a reliable, affordable and decarbonised grid. Previously, he was a Research Associate with UTS’s School of Electrical and Data Engineering and a Visiting Researcher at the CSIRO Energy Centre. His research interests include renewable power systems, DER integration and control, energy economics, and applications of AI and machine learning in power engineering. He is a Senior Member with the IEEE and active professional member with the IET, AIE, EESA, Engineers Without Borders Australia, AMOS, and the Jordanian Engineers Association.

Avni has a decade of experience in the international development sector, with a strong research focus on water and sanitation, and deep regional experience across the Asia-Pacific region. Her work bridges rigorous mixed-methods research with practical, policy-relevant insights. She has led and contributed to collaborative research and advisory projects in diverse cultural and institutional contexts, working in partnership with government stakeholders as well as with communities. Avni has led and contributed to several collaborative research projects investigating and promoting gender equality and inclusion in water and sanitation programs, in diverse cultural and institutional contexts. She has foundational knowledge of quantitative and qualitative research methods, facilitating workshops, stakeholder engagement, and strategy development. Avni has worked on projects funded by and in partnership with the Australian Government, UNICEF, the Australia Water Partnership, Government of Indonesia, World Bank, United Nations Development Program (UNDP), WaterAid, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; as well as various institutional donors and community organisations.

Rusty Langdon is a Senior Research Consultant at the Institute for Sustainable Futures, specialising in clean energy transitions, workforce development, battery technologies and circular economy. Rusty leads applied research for government, industry and international organisations, focusing on the workforce, technology and sustainability challenges associated with the clean energy transition.

Their research has informed workforce planning, industry development and policy initiatives in Australia and internationally. Key examples include workforce modelling to support implementation of Home Energy Rating Disclosure in NSW, battery market and end-of-life forecasting research for Battery Stewardship Council, contributions to the National Battery Strategy and Critical Minerals Strategy, and international research for the International Energy Agency 4E EDNA program. Their work has also informed the National Guideline for Safe Management of End-of-Life Lithium Batteries and broader discussions on battery stewardship, circular economy and workforce development.

Rusty combines workforce forecasting, quantitative modelling and labour market analysis with stakeholder engagement, lifecycle assessment, and policy research. Their expertise spans skills and training pathways, battery value chains, responsible sourcing, product stewardship and sustainability policy, with a strong focus on translating research into practical outcomes for government, industry and communities.

Ben specialises in developing methods and decision support tools for integrated environmental and technical assessment of sustainable waste and resource recovery systems, with a particular focus on organic waste and used packaging waste streams.

Some of Ben's recent work includes: modelling and analysis of Australian and international used packaging management systems; feasibility studies for organic waste recovery systems, including anaerobic digestion and hybrid-biomass systems; optimised waste collection pathways for low-carbon waste management in urban settings; metrics for measuring the performance of circular material systems; and the potential impact of food contact chemicals in recycled content in packaging.

Ben's expertise includes material flow analysis and system modelling, carbon accounting, spatial modelling and simulation, transport modelling, statistical analysis and policy research. His PhD focused on examining pathways for low carbon organic waste management, and developed sophisticated hybrid modelling approaches to estimate emissions associated with organic waste management in New South Wales across the entire waste management chain.

Research interests:

• Low-carbon and sustainable waste management
• Circular economy
• Packaging consumption and management
• Organic waste resource recovery
• Food contact chemicals

Tamara has 13 years’ experience working in international development practice, education, research and evaluation. She possesses strong practitioner experience in social development and bilateral aid projects of the Southeast Asia and Pacific region.

Tamara has worked on applied research projects at the Institute for Sustainable Futures (ISF) since October 2017 on the themes of effectiveness of international development programming, gender and social inclusion and climate change adaptation. At ISF Tamara has contributed her strengths in qualitative, participatory, co-designed research to a variety of gender-focused projects. Partners have included Act for Peace, Australian Pacific Climate Partnership, Australian Volunteers International, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Centre for Global Development, KIAT, KONEKSI, Plan Australia, Plan Indonesia, Plan Asia-Pacific, WaterAid Timor-Leste, and World Vision Bangladesh.

Tamara’s research interests include development effectiveness, gender and sexual diversity, social inclusion, refugee protection, community economies, and climate change adaptation and resilience. She has a particular interest in working with disadvantaged communities and individuals, and supporting their advocacy efforts with evidence-based policy change. She desires to contribute research of social relevance for a more just and equitable world, and which pays explicit attention to decolonising knowledge production.