Shelley Mallett, Chair
Shelley supports our strategic organisational development.
Shelley was the Director of the Research and Policy Centre at the Brotherhood of St Laurence (BSL) and a Professional Fellow in Social Policy at the University of Melbourne (UoM).
Shelley has had a diverse career as an allied health professional, counsellor and mediator, and social science academic. Shelley has worked at the intersection of research, policy and practice – designing human services that build people’s capabilities to live a life that they value.
Shelley also served as a board member of the Council for Homeless Persons.
Shelley has earned a Bachelor of Applied Science (Speech Pathology), a Bachelor of Arts (Sociology), and a Doctor of Philosophy (Anthropology) from La Trobe University.
Tom Sloan, Deputy Chair
Tom is an experienced social researcher and development practitioner with strong strategic, operational, administrative and relationship management skills. As Sustineo’s CEO, Tom is responsible for the overarching management of Sustineo’s activities, as well as the design and conduct of Sustineo’s research and impact assessment activities. This includes the development and review of research methodologies to align with the specific project context, through to the development of strategic partnerships and collaborative relationships with clients and project partners.
Tom has extensive experience using mixed-method and qualitative approaches to research, with particular experience in Papua New Guinea and the broader Pacific. His research interests and experience are broad, covering governance, climate change mitigation and adaptation, rural and agricultural development, and social justice. He specialises in applying systems thinking approaches to problem solving and drawing on interdisciplinary understandings of contested issues to identify leverage points to generate change.
Tom has earned a Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies (Sustainability) at the Australian National University.
Mehere Maladina, Secretary
Mehere is Legal Counsel and APAC (Asia Pacific Region) Contracts and Compliance Lead at Palladium, an international development sector advisory, management and implementation firm focused on solving the world’s most pressing challenges. At Palladium, Mehere assists international development project teams by reviewing, drafting and advising on issues spanning from contracts, corporate governance, disputes, employment, and compliance.
Previous to her work at Palladium, Mehere was an Associate at Allens in the Corporate Mergers and Acquisitions practice group, focusing on transactions in Australia and Papua New Guinea.
Mehere has earned a Bachelor of Law from Griffith University and is currently completing a Master of Pacific Development from the Australian National University, focusing on current development, societal and political issues affecting the Pacific region.
Fiona Gunn
Fiona is an Assistant Director in the International Division at the Australian Government Department of Education.
Prior to the Australian Government Department of Education, Fiona was the Development Advisor to Femili PNG and the CEO of Friends of Femili PNG (now FemiliPNG Australia).
Fiona is an international and community development practitioner with over 15 years’ experience in program/project design and implementation, and monitoring and evaluation. Fiona has extensive experience in policy and stakeholder engagement primarily in the Federal government context and not-for-profit sector. Fiona’s past policy focus has been on gender equality, social inclusion, governance and integrity, archives and cultural heritage in the Pacific region.
Fiona has earned a Bachelor of Visual Arts (Film and Television Production) from Queensland College of Art, a Bachelor of Laws from Macquarie University, and a Master of International and Community Development from Deakin University.
Robin Davies
Robin is an Honorary Professor at the Development Policy Centre in the Crawford School of Public Policy at the Australian National University (ANU).
Robin was previously head of the Global Health Division and the Indo-Pacific Centre for Health Security at the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) from 2017 to 2023.
He worked at the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) from 1993 to 2012, including ten-years as a member of its senior executive service and leadership of its international programs and partnerships division. He served overseas in Paris, where he represented Australia on the OECD Development Assistance Committee and on the boards of the World Food Programme and the International Fund for Agricultural Development, and in Jakarta, where he headed Australia’s bilateral development cooperation program.
Robin is also a member of the boards of the Burnet Institute and the Global Health Security Network, and of the Advisory Group of the Australian Global Health Alliance. He previously served on the Board of UNICEF Australia and chaired its Programs, Policy and Advocacy Committee.
Robin has an honours degree in Philosophy from the Australian National University.
Stephen Howes
Stephen serves on as an ex-officio member, representing Femili PNG, which he Chairs.
Stephen is a Professor of Economics at the Crawford School of Public Policy and the Director of the Development Policy Centre both at the Australian National University. Much of his research is on the PNG economy, and he directs the ANU-UPNG partnership.