Rethink, reshape, and reimagine the future this World Environment Day. Join Unconventional with Purpose, a first of its kind conference by the University of Melbourne's Wattle Fellowship.

Key Event Details

Date & Time: 5 June 2025, 2:00 PM - 6:30 PM
Location: Market Hall, University of Melbourne
Audience: connect with 150+ sustainability leaders from government, academia, industry, and nonprofits

Agenda & Keynote Speakers

We’re excited to welcome an incredible lineup of speakers sharing bold ideas, lived experiences, and new visions for the future.

Here’s what to expect on the day:

🕜 1:30 PM - Arrivals & Registration
Arrive anytime from now to register and network

🕑 2:00 PM - Official Kickoff

🗣 2:10 PM - Keynote: “Unconventional with Purpose”
Speaker: Kumi Naidoo
Renowned human rights and environmental activist, former Secretary-General of Amnesty International and Executive Director of Greenpeace

🌱 2:30 PM - Wattle Fellows Showcase

Short presentations from inspiring Wattle Fellows, sharing bold sustainability ideas across climate justice, creative storytelling, public health, housing, agriculture, education, and more

🎤2:45 PM - Unconventional Paths to Impact panel

This panel of incredible speakers including Dr Sheila Nguyen, Prof Brendan Wintle, Prof Kate Auty, and Wattle Fellow Josephine Boateng will explore systems-level change, radical ideas, and breaking the mold in sustainability work. This panel will be moderated by Charlie Turner

🍽️ 3:15 PM - Networking and Food Break

🌍 4:05 PM - Changemaking Across Generations panel

This panel of fantastic sustainability leaders including Sharan Burrow, Tegan Lerm, Julien Vincent and Tish King will discuss how different generations shape their approach to change. This panel will be moderated by Wattle Fellow Harry Crothers-Bade

🌱 4:35 PM - Wattle Fellows Showcase

Short presentations from inspiring Wattle Fellows, sharing bold sustainability ideas across climate justice, creative storytelling, public health, housing, agriculture, education, and more

🌍 4:50 PM - Keynote: “This World Environment Day”
Speaker: Dr Leyla Acaroglu
Conclude the day with insights from Dr. Leyla Acaroglu, a UN Champion of the Earth and award-winning designer, as she shares her visionary perspective on sustainability and design

🗣5:10 PM - Closing Address

🧠5:15PM - Break out Rooms

Choose from multiple sessions designed to help you dive deeper into creative, cross-sector ideas for change

🥂6:00 PM - Networking & Refreshments

Connect with fellow attendees, speakers, and sustainability leaders over drinks and light bites

Event Pillars

This event is all about fresh ideas, bold perspectives, and rethinking what’s possible. Together, through our speakers, immersive experiences, and dynamic discussions, we’ll dive into key themes shaping the future of sustainability:

🔀 Unconventional Paths to Impact
Sustainability isn't just about doing less harm, it's about rethinking entire systems. Closing the loop is one piece of the puzzle, but what if we went further? Dr Sheila Nguyen, Prof Brendan Wintle, Prof Kate Auty, and Wattle Fellow Josephine Boateng will explore how to leverage research to create bold, unconventional approaches that drive real change in a panel session moderated by Wattle Fellow Charlie Turner.

🌍 Changemaking Across Generations
What if the decade you were born shaped your approach to social change? From Boomers’ institutional reform and Gen X’s pragmatic skepticism to Millennials’ digital mobilisation and Gen Z’s intersectional activism—each generation brings unique strengths to the table. Join Sharan Burrow, Tegan Lerm, Julien Vincent and Tish King, in a panel session moderated by Wattle Fellow, Harry Crothers-Bade, as they discuss how intergenerational collaboration is creating powerful new pathways for lasting impact.

Why "Unconventional with Purpose"?

Expanding Perspectives: This isn’t just another sustainability event. It’s a space for fresh ideas, unexpected collaborations, and new ways of thinking that push boundaries.
Interdisciplinary & Creative: Big ideas don’t happen in silos. We’re bringing together voices from different generations, industries, and disciplines to spark real innovation.
Immersive & Engaging: Get ready to challenge assumptions, dive deeper, and see sustainability in ways you might not expect - but will definitely connect with.
Purpose-Driven Approach: We’re not unconventional just for the sake of it. We do things differently because that’s how real change happens. Let’s make an impact together.

Join our spotlight speakers to learn from:

Growing green change in Ghana - Josephine Boateng, Doctor of Philosophy, Science
The cost of care - where artful diagnosis blends medicine, meaning, and imagination - Tany Brahmanand, Doctor of Medicine
A simple source for smarter housing choices - Harry Crothers-Bade, Master of Urban Planning
Understanding memory as a way to ground ourselves in climate realities - Connie Gamble, Master of Public Policy and Management
Prescribing climate action: Exploring health, storytelling and eco-anxiety in a warming world - Stuart Henshall, Doctor of Medicine
Reimagining climate education in the Solomon Islands - where cultures, kids, and conservation meet - Caleb Pollard, Master of Education
Turning “ugly” produce into a delicious movement for climate-conscious living - Madina Rassulova, Master of Environment
Lighting up the stage and sky to challenge how we talk about climate risk - Zofia Witkowski-Blake, Master of Science - Bioinformatics
Digging into the dirt: sharing stories from the soil to the screen - Alex Wood, Bachelor of Science
Clearing the path for Indigenous climate leaders - ConnorWright, Master of Environment

🎟 Want to hear from more fellows? We also have Spotlights events on the 2nd of June 2025 and 4th of June 2025 at Sustainability Victoria.

These events were made possible with the generous support of the Melbourne Biodiversity Institute, EnergyFest and Nation Partners. Thank you from the planet!