Leigh Cunningham
Chief Executive Officer
Please contact
Leigh Cunningham regarding any enquiries.
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IPWEAQ
Enhancing the
quality of life for all Queensland
communities
The
IPWEAQ Great Debate was launched at the 2016 annual conference in Brisbane with
the topic, ‘women make better engineers than men’. This inaugural debate was
highly successful and has become a key part of the annual conference, bringing the event to a close on the third
day.
The debate is intended to be entertaining and lighthearted but it also offers an opportunity to address key, niggling or divisive issues. Political correctness should be observed at all times.
Delegates vote for the winner using the conference app.
2020 Great Debate
"Engineers are introverts and are disconnected from the world around them"
Winners: Negative Team
Team for the Affirmative:
Josh Flanders
Project Engineer, St George Project Services
Moira Zeilinga
Director, Clear Idea
Dr Rob Fearon
Director, Innovation Partnerships, qldwater
Team for the Negative:
Seren McKenzie
Director Infrastructure Services, Southern Downs Regional Council
Trevor Dean
Executive Manager Engineering & Technical Services, Fraser Coast Council
Maddy Stahlhut
Graduate Engineer, GHD
2019 Great Debate
"Rural (public works) engineers are more adaptable than their city counterparts"
Winners: Affirmative Team
Team for the Affirmative:
Glenda Kirk
Director Infrastructure Services, Mareeba Shire Council
Andrew Johnson
Director Operations, Somerset Regional Council
Ben Ash
Civil Engineer and IPWEAQ Ambassador, George Bourne & Associates Consulting Engineers
Team for the Negative:
Joe Bannan
Manager Asset Management, Brisbane City Council
Paul Wilson
Principal Engineer Project Development, Logan City Council
Jessica Kahl
Civil Engineer and IPWEAQ Ambassador, Aurecon
2018 Great Debate
"Tradition has no place in a modern workplace"
Winners: Negative Team
Team for the Affirmative:
Ged Brennan, Managing Director, GenEng Solutions
Jimmy Scott, General Manager, Operations, QRA
Cate Fennell, Cadet Engineer, Parkes Shire Council
Team for the Negative:
Matthew Brennan, Civil Engineer,
George Bourne & Associates Consulting Engineers
Kym Murphy, Regional Director | Downs South West Region, Program Delivery And Operations Branch | Infrastructure Management and Delivery Division | TMR
Mark Lamont, Director, Information & Resources, IPWEAQ
2017 Great Debate
"Smart cities are not that smart"
Winners: Negative Team
Team for the Affirmative:
Bruce Gardiner, General Manager Infrastructure Services, Cairns Regional Council
Sandra Burke, District Director (FNQ), Program Delivery & Operations
Department of Transport and Main Roads
Ren Niemann, Partner, McCullough Robertson
Team for the Negative:
Jenny Hill, Mayor, City of Townsville
Andrew Ryan, Principal, Sabre Management Solutions
Alton Twine, Director City Infrastructure
City of Gold Coast
2016 Great Debate
"Women make better engineers than men"
Winners: Affirmative Team
Team for the Affirmative:
Angela Fry, Principal Project Manager, GHD
Stephen Hegedus, Senior Asset Manager, Shepherd Services
Gavin Blakey, Principal Engineer, Strategic Asset Management | Asset Management Branch, Brisbane City Council
Team for the Negative:
Julie Mitchell, Chief Engineer, TMR Dawson Wilkie, IPWEAQ Past President, Director all.PM
Gerhard Joubert, General Manager Infrastructure & Utilities, Central Highlands Regional Council