Scientists, tech leaders recognised in Australia Day honours


Brandon How
Reporter

TechnologyOne founder Adrian Di Marco and former CSIRO chief scientist Professor Bronwyn Fox are among the scientists and innovators recognised in this year’s Australia Day honours.

Mr Di Marco was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia, while Professor Fox was among just 22 others appointed Officers of the Order of Australia — the second highest non-military honour.

Circular economy pioneer Professor Veena Sahajwalla and solar panel technology co-inventor Professor Andrew Blakers were also recognised as Officers of the Order of Australia.

Other notable science and innovation leaders honoured include Australian Academy of Science chief executive Annamaria Arabia, the co-founders of equipment manufacturer ANCA Patrick Boland and Patrick McCluskey, and CleanTech innovator Sylvia Tulloch.

Commenting on his Medal of the Order of Australia for service to “information technology, and the community”, Mr Di Marco said that Australia welcomed his parents with open arms in the 50s allowed his to “do what I wanted and believed in”.

“I am very appreciative that Australia welcomed my Italian parents in the 50s and gave us the opportunity to live in such a wonderful country full of opportunities and freedoms,” Mr Di Marco told InnovationAus.com.

Mr Di Marco founded TechnologyOne in 1987, making it one of Australia’s first startups. In 1999, just before the end of the dot-com bubble, it was also one of the first tech companies to list on the ASX.

When he finally left the company in 2022, having already stepped down as chief executive in 2017, Mr di Marco said the company had “navigated successfully across four major technology paradigm shifts”.

Professor Fox, now a deputy vice-chancellor at the University of New South Wales, was honoured for “distinguished service to public administration, to scientific research and development, to advanced manufacturing, and to tertiary education”.

She joined the university last year after developing the government’s National Robotics Strategy as CSIRO’s chief scientist. In the role, she also sat on the National Quantum Advisory Committee and the temporary AI Expert Working Group.

Professor Fox’s other former roles include research director for Deakin University’s Carbon Nexus Facility and deputy vice-chancellor for research and enterprise at Swinburne University.

Professor Blakers was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for his role in the team that in 1983 invented the passivated emitter and rear cell silicon solar cell technology used in most solar panels today. Professor Martin Green, who led the team, was made a member of the Order of Australia in 2012.

Professor Blakers founded the Australian National University’s solar research group in 1991, and is currently chair of the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore. He is the author of about 500 papers and publications.

Professor Veena Sahajwalla is being honoured for “distinguished service to science as an engineer and inventor, to sustainable materials research and technology and waste management”.

A pioneer of waste-to-value manufacturing processes, her leadership of the University of New South Wales’ Sustainable Materials Technology and Research Centre has led to the commercialisation of a steelmaking process that partially replaces coal inputs with waste tyres.

She is now working on the rollout out of micro-factories — which can allow local communities to produce their own products using waste. In 2018, she launched the first e-waste micro-factory followed by a plastics micro-factory in 2019.

Governor-General Sam Mostyn congratulated the 2025 Australia Day honours recipients, describing them as embodying “the best of us”.

“To read recipient stories is to be reminded that contribution to communities across the country, underpinned by care, kindness, respect and love, is what matter most to all Australians, in every sphere of life,” Ms Mostyn said.

Do you know more? Contact James Riley via Email.

Leave a Comment

Related stories