Julia Baumann is an Engineering Manager, Civil Engineer, and Senior Associate at Dalton Consulting Engineers (DCE). Julia leads DCE's Engineering team on flood modelling, water quality, hydrology, and integrated water projects. She has more than 15 years of experience in stormwater engineering. Julia graduated from Rice University with a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering in 2004. She moved to Melbourne in 2008. Outside of stormwater, Julia is on the board of directors of Curiosity Factory, a not-for profit dedicated to inspiring the next generation of STEM professionals. Check out the STEMpals program at stempals.org.au.  

Jamie Comley is an Environmental Engineer, Urban Planner and Geographer who has worked in sustainable water management for over 20 years. His experience encompasses a breadth of strategic, policy, technical, research, engagement and land-use planning aspects associated with implementation of integrated water management (IWM), water sensitive urban design (WSUD) and urban sustainability. With extensive experience working across urban and rural water corporations (including Melbourne Water), Clearwater, local government and large consulting firms, Jamie has run his own IWM consulting business since 2013. Naturally collaborative and with a big-picture view, Jamie is passionate about improving sustainability and liveability outcomes for our community.

Suresh Bajracharya is the Integrated Water Management Lead at Melton City Council. With over 30 years of experience, he is highly regarded in the industry for his strategic skills, collaborative approach and technical expertise across water, sewerage, stormwater, flooding and IWM. In his previous roles with Melbourne Water, City West Water and Yarra Valley Water, he has led the delivery of numerous visionary projects such as the Fishermans Bend IWM Strategy, the Port Phillip Bay Environment Management Plan, and the Flood Management Strategy. At South East Water, he has led the delivery of their Stormwater Plan and the Smart Rainwater Tank Strategy and implementation of the Catchment Scale IWM Plans. Suresh holds Master's degree qualifications in Environmental Engineering, Sociology, Business Administration and Water Resources Management.

Kirsten Fearn-Wannan is a Senior Civil Engineer in the Integrated Water team at Spiire in Melbourne, specialising in stormwater managment and water sensitive urban design (WSUD). She is passionate about improving environmental outcomes, delivering design projects that balance sustainablity with practical engineering solutions. Kirsten has a Bachelor of Civil Engineering with Honours and seven years’ experience, including three in integrated water and four in civil design. A regular attendee at Stormwater Victoriaevents, Kirsten brings technical expertise, collaboration, and a strong commitment to advancing sustainable, industry-wide practices.

Alice Lisitsa is a flooding and hydraulics specialist with 16+ years’ experience in water engineering and hydrology. She holds a double degree in Civil Engineering and Science (BE/BSc) and a Master of Engineering Science by Research focused on biofiltration and Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD). Alice has led flood teams on major infrastructure programs including MRPV and LXRP, and contributes to education through teaching roles at Monash University and La Trobe University. She is committed to advancing stormwater management through leadership, advocacy, collaboration, and mentoring the next generation of professionals. 

Alice has completed her first 2 year term as the President of Stormwater Victoria and has recently been elected as the President of Stormwater Australia.

Aaron Dowling is a Civil Engineer with 15 years’ experience in integrated water management, strategy development and WSUD design gathered during his career spanning across the public and private sector. He is passionate about the design and implementation of innovative water servicing solutions that deliver high value community outcomes while protecting and enhancing the natural environment. Aaron has developed his strong analytical and problem-solving skills from broad exposure to development industry standards and practices. Leveraging these qualities, he has developed tools, authored guidelines and manuals and delivered training to support industry in designing and delivering IWM solutions. He has also led the delivery of several major IWM Plans and WSUD masterplans across Victoria, incorporating adaptive IWM pathway planning approaches.

Amin Zarrin is a Project Engineer at Rain Consulting, a specialist stormwater consultancy. He holds an Honours degree in Civil Engineering and a Bachelor of Business, with approximately four years of experience in stormwater and drainage engineering across Melbourne Water and the consulting sector. Amin's expertise includes stormwater management planning, strategic drainage planning, developer works management, hydrological and hydraulic modelling, flood impact assessments, water quality, integrated water management (IWM) and greenfield development. With previous experience in local government, Amin brings a broad understanding of the challenges and opportunities associated with urban water management. He is currently contributing to the Victorian Urban Drainage Manual (VUDM) through Rain Consulting and plays an active role in coordinating project delivery and stakeholder engagement with authorities, councils, developers and multidisciplinary teams.

Andrew Cooper is currently a project manager at Maroondah City Council (6 years) with qualifications in carbon management auditing (12 years). Areas of interaction include planning, engineering, construction, maintenance and strategy.  Andrew has also been the President of Eastern Climate Action Melbourne for more than 5 years.  He is also the founder of River to Reef Rebuild - a project designed to address stormwater design at large scale (the Greater Melbourne region including 36 Councils) and aims to restore 10% or more of the natural oyster habitat of Port Phillip Bay.

Arezou Houshmand is the Integrated Water Management Lead at Merri-bek City Council, a large metropolitan council in Melbourne’s inner north. She has more than 18 years of experience across local government, consulting and research. Her work spans stormwater strategy, policy, design, flood modelling, construction, asset management and maintenance. She works closely with engineers, contractors, suppliers, water authorities, researchers, developers and communities. Arezou holds master’s degrees in Water Resources Management and Hydraulic Structural Engineering, and a bachelor’s degree in Water Engineering. She contributes to metropolitan Integrated Water Management forums and is passionate about practical collaboration that supports healthier waterways and more resilient places.

Atoosa Towzihian is a Chartered and Registered Civil Engineer with over 10 years of experience in the civil and water industries, specialising in flood risk assessment, hydrology, hydraulic and flood modelling, and stormwater management. She is currently a Senior Engineer at Venant Solutions, a specialist flood and stormwater consultancy, where she contributes to a range of development, infrastructure and planning projects. Her experience includes working collaboratively with consultants, government agencies and industry stakeholders to deliver practical and effective water management solutions.

Dr Belinda Hatt is an environmental scientist with 20 years’ experience in the urban water sector. She currently works for Melbourne Water as a Waterways & Wetlands Research Specialist, where she undertakes research on stormwater impacts on river health and the design and operation of stormwater control measures, such as raingardens and wetlands. With experience across academia, consulting and government, Belinda aims to bridge the gap between research and practice and enjoys working on practical research that addresses real-world needs. She has authored over 90 publications and is an experienced tertiary and professional educator.

Caterina Paganelli is an Associate Civil Engineer and Flood Modeller at Beca with 10 years of experience across Australia in hydrology, flood modelling, stormwater management, waterway design, and floodplain management. A Chartered Professional Engineer (CPEng), she holds a Master of Science and a Bachelor of Civil Engineering. Caterina has contributed to major infrastructure, aviation, urban, and mining projects, working closely with multidisciplinary teams and stakeholders. Passionate about technical knowledge-sharing and professional development, she has been a member of the Stormwater Victoria Committee since 2024 and is actively involved in its Technical Events subcommittee.

Jack Bowman is a Project Engineer with Afflux Consulting, who graduated with an Environmental Engineering Degree, and has been in the stormwater industry fpr the past 5 years.  Jack has worked at Melbourne Water reviewing greenfield stormwater assets, and is now designing those assets and completing a range of hydrological and hydraulic modelling. Jack is currently a member of Stormwater Victoria and Engineers Australia.

Karl Velasco is the Victorian Discipline Lead for Urban Stormwater at SMEC, where he has worked for the past 9 years. He brings extensive experience across a broad spectrum of stormwater-related projects, including water-sensitive urban design (WSUD), flood modelling, drainage strategy development, dam break assessments, and construction supervision. His project portfolio spans Victoria, other Australian states, and the Asia-Pacific region. Prior to joining SMEC, Karl spent six years at Melbourne Water within the Development Services and Investigations Team, where he was involved in development planning and infrastructure projects. Since 2022, Karl has served on Stormwater Victoria's Policy and Advocacy Sub Committee, and is also engaged with the VUDM Working Group.

Leticia Da Silva Pinto is currently a senior consultant at Water Technology. With a background in Civil Engineering, she has worked for E2Designlab for the last 4 years on several WSUD projects from concept to detailed design phase.  She is skilled in the preparation of documentation for infrastructure tenders and site-based construction inspections and has been heavily involved in estimation and construction phase management and project delivery. She has project managed and provided civil design, hydraulic calculations, MUSIC modelling and design drafting for multiple projects.

Zaki Matar is an experienced water resources engineer and project manager with over 12 years of expertise in flood studies, stormwater design and hydraulic modelling. Throughout his career, Zaki has led a range of significant projects with Melbourne Water, including secondments and major flood mapping reviews. His technical experience spans urban and tidal flooding, stormwater quality and flood mitigation design, with a strong understanding of Australian Rainfall and Runoff (ARR) and Melbourne Water guidelines. Committed to advancing the stormwater industry, Zaki actively contributes through technical publications and his involvement with the Stormwater Victoria Committee.