Hi Smart Community friends,

We acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which we live, work and record this podcast and pay our respects to Elders past and present. We extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples listening.

In this episode of The Smart Community Podcast, I speak with Renee Wootton Tomlin, aerospace engineer, commercial pilot and Founder and CEO of New Era Energy, about the future of sustainable aviation and Australia’s opportunity to build a domestic renewable fuels industry.

Renee shares her journey from aerospace engineering and flying into the sustainable aviation fuel space, including her experience working on Western Sydney International Airport and supporting the development of ethanol-to-jet technology with LanzaJet.

We discuss what sustainable aviation fuel actually is, the different materials that can be used to produce it and why policy, finance and demand certainty may be bigger barriers than the technology itself.

We also explore how First Nations knowledge, ownership and economic participation can be placed at the centre of the energy transition, rather than communities simply being consulted after decisions have already been made.

The conversation also covers energy sovereignty, opportunities for regional communities and farmers, the skills Australia will need and why this is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to build a new industry here at home.

As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.

Connect with Renee via LinkedIn and learn more about her work with New Era Energy.

Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community

Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn or YouTube.

The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital.

Hi #SmartCommunity friends,

We acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which we live, work and record this podcast and pay our respects to Elders past and present. We extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples listening.

In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I speak with Felicity Furey, engineer, author, speaker and CEO of WeAspire, about the future of engineering and why it's time to rethink how we design the world around us.

Felicity shares the inspiration behind her new book, The Future of Engineering: Legacy by Design, exploring how engineering can move beyond traditional measures of time, cost and quality to create infrastructure that prioritises people, communities and long-term wellbeing.

We discuss why engineering is not broken but incomplete, how human-centred thinking needs to evolve and why diverse perspectives, meaningful community engagement and systems thinking are essential for building better places.

We also explore the hidden biases embedded in engineering, standards and technology, why diverse perspectives lead to better outcomes and how genuine community engagement can help create infrastructure that serves everyone, not just the people it was originally designed for.

The conversation also explores technology, AI, leadership and our growing need to reconnect with the human experience as we shape smarter communities.

As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.

Connect:

Connect with Felicity via LinkedIn and learn more about her work

Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community

Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn, Instagram or YouTube.

The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital.

Hi #SmartCommunity friends,

We acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which we live, work and record this podcast and pay our respects to Elders past and present. We extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples listening.

In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I speak with Professor Martin Tomitsch, Head of the Transdisciplinary School at UTS, about the evolution and future of human-centred design.

Martin shares how human-centred design has shaped technology and innovation over the past few decades, why we need to critically reflect on its unintended consequences and how we can ensure emerging technologies like AI remain grounded in diverse human perspectives and ethical design practices.

We discuss dark patterns, persuasive technologies, social media, circular economy opportunities and the importance of designing not just for users, but for communities and society more broadly.

As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.

Connect with Martin via LinkedIn and the UTS website.

Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community

Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn, Instagram or YouTube.

The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital.