Careers Driving Economic Development

We are excited to invite you to a special panel event hosted by the Economic Society of Australia Queensland Young Economists and Economic Development Australia (EDA).

Join us for an insightful discussion featuring four panellists who are making significant contributions to the field of economic development. The facilitated discussion  will cover:

Catering: The event will be catered with light refreshments.

 

Please register here by 6pm on 22nd July 2025. There are limited spots available at the event, so RSVP early to secure your spot.

 

Meet the panellists:

Thomas Handford is an economic development manager within the Department of State Development, Infrastructure and Planning. Thomas has over 10 years experience working in economic development roles across State and Local governments, including City of Moreton  Bay, Logan City Council and Brisbane Economic Development Agency, with a focus on Investment Attraction and Industry Development. Thomas completed a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Economics and International Relations and a Graduate Diploma in Economics, both  through the University of Queensland.

Michael is a founding director of Lucid Economics and has 25 years of experience in economic and financial analysis, property analysis, economic development and tourism that spans three continents. Michael works with both public and private sector clients  using economic and financial analysis to inform strategy development, investment decisions and government policy.

Natasha is a health economist with over 20 years experience in providing strategic and operational advice to Government, for purpose organisations and private clients in the health and social services sector. Natasha has worked in health, homelessness, child  protection, youth justice, domestic and family violence, community development and many other areas. Delivering evaluation, economic analysis, business cases, developed and tested funding models and social impact. Natasha is the CEO and founder of Ethicol,  a consulting business delivering values driven consulting support to clients. She is also the co founder of Codesign4All a framework to deliver codesign project and support people in good codesign. Natasha has had previous roles in Federal and State Government,  was a Partner at Deloitte Access Economics and a Managing Director at Accenture.

Gemma is a policy specialist with over 11 years’ experience in local government, across economic development, planning, finance, and governance. With a background in law, she understands how policy and legislation at the local level can influence economic  outcomes.