A cohort of talented dam, water and tailings engineers represented ATC Williams at ANCOLD’s Think Tank 2025, held in Melbourne on 11-12 September.
The forum was supported by two of our senior industry advocates.
Senior Associate, Yuqi Tan, is the NT representative for ANCOLD Emerging Professionals and Deputy Chair of the AGS VIC chapter, where he’s led numerous technical events and initiatives, including being on the organising committee for the Next Gen 2025 Forum.
Chief Technical Officer, Kim Morrison, delivered a keynote address: Developing the Next Generation of Tailings Practitioners: Lessons from 30 Years in the Field.
With a theme of Developing the Next Generation of Dam Engineers, we made the most of the opportunity by opening places for younger engineers across our Australian offices.
Here’s what they had to say about the event.
Why did you want to attend the Next Gen forum?
“Attending the ANCOLD Next Gen Conference supports my development in public speaking, industry networking, and technical writing, key goals I’ve set for myself this year”.
Lual Garang, Engineer, Perth
“I am passionate about industry engagement, and this forum was an opportunity to contribute meaningfully to discussions around attracting and retaining talent in the dam space.”
Shayleigh Jensen, Level 3 Engineer, Sunshine Coast
What inspires you to keep learning?
“I visited the site of the Mariana dam failure in Brazil, and the scale of impact on people and the environment was massive. It’s a big part of why I care so much about this work and why I want to keep developing the skills and understanding needed to do it right”.
Rafael Vieira, Engineer, Melbourne
“As someone who came to industry via academia, this is an opportunity to continue bridging research with practical application in an area I know is valued by our technical leadership”.
Ximing Lei, Engineer, Brisbane
What was a highlight for you?
“The diverse voices from Engineers Australia, mining professionals, rail industry leaders, university representatives, and international experts offered me diverse perspectives on our projects. Moving forward, I’d like to be more involved in ANCOLD workshops and seminars to continue learning, contributing, and being inspired alongside the next generation of tailings and dam engineers.”
Asanka Don Peerislage, Experienced Engineer, Melbourne
“Having started my career at ATC some 12 years ago as an undergraduate, I recognise the importance of establishing a strong development framework for developing our engineers”.
Joel Eadie, Associate Engineer, Sunshine Coast.
These staff were joined by Vinuri Jayaweera, Engineer and Alan English, Engineer from the Melbourne office.
We look forward to supporting staff to attend the next ANCOLD event.
