Scientific Panel
Dr Sophie Bickford
Chief Scientist
Dr Sophie Bickford is responsible for the direction and implementation of the scientific services for carbon origination projects. Sophie leads research into the quantification of environmental and social benefits and impacts associated with carbon abatement projects to ensure investment is directed toward projects of the highest possible quality.
She is a specialist in the fields of macroecology, palaeocology and biodiversity conservation planning. Sophie has a PhD from the University of Adelaide and was a postdoctoral fellow at CSIRO Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research.
Dr Davide Ross
Audit Research Manager
Davide is responsible for providing technical scientific support to Carbon Planet's audit team with significant hands-on involvement in auditing industrial sites. He specialises in the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting System (NGERS) verification reports and greenhouse gas assessments.
Davide has over 10 years of engineering experience, most recently working in Japan at Tokyo's University of Agriculture & Technology as a Senior Research Engineer. He is a published author of numerous scientific articles on subjects such as fuel processing technology and developments in chemical engineering.
Davide holds a PhD and a Bachelor's Degree in Chemical Engineering from The University of Adelaide. He was also a Research Fellow at Tokyo's University of Agriculture & Technology.
Dr Samuel Phua
Audit Operations Manager
Sam is responsible for establishing and managing audit operations for Carbon Planet's global offices. With significant hands-on experience in assessing sites, his role includes providing scientific advice to Carbon Planet's audit team and developing commercial service offerings.
Sam has over six years of engineering experience covering laboratory, government and management. Prior to joining Carbon Planet in 2007, he was a lecturer and academic tutor at The University of Adelaide and a researcher for Primary Industries & Resources in South Australia, authoring scientific articles on subjects that include mathematical modeling of environmental contaminants.
Sam holds a PhD in Biochemical Engineering, a Graduate Certificate in Science and Technology Commercialisation and a Bachelor's Degree in Chemical Engineering, from the University of Adelaide. He is a member of the Institution of Engineers in Australia, the Institution of Chemical Engineers in the UK, the Australian Institute of Management and the Golden Key International Honour Society.
Dr Marnie Telfer
Senior Research Auditor
Marnie is responsible for the development and project management of greenhouse gas (GHG) assessments, as well as designing and assessing projects for national and international GHG emission abatement schemes.
Marnie has over 10 years experience in air pollution prevention and control. Prior to joining Carbon Planet, she was an Environmental Project Officer at SA Water's Innovation and Development department. She has extensive knowledge of GHG emissions from combustion and gasification of biosolids, municipal waste, and low-rank coal. She also has experience in the assessment of power generation from non-conventional sources, such as biosolids and biomass. Marnie is a published author of several scientific articles in subjects that include environmental pollution prevention and control.
Marnie holds a PhD and a Bachelor's Degree in Chemical Engineering from The University of Adelaide.
Dr Helen Chandler
Senior Emissions Auditor
Helen is responsible for carbon risk and opportunity assessments using established statistical techniques. She is also responsible for the quality control systems of Carbon Planet's processes and reporting.
Prior to joining Carbon Planet, Helen worked for four years in the Netherlands for the international secretariat of Friends of the Earth, an environmental NGO. She also worked for the Arts & Genomics Centre at the University of Amsterdam where she helped facilitate interactions between artists and scientists to promote public engagement with science. Helen is an author of conference articles in subjects that include human interactions with paleo-environments.
Helen holds a PhD in Biomolecular Archeology from Oxford University and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Biochemistry from the University of Adelaide.
Dr Adrian Morphett
Senior Emissions Auditor
Adrian is responsible for greenhouse gas and energy efficiency assessments and specialises in emissions reduction strategies for Carbon Planet clients. He is also overall auditing team leader for Carbon Planet's Australian-based carbon management services.
Adrian has over 13 years experience in engineering and business analysis. Prior to joining Carbon Planet, he worked for the Department of Human Services at the Victorian State Government. He has also held various project management positions at petrochemical companies such as Caltex and Orica.
Adrian holds a Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Swinburne University of Technology and a PhD in Mechanical Engineering. He is also a member of the Alternative Technology Association.
Stephen Pilditch
Emissions Auditor
Stephen is responsible for greenhouse gas assessments for our UK clients and is the principal coordinator for our UK team. Stephen's specialises in risk management and auditing, where he has over four years of experience in both the petroleum and banking industries. He is also an accomplished academic with expertise in fuel cell as an alternative source of energy, with multiple scientific publications in journals and conference proceedings.
Stephen holds a Masters Degree in Mathematics and a PhD in Chemical Engineering. He is also a member of the Institution of Chemical Engineers in the UK, UK Institution of Engineering and Technology and UK Energy Institute.
Matthew Bolton
Emissions Auditor
Matthew is responsible for greenhouse gas assessments in the UK. He specialises in algorithmic programming of a geographical nature, and has previous experience as a C++ programmer on defense contracts. His expertise lies in mathematical modelling using Matlab, Maple, FLUENT and COMSOL. With his expertise he has taught foundation mathematics and held mathematics-related workshops at the University of East Anglia.
Matthew holds two Masters degrees, the first being Master of Science in Applied Mathematics and the second Master of Mathematics. He is completing his PhD in Applied Mathematics.
Dr Srini Sundaram
Emissions Auditor
Srini is responsible for greenhouse gas assessments in the UK. Srini has over six years of engineering-related experience in signal processing, and probabilistic and statistical modelling in the disciplines of automative, aerospace, speech recognition and digital multimedia.
Srini holds a PhD in Electrical Engineering from the University of Newcastle and a Bachelor's Degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering from the University of Madras. He is a member of the Institute of Electronics and Technology, The Royal Society (for Resesearch and Development) and Neural Computing Applications Forum in the UK. Srini is also working towards Chartered Engineer Status.
Dr Sunil K Sharma
Senior Forestry Scientist
Dr Sunil Sharma is responsible for developing and executing land use change and forestry related (AFOLU) carbon credit generation projects, including project design, documentation and development of forest monitoring and verification plans to relevant industry standards.
Sunil worked for over 8 years at the Department of Forests, Nepal. In this position he implemented a community forestry program focused on the sustainable management of local forest resources. He supported over 300 forest user groups to prepare forest management plans specific to the forest species composition, age and conditions and also monitored them.
Sunil holds a Doctor of Philosophy (Resource and Environmental Management) from the Australian National University, a Masters degree in Forestry, George-August University, Germany as well as a Masters degree in Sociology, Tribhuvan University, Nepal.