HEADLINE SPEAKERS
Keynote Speaker
Arnaud Wache
Business Development
Manager –
Continental Bitumen, Europe, Middle East & Africa
Arnaud Waché is a highly experienced professional with 26 years in the Oil and Gas industry. He began his career at Shell and LyondellBasell, where he held various management positions that refined his leadership and strategic capabilities.
Arnaud’s primary focus has been on bitumen, encompassing all aspects of the sector, including supply, sales, logistics, and sustainability. Currently, he leads business development for Continental Bitumen, the bitumen supply division of Colas operating in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America.
In addition to his role at Continental Bitumen, Arnaud heads the Carbon Committee of OCB (One Colas Bitumen), which is responsible for identifying and implementing best practices across Colas's bitumen entities. He is also an active member of the Eurobitume Bitumen Sustainability Steering Group (BSSG).
Keynote Speaker
Davide Lo Presti
Associate Professor –
University of Palermo, Italy
Dr. Lo Presti is Associate Professor at the “Engineering Department” of Università degli Studi di Palermo, where he leads a research group engineering smart solutions for sustainable infrastructure.
His background is civil engineering with a focus on transport infrastructure. Since 2010 Dr. Lo Presti has authored and co-authored +100 indexed publications in the field. He has been actively leading activities within RILEM, within editorial boards of at least 5 international journals: amongst these Road Material and Pavement Design, and Rilem Technical Letters.
In 2019, Dr. Lo Presti was given a the “Rita Levi Montalcini fellowship” funded by the Italian Ministry for University and Research, to start a tenured-track at University of Palermo after 10 years working at the University of Nottingham alongside Prof. Gordon Airey and Prof. Andrew Collop and with research stays at TU Delft, University of Washington and University of California Davis.
He’s extremely active in international activities and, amongst those, currently leading the RILEM technical Committee APS on “Alternative Paving materials – Sustainability”, coordinator for the University fo Palermo of the unique 2-years European Joint Master degree on Sustainable and Resilient Pavement Engineering SURPAVE and he is the Chair of the 7th edition of the international symposium on Life-Cycle Assessment for Pavements and Bridges under the new acronym “ROADLCA2026” that will be held in Palermo, Italy, September 30th to October 2nd, 2026.
Keynote Speaker
Neil Scales OBE
Former Director General –
Department Transport Main Roads, Brisbane, Australia
Neil has more than 40 years’ transport industry experience in Australia and the United Kingdom, having recently completed more than 10 years as Director General of the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads.
Neil led the successful delivery of a number of major transport infrastructure projects including large civil engineering projects on the Bruce highway and the M1, and Gold Coast Light Rail. He also led the transport taskforce for the 2018 Commonwealth Games. Neil is passionate about all things transport and engineering and has a keen interest in the areas of pavement engineering and Asset management and major infrastructure projects.
Keynote Speaker
Professor Veena Sahajwalla
Centre for Sustainable Materials Research & Technology, The University of New South Wales
Professor Veena Sahajwalla is an internationally recognised materials scientist, engineer, and inventor revolutionising recycling science. She is renowned for pioneering the high temperature transformation of waste in the production of a new generation of ‘green materials’ at the UNSW Sustainable Materials Research and Technology (SMaRT) Centre, where she is Founding Director. Professor Veena is the inventor of polymer injection technology, known as green steel, an eco-friendly process for using recycled tyres in steel production.
In 2018, Veena launched the world's first e-waste MICROfactorieTM and in 2019 she launched her plastics and Green Ceramics MICROfactoriesTM, a recycling technology breakthrough. Professor Veena is the director of the ARC Industrial Transformation Research Hub for ‘microrecycling’, a leading national research centre that works in collaboration with industry to ensure new recycling science is translated into real world environmental and economic benefits. Professor Veena has also been appointed hub leader of the national NESP Sustainable Communities and Waste Hub.
Keynote Speaker
Mia Barnard
Transport Decarbonisation Lead -
GHD Australia
Mia leads the Transport Decarbonisation efforts in Australia at GHD. With a bold vision for the future of transport, Mia recognizes the significant role the transport ecosystem plays in fostering connected and thriving communities. Over the past 24 years, she has garnered a unique blend of senior leadership and international experience, shaped by her diverse portfolio of roles.
FORUM
National Safety Forum
When: 11am-4pm, Tuesday 28 October
Where: Gilbert Suite
Who: Included with all full delegate registrations. RSVPs are essential for delegates to secure their place.
If you are an AfPA member who is not attending the conference but would like to register for a forum, please click here.
Kicking off the 2025 Future Ready Roads Conference, the AfPA Safety Forum will unite industry, government, and research leaders to address roadworker safety through two dedicated sessions: People & Plant and People & Traffic.
Presentations and discussions will focus on emerging priorities such as fume monitoring and management, exclusion zones, AI-enabled proximity and safety systems, and procurement practices that drive safer outcomes. With collaboration at its core, the forum provides a platform for advancing practical solutions, exchanging knowledge, and supporting a culture of continuous improvement across Australia’s road construction industry.