CITBA Research Affiliates

James Juniper is a lecturer in Economics with the Newcastle School of Business. Before entering academic life in 1990, James worked as a policy practitioner and researcher in both the Commonwealth and State Public Services. He has also worked with both “blue-collar” and public sector unions. James has supervised three PhDs applying Stock-Flow-Consistent macroeconomic models, along with other PhDs on a diverse range of topics including sub-national development, land zoning in regional NSW, financial development, TQM and environmental management, the philosophy of A. N. Whitehead, water management in Jordan, the modelling of technology innovation systems, and the regulation and prudential control of Australian financial institutions.

Associate Professor Dr. Adam Voak is an International Human Capability Development specialist who applies his 25+ years of experience across Australia and the ASEAN region to assist organisations and governments harness their workforces’ power. More recently, Adam facilitated the design, development and implementation of Indonesia’s first Industry Reference Council, the Indonesian Supply Chain and Logistics Industry Reference Council, funded by the Australian Government’s Department of Education and Training through an Enabling Growth and Innovation Programs Grant. Adam was also contracted as a Senior Transport Consultant for the ARISE+ program, working with the European Union, Senior ASEAN Government Officials, the ASEAN Secretariat and a group of Industry Representatives across all ten ASEAN nations. Their task is the implementation and operationalisation of the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Multimodal Transport.

Dr Fairman has over a decade of experience working in Indonesia and Timor-Leste, where he has led the development of vocational training interventions for government, industry, and donor communities. He established the ASEAN Institute of Applied Learning to support professionals working in vocational training across ASEAN nation states. His contributions include founding an English Language Centre in collaboration with the Muhammadiyah Foundation in Indonesia and advising the Minister of Education in Timor-Leste on educational policy, particularly in the design and planning of a national vocational training system.

Dr. Shilpa Deo is currently working as an Assistant Professor in the School of Humanities & Social Sciences at DES Pune University, India. Dr. Deo has completed her PhD from the premier and India’s top-ranked institutes in economics - Gokhale Institute of Politics & Economics, Pune, India. She has successfully cleared the prestigious national entrance test organized by the University Grant Commission (UGC) known as UGC-NET to receive the ‘Junior Research Fellowship’ award. Her teaching and research interests have been in development economics, micro and macroeconomics, research methods, and international business. She has published several refereed chapters, an edited book, and referred articles in national and international journals of repute. Dr. Deo has won the “Best Research Paper Award” for paper presentation at two International Conferences.

W S (Bill) Cummings BEcon (UQ) 1962, HonDEcon (CQU) 2023, is a highly experienced regional business economist based in Cairns whose career has included wide ranging economic research at national level in Canberra (1960s), management of regional development promotion organisations (1970s) and 40 years professional services to most industries, regions and numerous organisations across northern Australia and into the Pacific.

Dr. Azzali is a planner, designer, and urbanist who is passionately interested in working across traditional disciplinary boundaries to solve urban problems. Simona has published extensively and presented her work in international conferences in the field of urban studies and planning.  Her teaching experience covers four different universities in Milan, Doha, and Singapore where she has taught core modules, elective courses, and studios. Simona has published extensively and presented her work in international conferences in the field of urban studies and planning. Her teaching experience covers four different universities in Milan, Doha, and Singapore where she has taught core modules, elective courses, and studios.

Dr Lydia Canovas Saiz is a researcher and entrepreneur with a PhD in Business Management, specialising in innovation and entrepreneurship, with a current focus on circular economy models and emerging technologies. Her work explores nature-positive economies, decarbonisation, and resilience, examining how VR, AR, and AI can support training, economic sustainability, and adaptive business strategies. Dr Lydia Canovas Saiz practical and industry-based research focuses on circular economy models and emerging technologies to drive sustainable economic transitions and community resilience, aligning with CITBA’s "Community Empowerment, Sustainable Growth, and Resilient Economies" flagship.

Dr. Rajeshwari Patil, Associate Professor in Management, specializes in Design Thinking, HR, Sustainability, and AI’s role in workforce transformation. Passionate about engaging young minds, she fosters critical thinking, innovation, and industry collaboration. She has developed online courses for SWAYAM, a Government of India MOOC initiative, and believes in AI as an augmenter for core skill development. A published researcher in Scopus-indexed journals, she promotes research-driven insights that create value by bridging academia, industry, and sustainable innovation. Her research interests include, but are not limited to, design thinking for business innovation, the interplay of human intelligence and AI in workforce transformation, and sustainability.

Dr. Javier Pérez Aranda is a dedicated academic and researcher at the University of Málaga, specializing in tourism, consumer behavior, and international business. His current work emphasizes collaborative and interdisciplinary research, with a strong interest in sustainability practices within the hospitality and tourism industries. In 2024–2025, Dr. Pérez Aranda initiated a formal research and engagement plan with CITBA at James Cook University, aiming to deepen academic collaboration between the two institutions. His key initiatives include co-authored research publications, thesis co-mentorship, joint supervision frameworks, and institutional partnerships focused on international trade, tourism, and business innovation. Dr. Pérez Aranda is also planning academic visits and exploring broader partnerships that include AI research and strategic institutional collaboration. His work contributes to expanding global academic networks and enhancing the quality and impact of research in the fields of tourism and international business.