Professor David Williams initiated and directs the Geotechnical Engineering Centre at The University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia, and also manages the industry-funded Large Open Pit Project. He has over 40 years of teaching, research and consulting experience. He is internationally recognised for his expertise and experience in mine waste management and mine closure, in particular the design, construction, operation, closure and rehabilitation of tailings dams and waste rock dumps, including the design of covers, on which he has delivered a number of invited Keynote Lectures. He was on the Expert Panel investigating the technical causes of the fatal Brumadinho tailings dam failure in Brazil in 2019 and serves on a number of Independent Technical Reviews Boards for Tailings Facilities in Australia and internationally.

Alison currently holds the position of Director, Rocscience Australia overseeing operations in Australia and New Zealand. She obtained her PhD at UNSW and is a Chartered Professional (in Geotech) and RPEQ. Her area of expertise is rock mechanics and open pit slope stability, previously working in both ops and corporate roles for Anglo American and Rio Tinto as well as providing specialists consulting services for copper, gold, iron ore, coal and diamond operations in Australia, PNG, SE Asia and Africa.