A mechanical engineer by profession, Mitch Burt has spent the majority of his career in operational roles at underground coal and hard rock mines in central and western Queensland. He was previously Practice Lead for Decarbonisation Technology at South32, where he was responsible for identifying and advancing nascent technology options required to achieve net zero emissions across the company’s diverse portfolio of operations. In this role, he established and accelerated internal study programs, and played leading roles in collaborative partnerships including the Long Duration Energy Storage Council, the Electric Mine Consortium and HILT CRC. He brings a complex systems lens to the energy transition, integrating deep industry experience in decarbonisation technology with insights that reveal how technologies, markets and policy co‑evolve. Prior to moving into technology development, his experience included project management, asset management, finance and managing multi-disciplinary teams. Mitch holds bachelor degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Science (Mathematics) and a Masters in Renewable and Sustainable Energy, for which he received the Staff Prize for Academic Performance.