Ray Maher

Dr Ray Maher is the Deputy Director (Research) and Senior Lecturer in Design (Built Environment) at the School of Architecture, Design and Planning, University of Queensland. He leads interdisciplinary research and capacity-building projects with government, industry, and international partners. His expertise spans sustainable development strategies, circular economy frameworks, urban planning, and systems thinking for addressing 'wicked' problems.

Education: PhD (2021), Master's (2009), and Bachelor's (Design Studies) from the University of Queensland.

Research Interests: Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), decision-support tools, climate resilience, stakeholder collaboration, and futures thinking. His work emphasizes applied, engagement-focused research to build stakeholder capacity in complex sustainability challenges.

Funding & Projects: Lead Chief Investigator on $1M+ research; total contributions exceed $5M. Notable projects include the Manila Bay Sustainability Framework ($3B development project), Queensland Health Prevention Thinktank, and the Circular Economy 4 Business program.

Affiliations: Affiliate of the Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Science (Faculty of Science), and member of the School of Architecture, Design and Planning (Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology).