The Microscopy Australia Board provides strategic oversight, advice and guidance for the organisation’s priorities, activities and investments to ensure Australian researchers can access cutting-edge microscopes and expertise.
Prof. Shapter is ideally positioned to contribute in the Chair role, having a wealth of knowledge and leadership experience in the Australian and international research infrastructure landscape. With his research team, Prof. Shapter has published 350+ refereed articles on novel nanomaterials: their production, scale and applications, for example, in sensors and solar cells. He’s passionate about the value and relevance of science and its importance to society, and how microscopes reveal the incredible inner-space of our world.
Prof. Shapter has previously contributed to the operations of Microscopy Australia as Facility Director at Flinders University and as a Board member through his role as Pro-Vice Chancellor (Research Infrastructure) at the University of Queensland. More recently, he has played a national leadership role in research infrastructure through his membership of the National Research Infrastructure Advisory Group. In that capacity, he promoted the career pathways and recognition for research infrastructure specialists, and was a driving force behind establishing the Academy for Collaborative Research Infrastructure (ACRI) to act as a voice of the research infrastructure workforce in Australia and the region.
Microscopy Australia was established in 2007, enabling open access to advanced microscopes and experts through a consortium of university-based facilities. This collaborative research infrastructure operates as a distributed network, hosted by The University of Sydney with funding from the Commonwealth government under the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS), in partnership with state governments and institutional partners. For more information, visit www.micro.org.au
In welcoming Prof. Joe Shapter, as the incoming Chair for a period of three years, we thank and acknowledge the remarkable contribution and tenure of the outgoing Chair, Dr Greg Smith. Microscopy Australia has and will continue to benefit from highly experienced leaders with strong governance for our future success.
October 28, 2025
