Our staff
The TPE consists of a small team dedicated to the University's mission of making a contribution to the future development of Tasmania across a range of outcome areas.
Professor Richard Eccleston - Director
Richard is recognised as one of Australia's leading policy scholars who has worked with a wide range of government, industry and community partners. He has published on a wide range of topics and led solutions-focused research tackling some of the most significant policy challenges facing Tasmania, including the future of work, housing affordability, tax reform, regional governance, and the transition to a zero-emissions future. Richard has been a Fulbright Senior Scholar based in Washington DC and was the Founding Director of the Institute for Social Change and the TPE at the University of Tasmania.
Richard is deeply engaged in public and community life. He is a member of the Premier's Health and Wellbeing Advisory Council, the Climate Change Minister's expert reference group and the Regional Jobs Hub community of policy and practice.
Dr Robert Hortle - Deputy Director
Rob is a skilled policy researcher and consultant with over ten years’ experience in international development, academia, and consultancy in the UK, Australia, and the Pacific. He holds an MPhil and DPhil in International Development from the University of Oxford, where he studied as a Rhodes Scholar. Rob has a strong record of managing high-quality, impactful research and evaluation projects for a range of high-profile clients.
Since returning home to Tasmania and joining the TPE in 2023, Rob has provided commentary on the 2024 state election, led work on child safety, and hosted an Island of Ideas public talk on democracy in Tasmania. He is Co-Secretary for the Rhodes Scholarship in Tasmania, and Tasmanian Convenor of the Electoral Regulation Research Network.
Dr Frieda Moran - Research Fellow
Frieda holds a PhD from the University of Tasmania on the cultural history of food safety in Australia. Since joining the TPE, she has made a major contribution to the Future of Local Government Review and worked on a range of other TPE projects.
Frieda enjoys learning about the past, present and future of lutruwita/Tasmania and exploring the island's many amazing places.
Dr Lachlan Johnson – Research Fellow
Lachie completed his PhD on the roles played by industry networks in Tasmanian regional economic development in 2021. At the TPE, he has a leading role in project design, data analysis and visualisation, research, and stakeholder engagement. Lachie has contributed extensively to the TPE’s work on the local government, climate and energy policy, and employment, alongside ARC-funded research into Australian fiscal federalism.
Lachie is also a classically trained cellist, a cyclist, and a keen but hopeless carpenter.
Sarah Hyslop - Policy Analyst
Sarah is an experienced researcher and project assistant. She was a research officer at the Parliament of Victoria before joining the Institute for the Study of Social Change at the University of Tasmania in 2015. Sarah has been with the TPE since its establishment in 2020, and has contributed her research, writing, analysis, and stakeholder engagement skills to a wide range of projects.
Outside of work, Sarah enjoys spending time with her family, listening to podcasts, and learning Italian.
Kimberly Brockman – Policy Analyst
Kimberly joined the TPE in 2023 as a Policy Intern. She has worked across a wide range of projects on topics including child safety, forest carbon, and liveability on Tasmania’s West Coast. Kimberly recently received First Class Honours in Economics for her dissertation on the water-based barriers to implementation and the success of the green hydrogen industry in Tasmania. Kimberly has also graduated from a Bachelor of Laws with Honours from the University of Tasmania, which focused on competition law in the realm of software and hardware ‘tying’ in electronic devices.
Kimberly enjoys being able to give back to the community through volunteering. She is passionate about improving the lives of everyday Tasmanians and looking after our Island home. Outside of work and volunteering, Kimberly enjoys spending time with her family, reading, playing games, and crafting.
Dr Judith Mutuku – Policy Intern
Judith holds a PhD in Natural Resource Economics and has international and domestic experience in the fields of blue economy, circular economy, climate change, resource management , agricultural economics and sustainable development. Judith is adept at exploring the complex interplay between economic theory and environmental policies to address natural resource dynamics. Her research is motivated by the vision for a more eco-friendly and sustainable future.
Judith is passionate about volunteering initiatives and leadership roles that foster community growth and development.
Dr Logan Linkston – Policy Intern
Logan is a researcher and educator with a passion for using research and academia to make a difference in the world. She completed her PhD at UTAS, focusing on human trafficking as a crime of international significance and proposing a new approach informed by international relations principles. Her research interests include human rights, atrocity crimes, international justice, humanitarian intervention, and gender-based violence. Logan firmly believes we can’t shy away from difficult issues, no matter how dark, and this is reflected in both her research and teaching work. Since joining the TPE team, she has been involved with projects on child wellbeing and safety.
When she’s off the clock, Logan looks to her musical theatre background, spending her spare time doing any acting, singing, and dancing she can find — because who says you can’t have it all? She also takes every opportunity to visit her family in the US, often sneaking in a new travel adventure somewhere between Tasmania and North Carolina along the way.