Dr Kristin Bell is a comprehensive ophthalmologist.

She is the Director of Surgery and Head of the Eye Department at the Royal Hobart Hospital and Chair of the Tasmanian Eye Health Network.

She is the RANZCO Vision 2030 and Beyond Clinical Lead, and chairs the RANZCO Tasmanian Branch, STP, and Regionally Enhanced Training Network Education committees.

She has a strong interest in health advocacy – in particular, fair, and equitable access to health services regardless of postcode, ethnicity, or income.

Luke is an optometrist who graduated from University of Melbourne in 2012. He has a longstanding interest in glaucoma care and has previously worked in several collaborative glaucoma care programs with the Australian College of Optometry and Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital. He currently practices at BUPA Optical in Hobart and as a sessional consultant at the Lions Low Vision Clinic in the Royal Hobart Hospital.

Joshua Clark has recently joined the Professional Education and Development team at Alcon. Joshua graduated with first class honours from UNSW and practiced in the northern suburbs of Sydney for 15 years. He has previously spoken extensively around Australia and New Zealand on contact lenses, dry eye management and new innovations in the industry. Joshua has a passion for improving patient outcomes and positively impacting their lifestyle.

Dr Kate Gifford is an internationally renowned clinician-scientist optometrist and peer educator, and a Visiting Research Fellow at Queensland University of Technology. She holds a PhD in contact lens optics in myopia, four professional fellowships, over 100 peer reviewed and professional publications, and has presented more than 200 conference lectures. Kate is the Chair of the Clinical Management Guidelines Committee of the International Myopia Institute. In 2016 Kate co-founded Myopia Profile with Dr Paul Gifford; the world-leading educational platform on childhood myopia management. After 13 years of clinical practice ownership in Brisbane, Kate now works full time on Myopia Profile.

Professor Alex Hewitt obtained his PhD investigating the molecular and phenotypic associations for open angle glaucoma in 2009 and completed formal ophthalmology training at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital in Melbourne in 2011. To date, Alex is a co-author on over 400 peer-reviewed publications, which have been cited more than 25,000 times. Alex has helped secure over AU$15 million in competitive research funding and is currently supported by an Australian National Health and Medical Research Council Leadership Fellowship.

Julia obtained her optometry degree from UNSW and has practised in diverse settings with special interest in contact lenses and myopia management. Beyond her clinical roles, she enjoys mentoring optometry graduates and frequently presents at CPD events and conferences. Since joining CooperVision in 2018, she divides her time between professional affairs and clinical practice in Sydney.

Alex Koutsokeras is a therapeutically endorsed Optometrist with a Psychology background. After graduating from the University of Auckland in 2015, Alex spent over 6 years in independent clinical optometric practice in Sydney CBD, gaining extensive experience in complex contact lens fitting for corneal ectasias, trauma, dry eye, and myopia control.

Alex has presented at leading professional continuing education events, as well as published articles in industry publications, on the topics of advanced contact lens fitting and cutting-edge dry eye management.

In 2019, Alex was a founding committee member of the Early Career Optometrists NSW/ACT, and in 2022, Alex joined the Professional Education team at Johnson & Johnson, with a continued focus on providing best practice education on contact lens prescribing for Optometrists across Australia and New Zealand.

Timothy Nguyen is an optometrist who holds a Masters in Clinical Optometry from UNSW. Timothy has been working in Tasmania full-time from 2022 across Launceston and Hobart with keen interests in binocular vision, glaucoma co-management and rigid contact lenses. Currently Timothy is enjoying locum and regional work across both Australia and New Zealand, and is currently serving as the Vice President of Early Career Optometrists Tasmania.

Dr Fiona (Fi) Om is the Professional Service Manager at CR Labs. Fi started her career in the optical industry in 2017 as an optical dispenser. In 2019, she attained her Doctor of Optometry degree from the University of Melbourne and has been working as an optometrist in corporate and independent practices. During her time in the corporate sector, she was awarded inaugural “Optometrist of the Year” and has been globally recognized for her customer service. Mid-2023 she started her role as Professional Service Manager at CR Labs and is providing education and training to practices on CR’s range of specialty lenses

Jack is a clinician-scientist with an academic appointment at the University of New South Wales. His clinical, teaching and research interests are dedicated to the understanding and management of glaucoma and diseases of the visual pathways.

Elmarie Pretorius is an optometrist who practiced in South Africa for 14 years. She joined ZEISS 8 years ago and is currently the Professional Services Manager for ZEISS Australia and New Zealand.

Elise Wilson is an early career optometrist locuming primarily in Tasmania. She has a passion for providing eyecare to rural communities across Australia. She strives to improve visual outcomes in vulnerable populations by improving access to eyecare and strengthening remote multidisciplinary collaboration.