Science on Country: First Nations knowledge in modern STEM

From ideas to reality: STEM careers inventing change

Join us for a special Shape Your Future webinar exploring how engineers, inventors and innovators turn ideas into real-world solutions that change the way we live, work and interact with the world around us.

From identifying a problem and imagining a new solution to designing, prototyping, testing and improving, engineering and invention are at the heart of innovation. Across Australia, STEM professionals are combining creativity, science, technology, engineering and mathematics to develop new products, technologies and systems that respond to some of society's biggest challenges.

With a panel of STEM professionals working across engineering, technology, design and innovation, this webinar will explore what it takes to transform an idea into reality and showcase the diverse careers available to students who want to invent, design, build and make change.

Date

Tuesday 15 September 2026

Location

Online (Zoom)

Time

1:45 PM - 2:30 PM

Cost

Free to attend.

Important information

Live webinar and Q&A session for Years 7-12, teachers and STEM enthusiasts

What attendees will learn

1 – How ideas become inventions

Discover how engineers and innovators identify problems and use creativity, scientific knowledge and the engineering design process to develop solutions. Explore the journey from an initial idea through design, prototyping, testing, failure, iteration and improvement to create something that works in the real world.

2 – The STEM careers turning ideas into reality

Hear from engineers, inventors and other STEM professionals about their career journeys, the different pathways that led them to their fields, and what their work actually looks like. Discover how skills such as problem-solving, collaboration, creativity and critical thinking can lead to careers across many different areas of engineering and technology.

3 – How engineering can invent change

Explore how new technologies and engineering solutions can help address challenges facing communities, industries and the environment. Learn how interdisciplinary teams bring together different areas of STEM to develop innovations that can improve lives, create new possibilities and build a more sustainable future.

Why students and educators should attend

Whether you're a student who loves designing, building, experimenting or asking "what if?", an educator looking to connect classroom STEM with real-world careers, or simply curious about how new technologies are created, this webinar offers an opportunity to hear directly from people turning ideas into reality.

You'll leave with a greater understanding of the engineering and innovation process, discover the wide range of careers where creativity and technical skills come together, and learn why unsuccessful ideas, unexpected results and repeated redesign are often an essential part of invention.

Most importantly, you'll see that engineering isn't simply about knowing the right answer — it's about asking great questions, imagining what could be possible, and having the skills and persistence to build something better.

Speakers

Professor Cori Stewart

FTSE

ATSE Fellow | Founder and CEO, ARM Hub

Professor Cori Stewart is a leading figure in advanced manufacturing and innovation acceleration. With a background in humanities, she bridges government, research and industry to bring bold ideas to life.

In 2019, she founded Australia’s first independent not-for-profit technology-based commercialisation facility, ARM Hub. The Hub has successfully guided hundreds of companies through robotics, AI and manufacturing scale-up projects, delivering productivity gains and strengthening national capability.

She has spearheaded strategic international partnerships – including launching Propel-AIR, Australia’s first AI and robotics accelerator – and contributed to multiple Industrial Transformation Training Centres.

Stewart influences the innovation landscape through policy development and commercialisation strategies. As a board member of Industry Innovation Science Australia, Stewart shapes Australia’s industry and innovation investment. She is also a Superstar of STEM 2023, and winner of an Asia Pacific Women in AI Award for Manufacturing.

View profile

Gargi Rastogi serves as an Intellectual Property Specialist at Orica, where she focuses on managing and strategizing the company’s IP portfolio. With a robust multidisciplinary academic background—including a Master’s in Energy Engineering, a Bachelor’s in Biotechnology, and a Law degree—Gargi adeptly combines technical expertise with legal insight to foster innovation across various technology sectors. Her role at Orica centers on integrating intellectual property considerations seamlessly into business and technology initiatives, ensuring that innovations are both protected and strategically leveraged.

During her Master, Gargi authored two research publications, underscoring her commitment to research and her approach to detail.

Passionate about STEM outreach, Gargi is dedicated to raising awareness about career opportunities that intersect technology and law. Outside her professional pursuits, she enjoys playing sudoku, football, music, and has a profound affection for animals.

Dr Tejas Canchi is a Senior Verification and Validation Engineer at ResMed, working in the development of medical devices for sleep and respiratory care. His career has spanned academic research, systems engineering, medical-device development, regulatory science, and verification and validation. 

Tejas completed his PhD in Mechanical Engineering at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, where his research used computational modelling to better understand the risk of abdominal aortic aneurysm rupture. He subsequently worked in biomedical research before moving into the medical-device industry, where he has contributed to the development of orthopaedic implants and sleep and respiratory devices.

At ResMed, Tejas has worked across the product development process, helping translate engineering requirements and early prototypes into products that can be tested, demonstrated to be safe and effective, approved by regulators, and ultimately made available to patients. He has been the Verification and Validation Delivery Lead for a new ventilator product and in advancing the use of computational modelling, simulation and digital-twin technologies in medical-device development.

Beyond his day-to-day engineering role, Tejas contributes to international standards and regulatory-science initiatives exploring how emerging computational technologies can be used to develop and evaluate medical devices. He is also Chair of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society NSW Chapter and regularly lectures and mentors engineering students.

This webinar is part of the Shape Your Future series, an educational initiative from the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (ATSE) that connects students with leading experts in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics through live virtual events.

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