STATE CHAPTER PRESIDENTS

Dr. Hien Pham is a Senior Research Scientist within the Innovation Economics team at Data61, part of CSIRO. She also serves as the Chapter President (Queensland) of the Vietnam-Australia Scholars & Experts Association (VASEA), underscoring her dedication to enhancing academic and professional linkages between Vietnam and Australia. Additionally, her expertise in macro-economic modeling, econometrics, and natural language processing (NLP) plays a crucial role in advancing the research objectives of the Humans & Machines Group at Data61.
Dr. Pham completed her Ph.D. in Economics at the University of Queensland in 2016, following a Master’s degree in International Economics from the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS) in Japan. She has previously served as a lecturer at the UQ School of Economics and has extensive experience in the Vietnamese Ministry of Planning and Investment, specializing in Official Development Assistance (ODA) management and strategic development.
Her research focuses on benchmarking innovation practices, exploring the causal relationships between technological advancements and economic outcomes, and conducting strategic foresight. Dr. Pham’s work has significantly influenced digital transformation policies in Vietnam, including the Digital Transformation Plan through 2025. Beyond her research, she led the development of the innovative platform VNConnect.info, which utilizes AI to identify and connect Vietnamese AI experts globally, highlighting her commitment to fostering international collaboration and advancing digital technology adoption.

A/ Prof Vuong is a leading expert in Food Science, specialising in tea and tea products, food composition, natural functional ingredients, functional food production, native flora, advanced techniques for food preservation, and the utilisation of food waste to add value to the food industry. Based at the University of Newcastle’s Central Coast campus, with specialised labs situated in the Central Coast region of NSW, Australia—a hub for multinational companies, small-scale artisan food manufacturers, and entities within the food services sector, including catering and hospitality— A/ Prof Vuong has access to exceptional research environments and facilities for food research.

A/Prof Vuong has extensive experience in teaching and supervision, having guided over 300 graduates and more than 15 postgraduates (PhD and Master’s) who have pursued various careers in Australia and overseas. He has built strong connections with the food industry and established collaborations with colleagues from diverse disciplines internationally. Additionally, he has secured over $2.8 million in grants from various sources to support and maintain excellence in research and innovation, consistently producing impactful research outputs. These outputs, characterised by a strong influence in the field with a high h-index, have been disseminated in high-quality publications and have been further translated and applied within the food industry.

Dr. Nam Nghiep Tran is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Chemical Engineering at The University of Adelaide. He is also the Chapter President (South Australia) of the Vietnam-Australia Scholars & Experts Association (VASEA), demonstrating his commitment to fostering academic and professional ties between Vietnam and Australia. Additionally, he serves as the Associate Dean of Internationalisation (Southeast Asia) within the Faculty of Sciences, Engineering, and Technology (SET), reflecting his role in promoting international collaborations and educational opportunities.

Born in Can Tho City, located in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam, Nam Tran earned his Bachelor of Engineering degree in Chemical Engineering from Can Tho University. He then pursued a Master of Engineering in Chemical System Engineering at The University of Tokyo, supported by the Panasonic Scholarship. Following his master’s, he completed his Ph.D. at The University of Adelaide through the Australian Awards Scholarship.

Nam Tran co-founded the Adelaide University Vietnamese Students Association and served as its second president until July 2015. He is currently the Associate Editor-in-Chief of Green Processing and Synthesis (GREENPs).

His research interests include process control and instrumentation, process design and optimisation, renewable energy, reaction engineering, thermal and non-thermal plasma, ESG, and life cycle assessment.

Dr. Hang Duong is a Senior Lecturer in Public Policy at the School of Social Sciences, The University of Western Australia. She has over 18 years of experience in the public sector in Vietnam, holding various positions across multiple public agencies, including Deputy Head of the Department Office at the Danang Foreign Affairs Department, Vice Director and subsequently Director of the Danang Centre for Promotion of Human Resources Development, the Department of Home Affairs. She was also a lecturer at Greenwich University (UK) – Vietnam campus before joining The University of Western Australia.

Dr. Hang Duong completed her Master’s degree at The University of Queensland and her PhD at The University of Western Australia. Her doctoral thesis, which focused on policy transfer and meritocracy in Vietnam, received an Honourable Mention on the Dean’s List at UWA. Her research interests include public sector human resource management, policy transfer, public sector performance and administration, and vaccination policy. She is the author of a book on policy transfer under authoritarianism published by Palgrave Macmillan. Dr. Hang Duong is currently a researcher on the interdisciplinary MandEval vaccination project at UWA’s School of Social Sciences VaxPolLab.

Ha Tran was awarded a full scholarship by the Vietnamese Government in 2008 to pursue studies in Australia, following her achievement as a Gold Medalist in national English competitions. Ha Tran completed undergraduate and postgraduate programs in Finance, Business Management, Accounting, and Auditing in Melbourne before returning to Vietnam to work as a lecturer at Vietnam National University. With over 15 years of professional experience in international education, Ha Tran has been working as the Country Head for TET Education Group Australia since 2014. In this role, she leads a team in Vietnam that collaborates with the Vietnamese government, large enterprises and top universities. Her responsibilities include consulting, facilitating, and coordinating executive training programs for over 30,000 Vietnamese government leaders from various sectors, including public administration, law, politics, international relations, national security, defence, digital transformation, industry and trade (such as energy, logistics, ports development, customs, and taxation), health and hospital management, and agriculture and rural development, etc. TET Education Group is a distinguished international education advisory organization with a solid foundation with the Vietnamese government and a network of experts across 15 countries on six continents. Additionally, Ha Tran leads efforts to position international education institutions as market leaders in Vietnam and to enhance Vietnam’s prominence as a key market with a long-term development focus. She is actively involved in facilitating access for Vietnamese-sponsored students and those from high-quality backgrounds to premier Australian programs. 

Hoang Anh DO is a distinguished legal and external affairs executive with over 20 years of leadership experience across the Asia Pacific region. She currently serves as Cluster Head of Sustainability, Corporate and Regulatory Affairs at British American Tobacco, where she drives strategic initiatives at the intersection of law, policy, and responsible business.

Throughout her career, Hoang Anh has blended deep legal expertise with regulatory foresight and stakeholder engagement to deliver business-aligned solutions in highly regulated industries. Her leadership spans diverse functions, including legal, compliance, ESG, government affairs, anti-illicit trade, and corporate communications—where she has consistently shaped policy environments, safeguarded corporate reputation, and championed ethical conducts.

From advising boards and negotiating joint ventures to steering complex audits and leading excise reform, Hoang Anh brings a proactive, solutions-oriented mindset to every challenge. As a board member and chief representative, she has cultivated strong partnerships with government bodies, industry associations, and commercial stakeholders to ensure governance, compliance, and sustainable growth.

Her contributions have earned recognition for excellence in ESG leadership, regulatory innovation, and anti-illicit trade efforts, including Top 10 CSI honors by VCCI and Merit Certificate from Central Committee 127 for her role in advancing anti-illicit trade progress.

Driven by a passion for building resilient organizations and high-performing teams, Hoang Anh is known for delivering results under pressure and navigating complexity with clarity and conviction. Whether leading public policy engagement or advising on cross-border transactions, she operates where law meets strategy and where impact is made.