Associate Professor Ziyad Abunada
BSc (Civil eng), MSc.(Eng.), PhD (Cambridge)Associate Professor/ Head of College of Project Management, Built Environment, Asset & Maintenance Management
School of Engineering and Technology
Coastal Marine Ecosystems Research Centre
3rd Floor, Room 3.12 - 120 Spencer St. vic3000
Ziyad is an Associate Professor and the Head of the College of Project Management, Built Environment, Asset & Maintenance Management at the School of Engineering & Technology. He earned his Ph.D. in engineering for sustainable development from the University of Cambridge- UK, where his doctoral work was part of the largest collaborative research project between academia and industry in the UK. Dr. Abunada accumulated a wealth of professional experience, having worked in various senior roles such as Program Manager, Procurement Manager, and Team Lead at international firms, including Human Appeal-UK and The World Bank. Additionally, Ziyad has served as an Environmental Specialist and Principal Environmental Consultant on numerous consultancy projects with international organizations like UNICEF and UNEP. Currently, Ziyad leads a research group comprising research higher degree (RHD) students who undertake diverse research projects. Their current research areas encompass a sustainable circular economy for a waste-free future, coupled human-environment interaction, complex management of climate change, life cycle assessment, and engineering for sustainable development. His research also extends to include the application of analytical and decision-making tools and explores the impact of net-zero emission plans on project management frameworks. Ziyad is actively involved in funded research projects in collaboration with the Australian College of Kuwait, Cement Australia, and Queensland Water Department where his research supports these institutions to improve their current practice towards effective and sustainable practices. His research has also attracted international recognition, with his work ranked first and earning him the best research award in environmental management from ISESCO. He has also been awarded the best paper in the Environment Theme at the AINAC 2012 conference in the UAE. Furthermore, Ziyad is currently serving as a member of the Global Accreditation Centre-Project Management Institute- (GAC-PMI) and has active membership at the Institute of Civil Engineering (ICE), the International Centre of Complex Project Management (ICCPM), and the Royal Society of Chemistry-UK. He serves as a peer reviewer for several SCI index journals, including Hazardous Material and the Journal of Environmental Management.
Background
Ziyad is a civil engineer holding a Ph.D. in sustainable remediation. He possesses practical experience both in academia and the professional world, having worked in diverse roles with International NGOs, construction companies, consultancy firms, and research institutes. Ziyad boasts extensive teaching experience at the university level, covering a range of engineering and project management courses.
Ziyad's research interests encompass core engineering applications, engineering for sustainable development, and project management. Currently, Ziyad's research focuses on several key areas, including the advancement of circular economy principles for zero-waste solutions, the intricacies of complex management, the utilization of analytical and decision-making tools in environmental management, and the application of digitalization in these fields.
Universities Studied At
Cambridge University- UK.
Universities Worked At
Cambridge University- UK
Antalya International University- Turkey
Awards
ISESCO, 2017 Best Research Paper Award in the field of environmental management (2017).
Cambridge University Trust- Islamic Development Bank Ph.D. scholarship
AINAC (Innovation Network Annual Conference- 2012) Best Research Paper in the Environment theme.
2nd best MSc thesis award- Universität Heidelberg- Germany, 2009.
Previous teaching
- Engineering for Sustainable Development
- Construction management
- Water Quality
- Sanitary and Wastewater Treatment
- Fluid Mechanics
- Hydraulics
- Soil Mechanics
- Contaminated Land and Remediation Technologies
- Introduction to Engineering Science
Professional Experience
Ziyad works as a program manager at Human Appeal International- UK.Project Manager for various mega- construction projects. He also served as procurement and project manager for projects funded by the World Bank before he then worked as a
Professional Memberships
- Institute of Civil Engineering (ICE-UK)
- Project Management Institute (PMI)
- International Center of Complex Project Management (ICCPM)
- Member of the International Water Association (IWA)Scottish Contaminated Land Forum (SCLF)
- Member of Cambridge University Engineering and Energy Society (CUEE)
- Member of Cambridge University Environmental Consulting Society (CUEC)
- Fellow at Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC)
- Member of the American Geophysical Union (AGU-USA)
- Affiliated member at the Water Science and Technology Association (WSTA-Bahrain).
Responsibilities
Discipline Lead- Project management (Dec. 2019- June 2020)
Head of Course- Project Management (June 2020- Present)
Professional Interests
- GIS-Modflow Catchment area modeling
- Machine Learning (Neural Network)
- Optimization and decision-making tools
Key Achievements
Best Paper Award (20012 and 20017)
KFAS funding:
1- Constructed Wetland for sustainable wastewater treatment
2- Low-cost material for Solidification/ Stabilization of contaminated soil
Computer Software
- Microsoft Project Management (MS Project),
- Machine learning (Artificial Neural Network (ANN)
- Decision Support System & Multi-Criteria Analysis (DEFINITE),
- Green Buildings Design HVAC (REVIT)
- SIMAPRO (LCA)
- MODFLOW, Flow Path, GIS,
- WATERCAD, EPANET,
Editor
· Guest Editor- International Journal of Geosynthetics and Ground Engineering
Consultancy Work
- Environmental Expert: Universal Group Consultants- UNICEF.
- Project Manager: ENTEGRE Consultancy Group- Istanbul
- Project Manager: YAPI ve ALTYAPI Engineers- Istanbul
Identifying Environmental Remediation and Discharge Options for Cement Australia
Grant: Contract Research (Category 3: Industry and Other)
Funding Scheme: Contract Research - Cement Australia - Identifying Environmental Remediation and Discharge Options
Total Funding: $18,153.00
Assessing presence of emerging contaminants of concern (ECCs) associated with wastewater treatment plant discharges
Grant: Contract Research (Category 2: Other Public Sector)
Funding Scheme: Contract Research - Mackay Regional Council through QWRAP - Assessing Queensland Emerging Contaminants of Concern Assessing Queensland Emerging Contaminants of Concern
Total Funding: $69,708.00
Accreditation
I am currently accredited for supervision in the following:
- 4011 Environmental Engineering
- 4005 Civil Engineering
- 0502 Environmental Science and Management
Current Capacity
Current Supervision
Building - Building Construction Management and Project Planning
Stakeholder management, Project risk management, Sustainable materials.
Strategy, management and organisational behaviour - Project management
Complex Management, Risk Management, Stakeholder Management
Civil Engineering - Infrastructure Engineering and Asset Management
Eng. Applications Artificial Neural Networks, GIS and SWAT vulnerability analysis
Environmental Science and Management - Environmental Rehabilitation (excl. Bioremediation)
Low Cost Materials.
Innovative Remediation Technologies
Environmental Science and Management - Natural Resource Management
Circular Economy
Complex management, wicked problems,
Climate change
Life Cycle Analysis
