Andy Ball

Andy is the Director of the ARC Training Centre for the Transformation of Australia’s Biosolids Resource at RMIT University.
With deep expertise in environmental microbiology and biotechnology, Andy teaches both subjects as part of the School of Science Bachelor and Masters Programs.

In January 2012, Andy was appointed Professor in Environmental Microbiology and in 2016 Distinguished Professor by RMIT University. He started his career as a Research Fellow in Liverpool University, UK and more recently held the position of Reader at the University of Essex, UK. In April 2005, Andy was appointed Chair of Environmental Biotechnology at Flinders University.

He has held a number of key institutional/organisational roles at each university in which he has been employed over the past 30 years. At the University of Essex UK, Andy was Director of the Centre for Environment and Society. At Flinders University, he was appointed Director and Chairman of Flinders Bioremediation. At RMIT University, Andy established, as Director a new University Research Centre, Environment, Sustainability and Remediation and is currently Director of the ARC Training Centre for the Transformation of Australia's Biosolids Resource.

Andy has headed the Environmental Biotechnology Group now at RMIT University (previously based at Essex University and Flinders University) since 1995. Andy has a wealth of research and research and teaching expertise to RMIT University at an International level, particularly in the fields of bioremediation, organic waste treatment, and environmental fate of organic pollutants.

Andy has generated internationally acclaimed research outputs since 1985. He has over 300 peer reviewed publications cited 13,000 times in total, with an annual citation average above 1200 over the past 3 years with an h-index of 60 (Google) and 46 (Scopus). In addition, Andy has published 6 books (3 as author and 3 as editor) and written 42 book chapters. He has currently five provisional patents and one full patent. These metrics demonstrate his respected standing in the academic community.

Industry experience:

Andy has worked closely with various end user entities including government agencies (EPA), the oil and water industry (e.g. Shell, Mobil, South East Water, Melbourne Water) and non-government agencies (e.g. Rockefeller Foundation) raising over $22,000,000 in research grant income to date in the area of Applied and Environmental Microbiology, over $14,000,000 since arriving in Australia in 2007.