AELERT is inviting expressions of interest from environmental regulators and practitioners across Australasia to join its inaugural Practitioner Fellowship Program, connecting the best minds in regulatory research with the people doing the work on the ground.

About the program

The Practitioner Fellowship Program gives experienced environmental regulators a formal role in shaping the future of the profession. Fellows work directly alongside leading regulatory researchers from UNSW Law and Justice, RMIT Law, RegNet ANU, and other partner institutions to co-produce capability products, contribute to AELERT’s research agenda, and bring the reality of frontline regulation into the academic conversation.

This is not a passive credential. Fellows present at Communities of Practice, provide intelligence to AELERT’s Jurisdictional Steering Committee, and help translate research into tools that agencies can actually use. In return, they receive early access to capability products and research outputs, a formal professional title for use in their career, and a seat at the table in Australasia’s most significant environmental regulatory network at a pivotal moment in its development.

Fellowship tiers

Three tiers make up the program:

• Associate Practitioner Fellow — for emerging practitioners earlier in their careers who are engaged with ideas about the profession and want to grow their contribution over time
• Practitioner Fellow — for experienced regulatory practitioners with the standing and depth of experience to act as a real bridge between practice and research
• Distinguished Practitioner Fellow — awarded at the CEO’s discretion to recognise sustained contribution to the profession or exceptional potential to AELERT

Who should apply

This program is for practitioners who think about regulatory practice beyond their day job, who are frustrated that research and practice rarely inform each other, and who want to do something about that. Relevant practice areas include environment protection, biosecurity, land management, water, wildlife, climate, fisheries, and local government. The Associate tier is open to practitioners at any career stage. AELERT is aiming for at least one Fellow per jurisdiction across all ten member jurisdictions and particularly welcomes applications from areas not yet well represented in the active network.

About the Academic Practitioner Working Group

The Practitioner Fellowship Program is being established through the AELERT Academic Practitioner Working Group, a new standing body co-chaired by AELERT CEO Adam Slater and Professor Cameron Holley of UNSW Law and Justice.

The Working Group exists to close the gap that has long existed between the production of regulatory research and the agencies that need it most. It creates a structured, ongoing channel between leading researchers and frontline practitioners, translating emerging findings and innovative approaches into practical capability products that agencies can use. For regulators, this means earlier access to evidence-based tools and insights that help them respond to increasingly complex challenges. For the research community, it means a reliable pipeline of field intelligence and lived experience that sharpens the relevance of their analysis and ensures their work reflects what practitioners actually need.

Submit your expression of interest

• Download the Practitioner Fellowship Program document and EOI form

Download the expression of interest form and return your completed application to Adam Slater at adam.slater@sa.gov.au by close of business Friday 5 June 2026.