Dr Laura Klein is National Milk Research Leader at Australian Red Cross Lifeblood. Australian Red Cross Lifeblood is funded by Australian governments to provide life-giving blood, plasma, and transplantation and biological products.

Dr Klein works with clinicians and researchers across Australia to understand how donated breast milk can be used to improve outcomes for vulnerable babies. She’s passionate about generating evidence to improve the products and services that milk banks provide to donors and the families who receive donated breast milk.

The Kids Research Institute Australia is one of the largest and most successful medical research institutes in Australia. The Institute has created a blueprint that brings together community, researchers, practitioners, policy makers and funders, who share our vision to improve the health and wellbeing of children through excellence in research. In November 2025, The Kids Research Institute Australia celebrated 35 years of bold ideas, groundbreaking research, and the people who find answers to the big questions about better health outcomes for children and families.

Professor David Mackey’s original research, over more than 30 years into the genetics of glaucoma and in the fields of optic atrophy and congenital cataract, has received constant professional accolades, attracted ongoing research funding and led to his publication of more than 400 peer-reviewed papers.