Cheryl Desha is the Theme Leader for the Cities Research Institute's 'Digital Earth and Resilient Infrastructure' research agenda (12 academics, 13 PhD candidates), and a professor at the School of Engineering and Built Environment, Griffith University. She co-leads Griffith University's Disaster Management Network and directs the Disaster and Resilience Management Facility (DRMF) in Griffith’s newest six-story AUD 70 million building ‘N79: Engineering Technology and Aviation’. She also sits on the Queensland Disaster Research Alliance (QDRA) as Griffith University's representative. Cheryl was awarded Engineers Australia's Queensland’s Professional Engineer of the Year in 2021 and in 2020 was awarded the Queensland Government's Individual Champion of Change Award by the Inspector General Emergency Management. With the reality that "everything is connected and 'where' is critical to thriving, now and into the future", Cheryl is working towards resilient and regenerative cities through enabling evidence-based decision-making that is locally relevant. This involves industry and government partnerships to deliver right-time and right-place decision support, within the context of disaster management.