Episode #14

• Zoe is a Civil and Environmental engineer, having studied at QUT. 
• Her hobbies are 4WD, camping, yoga and studying Smart Cities 
• Can speak a little Mandarin and a little less Korean 
• She has a passion for Smart Cities and smart regions.  Even has a Podcast called The Smart City Podcast
• Zoe started her own company this year, Zemcon consulting services with a focus on smart mobility.  She aims to bring appropriate Smart technology to the community. 
• Growing up in Roma, a small country town in QLD, she was in a class of 50/50 male & female. So never realised there was such a large disparity of women engineers in the general public, or what the “glass ceiling” meant.

• “Smart cities are actually about using technology as an enabler to make cities or places we live more accessible, livable and sustainable for all.  It’s actually a way of thinking, about changing your mindset, not doing things the way we had always done them.” 
• Zoe create The Smart City Podcast because she wanted to create a hub where people could learn about smart cities in a really easy, friendly and accessible way. 
• The whole point of a smart city is to bring together and collaborate in a genuine way. 
• Smart Cities are the next step to evolving communities… how are we going to make better decisions with the data available.  e.g. planning where a car park should go, but using real-time data from very simple sensors to determine. 
• Smart Cities aim to improve the communication and relationship with the community 
• 2 tangible aspects to Smart Cities.  Look at how we can use technology more effectively and efficiently and for the human beings.  And then look at the technology that is emerging and determining how we can prepare for it. 
• How can the politicians make the right decision for the community if they don’t have access to the data owned by companies?  e.g Uber or AirBNB

• Zoe went to Japan with a Future Leaders, Future Cities delegation.  The aim was to take young people working in the Smart Cities space to Japan to look at trade and investment opportunities.  More than 50% of the delegation was women, very progressive in whom was picked. 
• Being a young female engineer working in construction, she felt like you really had to prove yourself.
• Zoe’s favourite project as an engineer was the one where she was the very first and very last person on site. Got to evolve her career.
• The joys of working in a small rural community and many and varied.
• The future of engineering will have a much more diverse personality – “Society Engineering”.
• The importance of networking and the way you present yourself as an engineer.
• New engineers should work hard and believe anything is possible.
• If you can see it you can do it….. If you can dream it you can do it. 
• Having good mentors is so important.

An engineer to admire. Julie Hammer.  She was in the Royal Australian Airforce.  First woman to be promoted to a 1 and then 2 star rank.  Zoe is most impressed with her down-to-earth attitude.  Wouldn’t take no for an answer.

Website: www.engineeringheroes.com.au 

Facebook: @BeerWithAnEngineer

Instagram: @BeerWithAnEngineer.podcast

LinkedIn: Beer With An Engineer

Melanie on LinkedIn

Dominic on LinkedIn 

Our drinking game.  You can’t have a beer with an engineer without having a drinking game!!  Anytime Dom says “ummm” or Mel says “so”… drink up!