
30 August 2023 | Canberra, Australia
The National Convention Centre Canberra (NCCC)
Early registration for the AWS Public Sector Symposium Canberra, taking place on 30 August 2023, is now closed. However, day of walk-in registration will be available for all customers.
AWS Public Sector Symposium Canberra
Bringing the cloud community together to innovate, build, and learn
Join us for AWS Public Sector Symposium Canberra 2023, and discover how organisations of all sizes are using Amazon Web Services (AWS) to accelerate innovation and drive their missions forward.
Explore how the cloud can help you enhance security, analyse data at scale, advance sustainability, and achieve your mission—faster and at lower cost. Returning in 2023 with all-new content and speakers, this must-attend event features inspiring keynotes from Australia’s tech leaders, breakout sessions, hands-on workshops, networking hubs, and more.
20+ sessions will cover topics ranging from artificial intelligence and big data analytics to cybersecurity and citizen service transformation. Whether you’re new to the cloud or an experienced user, you’ll gain key knowledge that you can use right away. Join us and discover how to accelerate digital transformation today.
See what you missed at the 2022 AWS Summit Canberra.
Event highlights
20+ sessions
Lecture-style and interactive sessions to learn from, join us no matter where you are on your AWS journey.
Experiential zones
Join AWS experts to discover trends and possibilities for your data and experience the latest in innovation and live demos.
Ask an AWS expert
Speak to an AWS team member one-on-one and ask the questions you have on your mind.
AWS training
Get equipped with the knowledge it takes to move your company—and career—forward.
D I S C O V E R W H A T ' S N E W
Keynote
Learn how customers are using the power of AWS to accelerate their digital transformations to drive productivity and economic development. Hear how organizations are unlocking new opportunities with the cloud and discover the latest advancements that can help you move faster, improve security, and keep costs low – and provide faster, better services for your citizens.
Simon Elisha, chief technologist for Australia, New Zealand, and Oceania public sector, AWS, will be joined on stage by special guests from Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) and Winyama Digital Solutions where they will share how they’re leveraging AWS to keep pushing boundaries and drive further innovation. Iain Rouse, director for Australia, New Zealand and Oceania public sector, AWS will provide opening remarks.
Keynote speakers

Iain Rouse
Director for Australia, New Zealand and Oceania, Public Sector, Amazon Web Services
Iain Rouse leads the team in strategy, sales and business development to help government agencies, education institutions, healthcare and non-profit organizations, learn and implement AWS Cloud services, and serves as company director and public officer of AWS Australia Pty Limited.
Rouse brings more than 25 years of business and technology experience in software development, engineering and consulting when he joined Amazon in February 2019. Prior to joining AWS, Rouse spent almost twelve years with TechnologyOne Limited (ASX:TNE), where he served as Vice President and has held senior roles across product, business and technology.
Rouse attained his bachelor's degree in business from Western Sydney University where he majored in Computing & Information Management. He lectures in Cloud Computing at Queensland University of Technology and is a member of Space Industry Hub steering committee at RMIT University.

Simon Elisha
Chief Technologist, Australia, New Zealand and Oceania, Public Sector, Amazon Web Services
Simon Elisha is a visionary technology leader known for his ability to transform technology innovation into tangible business advantages. With over three decades of experience encompassing hands-on development and influential business leadership, His unwavering commitment to innovation is demonstrated by his nine cloud technology patents, establishing him as a trailblazer in the field.
Simon is a captivating communicator, challenging conventional thinking and empowering organizations to drive real change through technology. He frequently addresses global audiences at prestigious events like AWS re:Invent and AWS Public Sector Summit, sharing his insights and serving as a go-to spokesperson for the business and technology media. Simon's executive experience in leading the growth of AWS WWPS technology teams positions him as an unrivalled source of practical, real-world knowledge.
He is passionate about bridging the gap between government organizations and citizens, empowering organizations to unlock innovation and leverage the efficiency of the cloud. Simon's influence extends beyond his role at AWS, as he hosts The Official AWS Podcast and shares educational content on platforms like YouTube. Simon's illustrious career includes senior positions at renowned organizations such as Pivotal Software, Cisco, and Hitachi Data Systems. He holds an Honours Degree in Information Technology from Monash University, residing in Melbourne with his family.

Andrew Dowding
Managing Director, Winyama Digital Solutions, Leader of the Indigenous Mapping Workshop Australia
Andrew is the Managing Director of Winyama. Andrew’s role is to manage and guide Winyama, create opportunities for the team to grow into their roles and most importantly to generate work for the organisation to be sustainable. Andrew is from the Ngarluma traditional owner group and grew up between Perth, Sydney, and the Pilbara.
Andrew has a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Sydney majoring in both Anthropology and History, and is a current PhD candidate in Indigenous Arts and Cultural Development at the University of Melbourne. Andrew has lived and worked in a range of places from Perth, Broome, Arnhem Land, Los Angeles, Sydney, New Delhi and Roebourne. Each of these places has influenced the skills and experience that he brings to his current role. Andew’s major professional roles have been in the fields of Native Title, ethnographic heritage survey and more recently in Indigenous mapping.
Andrew’s passion is Indigenous mapping and the use of technology for cultural safeguarding. He co-founded Winyama in 2018 to provide more opportunity for Indigenous people to work in the geospatial industry and within the broader digital economy.

Angus Macoustra
Chief Technology Officer, and Head of Scientific Computing, The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO)
Angus Macoustra is CSIRO’s Chief Technology Officer, and leads CSIRO’s Scientific Computing Program.
As Chief Technology Officer, Angus leads technology strategy for Australia’s National Science Agency, fostering innovative technology capabilities and services that underpin and enable the work of CSIRO’s scientific research and engineering teams.
CSIRO is at the forefront of Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence research in Australia, and Angus and his teams provide a number of capabilities and technology services to support this. CSIRO has been a leader in adoption of cloud, with science projects having used cloud for more than a decade.
Sitting in this position at the intersection between science and data, and technology gives him key insights to some of the challenges, as well as opportunities, that the cloud present for Australia’s National Science Agency.

Agenda
Wednesday, 30 August 2023
This event is specifically designed to help public sector organisations across government, education, nonprofit, healthcare, and financial services navigate the increasingly complex and ever-evolving tech landscape.
Our goal is to empower you, the leaders and architects of public sector digital transformation, with new capabilities and insights that help you accelerate your mission and improve the lives of people and the planet using cloud technology.
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Expo
See cutting-edge products and the latest solutions from our sponsoring partners and learn how they can help you transform your organisation.
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Breakout sessions
The Symposium features 20+ breakout sessions across three main tracks: build, secure & resilience, and transform.
Discover content to accelerate your public sector mission, and hear from government, nonprofit, healthcare, education, and aerospace and satellite customers. Grow your existing cloud skills to learn how to build, deploy, and operate your infrastructure and applications learning from lecture-style and interactive sessions.
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Generative AI demos
Join us for an informative and interactive demo of two generative AI use cases: text generation and image generation using the SageMaker playground. The text generation use case will highlight how SageMaker can be used to automatically generate text summaries for government documents, such as reports, policies, and legislation. The image generation use case will demonstrate the potential of SageMaker in generating realistic images, which can be applied in areas such as public awareness campaigns, product or service imagery and diagrams to accompany technical reports or documentation.
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AWS Training & Certification
Learn from AWS experts about how AWS Training and Certification can help you gain practical experience with real-world cloud scenarios, validate your cloud expertise, and much more.
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Closing reception
Join the conversation at our reception at the end of the day. Mingle and connect with your peers to discuss topics that interest you after a day of learning.
Schedule
08:00AM - 09:00AM AEST: Registration
09:00AM - 10:40AM AEST: Breakout sessions
10:40AM - 11:00AM AEST: Break
11:00AM - 12:00PM AEST: Keynote
12:00PM - 01:00PM AEST: Lunch
01:00PM - 02:40PM AEST: Breakout sessions
02:40PM - 03:00PM AEST: Break
03:00PM - 04:30PM AEST: Breakout sessions
04:30PM - 05:30PM AEST: Closing reception
Agenda is subject to change.
N E W T H I S Y E A R
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Panel
More than a metric: regrets, successes, lessons and reflections
Time: 10:00 AM
Where: National Convention Centre Canberra | Swan Room (Level 1)
Hear from influential and impactful leaders from Public Sector and Industry address key issues in diversity and how they’ve skillfully and successfully navigated the industry. They will also discuss how increasing diversity creates an advantage and builds a high performing team and a culture of empowerment. The panel will share life experiences, reflections and lessons learned.
The panel will feature:
- Gerry van Leeuwen AM CSM, Air Vice-Marshal, Head Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance, Department of Defence
- Alison Wegg, Assistant Commissioner, Specialist Protective Command, Australian Federal Police
- Jeff Goedecke, Chief Information Officer, Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications & the Arts
- Melissa Osborne, Head of National Security & Defence, Amazon Web Services
- Kate Monckton, Partner, Risk Advisory, Deloitte Australia, Awarded “Australia’s most outstanding woman in IT Security” in 2021

Session level guide
Level 100: Introductor
Sessions are focused on providing an overview of AWS services and features, with the
assumption that attendees are new to the topic.
Level 200: Intermediate
Sessions are focused on providing best practices, details of service features and demos with the assumption that attendees have introductory knowledge of the topics.
Level 300: Advanced
Sessions dive deeper into the selected topic. Presenters assume that the audience has
some familiarity with the topic, but may or may not have direct experience .
Level 400: Expert
Sessions are for attendees who are deeply familiar with the topic, have implemented a
solution on their own already, and are comfortable with how the technology works.
Session Catalog
Browse, filter or search through the session catalog below to build your own agenda.
Agenda is subject to change.
Symposium sponsors
Join our AWS Partners sponsoring the AWS Public Sector Symposium Canberra. Find inspiration from customer stories and learn how AWS Partners can build solutions to achieve your mission. Hear from organizations like yours on how and why they migrated to the AWS Cloud.
Platinum sponsors






Silver sponsors









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F I N D O U T M O R E
Frequently asked questions
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Who should attend the AWS Public Sector Symposium Canberra and when?
Whether you are new to the cloud or an experienced user, you can learn something new at AWS Public Sector Symposium Canberra. The AWS Public Sector Symposium Canberra will help you develop the right skills to design and deploy solutions in the cloud to accelerate your mission.
The AWS Public Sector Symposium Canberra is scheduled for 30 August 2023.
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Is there a virtual component?
We designed the AWS Public Sector Symposium Canberra for an in-person audience. There will be no virtual component for the event.
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Is there a price to attend?
No, registration is complimentary for this event.
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Where should I stay if I plan to attend?
We don't currently have dedicated attendee room blocks for this event.
The AWS Public Sector Symposium Canberra will take place at the National Convention Center, located at 31 Constitution Avenue, Canberra, ACT, 2601.
You can also explore other nearby hotels.
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When and where will the AWS Public Sector Symposium Canberra take place?
The event will take place at the National Convention Center in Canberra, Australia on 30 August 2023 from approximately 8:00 AM – 6:00 PM AEST.
We will communicate exact meeting rooms prior to the event.
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How can I contact the event organisers?
Please email wwps-apj-events@amazon.com with any questions.
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How do I update, change, or cancel my registration for AWS Public Sector Symposium Canberra?
To change or cancel your registration, email us directly at wwps-apj-events@amazon.com.
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Where can I view sessions for AWS Public Sector Symposium Canberra?
We'll have several sessions available to view on the AWS Public Sector Symposium Canberra agenda page. As we confirm more sessions, we'll add them to the agenda.
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Are lactation rooms available?
Yes. Lactation rooms are designed to provide a private, secure space for lactating attendees to express milk.
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