SIGCHI-M is the Melbourne Local Chapter of the International ACM SIGCHI professional organisation – bringing together HCI and UX professionals, academics, and anyone interested in human-computer interaction.
Anyone is free to join. Please use the email link on the home page to connect with us and become a member
Co-Chair: Dr Deepti Aggarwal
Affiliation: Lecturer in Emerging Digital Health Technologies, Deakin University.
Expertise: Exploring the “sweet spot” where design, health, and technology meet.
Research interests: Designing playful and immersive interactions to encourage positive eating practices for children and adults.
SIGCHI Goal: Co-chairing the 2026 committee to foster a connected, vibrant, and inclusive HCI community across Melbourne.
Social Media: Dr Huawei Tu
Affiliation: Senior lecturer in the Department of Computer Science and Information Technology, La Trobe University.
Expertise: Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and Virtual Reality (VR).
Research interests: I conduct both fundamental and applied research, combining theory and experimentation to explore how to enhance user experience in VR with HCI technologies.
SIGCHI Goal: Enhancing SIGCHI Melbourne’s visibility and engaging the target audience through strategic social media management.
Co-Chair: Dr Esther Wilding
Affiliation: Lecturer in Communication Design, Major Discipline Coordinator for UX Interaction Design, Swinburne University of Technology.
Expertise: X Interaction Design, Design Innovation, Information Design.
Research interests: Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), evidence-based design and assistive technologies.
SIGCHI Goal: Build a welcoming community that bridges the gap between HCI researchers and design practitioners. Make HCI accessible to a broader audience. Grow and diversify membership. Collaborate with neighbouring chapters.
Secretary: Ananya Alagh
Affiliation: PhD Candidate and Research Fellow at Action Lab, Monash University.
Expertise: Human-Computer Interaction (HCI).
Research interests: I investigate how complex forms of practice and knowledge-intensive work can be captured, modelled, and operationalised through digital tools. My work focuses on developing systems to support meaningful knowledge transfer and application in real-world settings.
SIGCHI Goal: Support the growth of the SIGCHI Melbourne chapter and build stronger connections within the local HCI community.
Industry Liaison: Shiva Balachandran
Affiliation: Industry Practitioner
Expertise: Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and Service Design, with 17 years of industry experience and academic grounding through publications at OzCHI and TEI.
Research interests: I am most interested in HCI research with clear real-world utility, the kind of work that practitioners can pick up and use without needing to translate it themselves.
SIGCHI Goal: Reducing friction between industry and academia by creating genuine pathways for collaboration, so that research informs practice and practice informs research.
Co-Events: Dr Alison de Kruiff
Affiliation: Senior Lecturer in UX Interaction Design, Course Director for the Bachelor of Design, Swinburne University of Technology.
Expertise: UX Interaction Design, Design Education, Virtual Heritage.
Research interests: Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), design education, design and affect, design for cultural heritage, and inclusive design.
SIGCHI Goal: My goal is to create links between industry, academia and students to foster learning for the next generation of UX researchers and designers.
Co-Events: Samangi Wadinambiarachchi
Affiliation: PhD Candidate at the School of Computing and Information Systems, The University of Melbourne.
Expertise: Human-Computer Interaction, Human-AI Interaction, UX Design, Design Education.
Research interests: Human-AI Interaction, Creativity Support Tools, Creative Cognition, Design Education.
SIGCHI Goal: To connect with like-minded researchers and help build an inclusive CHI community where HCI researchers from Melbourne and beyond can co-create, collaborate and thrive.
Digital Media: Dr Adam D Walker
Affiliation: Lecturer, UX Interaction Design, and Course Director, Diploma of Design, Swinburne University.
Expertise: UX/UI Design, Design Education, Human‑Centred Design and Human–Computer Interaction.
Research interests: Design education, Design research, Generative AI and human–computer interaction.
SIGCHI Goal: To support the development of a professional and engaging SIGCHI presence through well‑designed, visually appealing, and human‑centred web experiences that clearly communicate SIGCHI’s mission, activities, and value to the HCI and UX design community.
VC Memberships: Richard (Rick) Skarbez
Affiliation: Senior Lecturer in the Department of Computer Science and Information Technology, La Trobe University.
Expertise: Virtual, Augmented, and Mixed Reality experiences (VR/AR/MR)
Research interests: His research focuses on understanding the psychological, social, and cultural impacts of emerging technologies, particularly virtual reality (VR), but also augmented and mixed reality (AR/MR), artificial intelligence (AI), and related topics under the umbrella of human-computer interaction (HCI).
SIGCHI Goal: Nurturing and growing the membership of the Melbourne SIGCHI chapter.
Treasurer: Piumi Perera
Affiliation: PhD Candidate and Research Assistant at the School of Computing and Information Systems, The University of Melbourne.
Expertise: Human-Computer Interaction (HCI).
Research interests: Designing unobtrusive technologies that support meaningful human experiences in natural and experiential settings, with a focus on human-nature interaction, informal learning, and applications such as citizen science and environmental education.
SIGCHI Goal: Supporting and connecting early-career HCI researchers through collaboration, mentorship, and community-building within the Melbourne SIGCHI network.
Advisor Spotlight
Jeni Paay is the current advisor to SIGCHI-M, the Melbourne Local Chapter of the International ACM SIGCHI professional organisation.
Chapter Advisor: Jeni Paay
Affiliation: Adjunct Professor, Centre for Design Innovation, School of Design and Architecture, Swinburne University of Technology
Expertise: Interaction Design for mobile and emerging technologies.
Research interests: Research expertise in context-aware pervasive and mobile computing as it relates to the places we inhabit, the activities technology can enhance to suit the diversity of inhabitants that we are.
SIGCHI Goal: Currently VP Chapters for the executive committee of SIGCHI – overseeing development of and collaboration between chapters on a global scale.
Past Committee
The following members are the 2024 officers of SIGCHI-M.
Diego Muñoz: Chair
Diego Muñoz is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Swinburne Living Lab. He is interested in research projects that involve co-design, qualitative research and technology design from a human-centred perspective. As Chair of SIGCHI Melbourne, Diego hopes to help the local HCI community grow and to encourage connections between HCI practitioners and academics.
Jeni Paay: Vice Chair
Jeni is a Professor of Interaction Design in the School of Design at the Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne. She has a trans-disciplinary background spanning architecture, computer science, and Human-Computer Interaction. Publishing in Interaction Design. Her research areas include Design Methods; Interaction Design for Mobiles, Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality; Digital Health; Smart Spaces; Design for Future Workspaces and User Experience Design.
Erin Beel: Communications Chair & Industry Liaison
Erin Beel is an inclusive design leader with over 24 years of experience, currently applying her deep expertise in accessibility and user experience as a freelance consultant. Having led design and accessibility efforts in both the public sector and digital consulting, Erin has worked with organisations such as Emergency Victoria, Chemist Warehouse, MONA Museum, Melbourne Water and Monash University. Passionate about human-centred and social design, she has contributed to worldwide accessibility capabilities, led award-winning projects, and developed organisation-wide Ethical AI frameworks.
Arzoo Atiq: Membership Chair
Arzoo Atiq is a Lecturer within the Human-Computer Interaction group at the School of Computing and Information Systems, University of Melbourne. Her research focuses on interaction design, service design and user experience design, particularly in the fields of education, telecommunications, and health.
Rakesh Patibanda: Digital Media Chair
Rakesh is a doctoral researcher at the Exertion Games Lab, Monash University, where his work explores the fascinating confluence of the human body, technology, and play. His doctoral thesis investigates how we can create playful experiences with the human body as the focal point, reminiscent of the games we immersed ourselves in during childhood. To bring this vision to life, his research introduces the concept of ‘body-actuating play’. This innovative approach envisions a symbiotic relationship between humans and wearable robotic technologies such as Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS), allowing the body to serve simultaneously as both a means of control and a medium for feedback
Anthony Phuc Le: Financial Chair
Anthony is a PhD student in UX-Service Design at Monash University. He is passionate about solving problems through technological innovations. He has interdisciplinary expertise in medicine, health service management, and ICT. He is currently working on an interdisciplinary and industrial research project to explore the intercultural communication challenges of migrants in Australia and codesign with them relevant solutions