The RUN Team

Alec is the Chief Executive Officer at the Regional Universities Network where he advocates for and champions the impact and importance of regional higher education.

Alec has more than 10 years of experience as a leader and collaborator in a variety of sectors including the public service, higher education advocacy and economic and public policy consulting within Australian and the United Kingdom. Prior to being the Executive Director of RUN, Alec was the Head of Policy and Member Engagement at a London based higher education network and was previously the Acting Executive Director and Head of Policy at the Australian Technology Network of Universities.

He holds a Master of Business Administration from University of Queensland, a Master of Management from the Australian National Universities and a Bachelor of Business and Finance from Queensland University of Technology.

Email: ceo@run.edu.au
Phone:  +61 408 482 736

Martin is the Director of Strategy and Policy at the Regional Universities Network where he develops targeted advocacy on behalf of the universities relied upon by regional Australians. His role involves coordinating engagement and cooperation across the network and between its membership, designing and promoting differentiated higher education policy to meet regional contexts, and pursuing strategic opportunities on behalf of the network.

Martin has over a decade of experience in the sector, having worked across two different regional universities in roles linked to Government relations, communications, strategic development, and the occasional bit of guest lecturing. Prior to his work in the higher education sector, Martin was a political and media adviser to various Ministers in the Parliament of NSW, as well as a public servant for the Commonwealth Government in Canberra.

He holds a Bachelor of Professional Communications, and a Masters Degree in Education, from CQUniversity Australia.

Email: martin.elms@run.edu.au

Phone: +61 493 890 764

Linda is the Executive Officer at the Regional Universities Network, where she manages the organisation’s internal and external communications and secretariat functions. Prior to RUN, she worked in a range of communications, marketing and admin roles in consulting, fashion and the arts, and is a practising artist herself.

Linda holds a Bachelor of Arts (Hons.) and Bachelor of Commerce from The Australian National University.

Email: linda.chen@run.edu.au
Phone: +61 493 890 747

Yilin is the Data Analyst at the Regional Universities Network, where she manages large university datasets to support policy analysis and submissions. She works extensively with R, Excel and Tableau to transform complex data into actionable insights.

She is currently completing a Bachelor of Philosophy (Honours) – Science at the Australian National University. Throughout her degree, she has undertaken research projects in computational chemistry and biology, involving large datasets, statistical modelling, and quantitative analysis. Her academic background spans chemistry, biology, mathematics, and statistics, providing a strong foundation for data-driven research and decision-making.

Email: data.analyst@run.edu.au