Vale Simon Barry

Last week we received the unexpected news that our friend and colleague Simon Barry, Digital Lead Environment, passed away.

A very large number of us had the privilege of knowing and spending time with Simon and we are saddened by his passing.

Simon joined CSIRO in 2007 as a Stream Leader in the Environmental Informatics Program within the Mathematical and Information Sciences (CMIS) Division. He subsequently took on Research Program Leader and Theme leader roles within CMIS and Computational Informatics, a Group Leader role in Oceans & Atmosphere, and then a Research Director role in Data61 at its formation in 2016.

With Data61 Simon led the Analytics & Decision Sciences Research Program, turning data into knowledge to help make decisions and drive meaningful impact. He was acting BU Director of Data61 from late in 2019 until mid-2020, receiving the CSIRO Chief Executive ‘Team CSIRO Medal’ in 2020 and becoming Science and Deputy Director until early 2023.

In his most recent role with CSIRO, Simon was the inaugural Digital Lead for the Environment Business Unit. He recently returned from attending MODSIM 2023 as a Plenary Speaker on the insightful topic of ‘Modelling and the Rise of Machine Learning’.

Simon made substantial contributions across CSIRO’s other business units and initiatives. He also led the development of the Machine Learning and AI Future Science Platform. Simon developed an immense network within CSIRO of colleagues that found him a joy to work with and deeply respected his contributions.

 

If you would like to post a tribute to Simon on this page, please contact alumni@csiro.au