REPORT: Our Impact | Connect Annual Impact (2022-2023)

OUR IMPACT 2022–2023 ANNUAL REPORT

CONNECT MACQUARIE PARK INNOVATION DISTRICT

THANK YOU

Connect Macquarie Park Innovation District is a unique not-for-profit Association, where leading employers, landowners, Macquarie University and Government work together to advance Macquarie Park as a world-leading innovation district.

The impact we made in 22-23 is only possible because of the support of our members and partners. Thank you.

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OUR MEMBERS

OUR AFFILIATES

MEMBER PROFILE

O U R I MPACT 2022–2023

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MACQUARIE PARK ON THE MOVE Macquarie Park and North Ryde’s year of “post-COVID acceleration” saw plenty of progress as people returned safely to our district after two years of uncertainty.

Biotech start-ups received a boost with a new DeepTech Incubator opening on Macquarie University campus, including PC2 lab space and high spec equipment.

In the private sector, Memjet opened their state-of-the art advanced manufacturing facility, and Microbiogen cut the ribbon at their dedicated research and development lab.

Workplaces of the future saw ‘topping out’ ceremonies at major development sites M_Park and Macquarie Exchange, while Stage II of Macquarie Square and a new 7,000sqm public park on Waterloo Road were confirmed.

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Australia’s first RNA research and pilot manufacturing facility was announced under a $96m plan. Coupled with existing industry – including local vaccine manufacturing – the facility will see Macquarie Park become Australia’s centre of biomedical therapy research and production.

Changes in politics heralded a phalanx of visiting politicians keen to secure our area’s votes. The election of the Hon. Jordan Lane MP represents the first change to our State representative in 12 years, less than a year after the election of the Hon. Jerome Laxale MP as the first new Federal MP to represent Macquarie Park in more than a decade.

Representing the Park on a State-wide stage, leaders Rod Lopez (Chief Operating Officer, Nanosonics) and Professor S. Bruce Dowton (Vice Chancellor and President, Macquarie University) were appointed to the New South Wales Innovation and Productivity Council.

Meanwhile plans to support our district’s growth continued apace. Agreement was reached for a new ‘town centre’ to be planned on Herring Road, and testing of the first direct Metro train between Macquarie Park and the City of Sydney got underway.

Looking to the future, the NSW Government adopted the masterplan which will guide the further development of our district – including adding more jobs and more homes to Macquarie Park over the next 20 years.

As workers returned to the Park in the most significant volumes since the start of COVID-19, they found they were in highly educated company. Macquarie Park’s first district-wide survey – led by Connect MPID - found record numbers of local employees are degree-educated.

O U R I MPACT 2022–2023

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3

Reports published

Innovator case studies

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New members and partners

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12

Board of Director ’s leadership meetings

District newsletters sent

116

Macquarie Park stories published

OUR IMPACT

338

1,765

Ecosystem stakeholder meetings

Macquarie Park people polled and sur veyed (+61 %)

3,220 Event attendees* (+47 %)

160 % Increase in communication subscribers

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CMPID events and partner events

HOW WE WORK As a priority precinct, Macquarie Park is changing fast.

Home to a world-leading University, global HQs and leading employers – plus a growing network of start-ups, scale-ups and innovators – our aim is to create connection across our community.

Connect Macquarie Park Innovation District is a unique partnership between leading employers, landowners, Macquarie University and government agencies, all working together to advance our area.

We work together to boost engagement, connect our ecosystem, and enhance the experience of people who live, work and study here.

Our strategy is guided with input from our members and Board of Directors across five pillars:

Our pillars help our community agree on the vision • for our area, • • • • accelerate the benefits of growth, and amplify our credentials • • • as a world-leading innovation district. • • •

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O U R I MPACT 2022–2023

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OUR BOARD Connect MPID is backed by a Board of Association comprised of local leaders who generously volunteer their time to help guide our progress, including representatives from business, government and academia:

ROBERT BONOTTO

DR DEBORAH DEARING

BOARD MEMBER

BOARD MEMBER

MATTHEW DIXON BOARD MEMBER

General Manager Corporate Affairs FUJIFILM BUSINESS INNOVATION AUSTRALIA

A. / Chief Commissioner GREATER CITIES COMMISSION

Director, Corporate Property OPTUS

NATALIE DOUGLAS

DAN JOHNSON

ANTHONY O’NEILL

BOARD MEMBER

BOARD MEMBER

BOARD MEMBER

Centre Manager MACQUARIE CENTRE

Pro Vice-Chancellor - Research, Innovation and Enterprise MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY

Development Director FRASERS PROPERTY AUSTRALIA

WAYNE RYLANDS

CHARLOTTE STRATTON

IRA WINTER

BOARD MEMBER

CHAIR

BOARD MEMBER

Chief Executive Officer CITY OF RYDE

Head of Workplace | Leasing & Asset Management STOCKLAND

Finance Director ABBOTT

OUR TEAM Connect MPID employs a small but impactful team with a breadth of knowledge about Macquarie Park. Connect MPID also employs additional external resource on a per-project basis.

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MARK AMES

CHERYL NOLAN

LUCY KELLAWAY

GENERAL MANAGER

OPERATIONS MANGER

COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR

MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR On behalf of the Board of Directors of Connect Macquarie Park Innovation District, I am delighted to share with you our second Annual Impact Report.

As Australia’s original innovation district, Macquarie Park makes a significant contribution to our nation’s economy as a centre of business, research and entrepreneurship. It’s increasingly a place that Sydneysiders call home too.

And in the coming years, we will remain focused on leveraging the value of Macquarie Park with both industry and government as a key economic, cultural and social gateway location that will attract visitors, businesses, residents, start-ups, students and academics alike.

As our district grows and evolves, the work of Connect Macquarie Park Innovation District to unite our community, elevate its achievements and transform our area becomes more important.

This is only possible with the support of our generous partners and members, who collaborate around our table by dedicating time and resources in the pursuit of a common goal.

If you’re a leading workplace in Macquarie Park – big or small – I hope you’ll consider joining us in the year ahead.

Charlotte Stratton Chair, Board of Directors Connect Macquarie Park Innovation District

O U R I MPACT 2022–2023

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Supporting the United Way Walkathon

Our Ask Macquarie Park survey team

Business meets startups Pride Forum

Celebrating summer in Lane Cove National Park

Lights, camera, action at Macquarie Square

Coffee poll winners - Bluestone Espresso

Supporting Mac Park Social

Macquarie Conversations with Victor Dominello MP

Get ready for more – Metro report launch

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City stakeholder briefing The Macquarie Park Summit ‘22

Metro awareness campaign

Food truck lunch at Mac Park Social

Filming an innovator case study at WiSE

Acknowledgement of Country, Macquarie Park Summit ‘22

Macquarie Park Summit ‘22

Mayor of the City of Ryde, Macquarie Park Summit ‘22

Orientation tour, exploring Macquarie Exchange

O U R I MPACT 2022–2 023

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I’d like to recognise the ambition the community in Macquarie Park has for itself, and the collaborative work of Connect Macquarie Park Innovation District in helping to lead that.

It’s clear that Macquarie Park is perfectly placed to grow even further, both in size and significance.

When a community is bold, when it is ambitious, when it is coordinated like Macquarie Park is, it is easy for Government to back it, so that together we can attract further success”.

The Hon. Jerome Laxale, MP, speaking at Connect MPID’s “Macquarie Park Summit”

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TRANSFORM

ADVOCACY & STRATEGY HIGHLIGHTS Connect MPID has been working to ensure Macquarie Park remains a priority both on Macquarie Street and in Canberra: •

Leaders from across Sydney attended our city briefing in July, co-hosted with the Committee for Sydney, with representatives from Macquarie Business School, Cochlear and Fujitsu highlighting how they benefit from partnering in the Park.

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In August Government Affairs leaders from across Macquarie Park met with our new Federal Member of Parliament, Jerome Laxale. Discussions at the private event ranged from support for research & development in Australia to skills shortages, and came on the eve of the national Jobs & Skills Summit in Canberra.

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Ahead of the State election we co-hosted a “Meet the Candidates” husting in March with our partners at Macquarie Park Ryde Business Chamber, to give our community a chance to question candidates’ plans for Macquarie Park.

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KEY HIGHLIGHT: In April more than 200 people attended our “Macquarie Park Summit” hosted at Optus and online. With the theme ‘All Change, Macquarie Park’ our tree and plant-filled stage highlighted Macquarie Park’s status as Sydney’s greenest CBD. Speakers included the Vice Chancellor and President of Macquarie University, the CEO of the City of Ryde Council, CEO of the Greater Cities Commission, landowners, innovators and local employers.

O U R I MPACT 2022–2023

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Sydney Metro represents the most significant change in Macquarie Park for a generation... the expansion will create a new catchment area, with an increase in talent available within a 30-minute trip.

Connect MPID report “Get ready for more Metro, Macquarie Park”

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MOVE

MOBILITY & ACCESS HIGHLIGHTS Growing Macquarie Park without growing congestion remains a key focus of Connect MPID. This year our area achieved an important milestone, with the first test Metro train running on new tracks beneath Sydney Harbour and direct to the city.

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KEY HIGHLIGHT: Members attended our industry briefing on the forthcoming expansion of Sydney Metro, co-hosted with Transport for New South Wales in June. 35 guests received a progress update on the Metro project, and a copy of our new report “Get ready for more Metro, Macquarie Park”. Featuring exclusive data analysis from Connect MPID, the report includes new data on the impact of Stage 1 of Sydney Metro on Macquarie Park, and maps what our area’s 30-minute commuter catchment will be when Metro services expand in 2024.

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Hundreds of people who live, work and study in the area were surveyed as part of our new project, ‘Ask Macquarie Park’. This longitudinal study will be repeated each year, tracking how the way people use our area is changing - including who they are, where they come from, what they do and how they get here – and providing our members with their own dataset to benchmark.

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Connect MPID’s “Direct to the city” Metro awareness campaign highlighted the forthcoming service to the wider Park, with striking posters appearing at busy bus stops, local cafes, in our member’s offices and online, boosting the profile of our area’s increasing connectivity and encouraging commuters to consider their transport choices.

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In October we celebrated national ride2work day at Optus, with hundreds of local workers and students participating in our competition to win a new bike.

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Also in October, lessons from Macquarie Park were centre stage at Transport for New South Wales’ Travel Demand Management short course, led by the University of Sydney, where our General Manager provided insights on Connect MPID’s Park-wide data collection and congestion-busting programs.

O U R I MPACT 2022–2023

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It’s an extremely generous community. We’re surrounded by people who are always so willing to give time, advice, experience and support when we need it.

Maja Paleka, co-founder, melo – a start-up at Macquarie University Incubator

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THRIVE

INNOVATION & COMMERCIALISATION Connect MPID works to boost research and development ties, showcase innovation and support the development of entrepreneurial skills in Macquarie Park. In particular we support the innovation programs at Macquarie University Incubator, which are open to all of our community.

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Local innovators were in the limelight at our annual ‘Macquarie Park Summit’, chairing panel discussions and hosting demonstrations of their exciting new products.

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In October we collected and analysed data from entrepreneurs across the Park, to create a benchmark which measures the conditions that bring start-up and scale up leaders to our innovation district, their needs and our area’s entrepreneurial strengths.

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As Australia’s original innovation district, Macquarie Park was represented at the inaugural National Health and Innovation Districts Summit, hosted in Randwick in November, with keynotes and panel discussions featuring Cochlear, the Greater Cities Commission and Connect MPID.

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KEY HIGHLIGHT: We showcased the impact of several exciting new Macquarie Park companies by creating sharable video case studies.

Subjects included a new app to help families distribute the mental load created by working parents, a collaboration between two brain injury start-ups and the CEO of an innovative healthcare company now scaling across Australia. The videos amassed several hundred views across our communications channels, and the innovators were provided valuable marketing experience and a copy of their finished film.

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In February we brought the NSW Chief Data Scientist, outgoing Minister for Digital Government and the Director of the Centre for Applied Artificial Intelligence to Macquarie University Incubator for ‘Macquarie Conversations’; a deep dive on how AI will impact business, government services and research, co-hosted with the City of Ryde and Macquarie University.

O U R I MPACT 2022–2023

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The ‘Macquarie Park vision’ is exceptional. It was amazing to see the innovation and future plans all coming together.

With Government, Industry and Educational Institutions all working together to create such a wonderful environment it can only be beneficial for all.

Orientation tour participant feedback

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ELEVATE

MARKETING & PROMOTION Our work to amplify and share our area’s achievements increased with the creation of a new Communications Coordinator role, growth of our audience, and publication of more than 115 Macquarie Park stories.

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KEY HIGHLIGHT: We led the production of “How to talk about Macquarie Park innovation district – a narrative framework” with expert input from local Government, Macquarie University, local employers, landowners and a specialist communications agency. Designed to help create consistent messaging about Macquarie Park among our members, it will also help combat negative perceptions about our area. The guide was sponsored by Optus and launched at a meeting of our members and partners at Sanofi.

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Orientation tours: we took other innovation districts, State agencies, and several new potential high-tech tenants on orientation tours of the area, opening doors to visitors at the University, neighbouring workplaces and development sites.

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We published a new prospectus, “Discover Macquarie Park Innovation District” and shared this with the community.

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In spring we flew drones over Macquarie Park to capture how our area is changing, creating a video update to show the progress on parklands, Metro and constructions sites.

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Our total subscriber audience grew 160% to more than 5,000 people based in Macquarie Park.

O U R I MPACT 2022–2023

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We strive to be diverse, equitable and inclusive and to help shape a community with equality and respect for all.

Michelle Zimany, Human Resources Director, Sanofi, speaking at our World Pride reception.

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UNITE

ACTIVATION & ENGAGEMENT We build connections, develop skills and create an increased sense of community across Macquarie Park: •

KEY HIGHLIGHT: We hosted the inaugural Macquarie Park ‘Pride Forum’, celebrating World Pride being held in Sydney during the 45th Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. Our members met for a networking reception, where they heard about the efforts of leading workplaces including Optus, Sanofi and Macquarie University to be inclusive, safe and equal opportunity employers. We showcased 13 World Pride events for the wider community which were held in the Park.

Guest of honour was Ken Davis, a “78er” – a participant in Sydney’s first Mardi Gras 45 years ago. Mr Davis shared moving testimony on what the first Mardi Gras was like, and conditions for lesbian, gay and bisexual people in Macquarie Park then.

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We saw out 2022 with a summer celebration in neighbouring Lane Cove National Park, celebrating a successful year with our community and members on the banks of the Lane Cove River.

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Innovation requires caffeination, and our local cafes were in the spotlight during our annual poll to find the best coffee in Macquarie Park, with hundreds of people participating and supporting these vital local businesses.

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Connect MPID was proud events partner for United Way’s Macquarie Park Walkathon, Macquarie University Astronomy Night, Macquarie University Jobs Happy Hour and the City of Ryde’s Mac Park Social, sponsoring and supporting moments to build connections, engage employees and bring our community together in person.

O U R I MPACT 2022–2023

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OPERATIONAL OVERVIEW Connect MPID operates on a not-for-profit basis. We concluded FY23 in a strong position with an operating surplus to be re-invested into our activities.

Total income was $658,416, of which 39% was member subscriptions and 49% from our funding partners.

Our income is derived from a mixture of funding partners (State and Local Government, Macquarie University) and member subscriptions (leading businesses in our area).

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Member subscriptions are tiered on the basis of size of employer, ensuring those with the ability do the heaviest lifting within our ecosystem do so.

Connect MPID engages external accountants, EFS Strategic, to manage payroll, audit our accounts and fulfill our business activity statements for the Australian Tax Office.

We are fortunate to enjoy the ongoing support of Optus, who generously host the Connect MPID team at their Macquarie Park campus.

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Staffing 66%

2023 Operating Expenses

Member services 26%

Administrative, IT & other

Insurance & Financial management

O U R I MPACT 2022–2023

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Connect Macquarie Park Innovation District 1 Lyonpark Road, Macquarie Park, NSW, 2113 connectmpid.com.au info@connectmpid.com.au