AIRAH appoints first female president

AUSTRALIA: Ania Hampton has become the first female president in the 95-year history of the Australian Institute of Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Heating.

An award-winning mechanical engineer and director of Edefice, her own engineering practice, Ania Hampton takes over from Nathan Groenhout, who served three years in the national leadership role.

Ania plans to lead a collaborative and consultative board and to engage with AIRAH members.

“I want people to be as passionate about AIRAH and HVAC&R as I am, and be engaged and excited about what we’re doing,” she said. “I want our members to be recognised in the industry as leaders and technical experts, and for the wider public to value our profession and contribution to their everyday lives.

“I want to be remembered for my enthusiasm and ability to get stuff done. At the end of my tenure, I’d like AIRAH to be regarded as a vibrant, diverse and contemporary organisation leading our industry.”

Education, training, and engaging with the HVAC&R leaders of tomorrow are said to be key issues of importance.

“I would like to see AIRAH and its members engage with students at both tertiary and secondary level and inspire them with the terrific and vital work that we do,” she says. “The prime initiative is a wonderful opportunity for our industry to work together to deliver real emissions-reduction outcomes, and I’m thrilled that AIRAH will continue to drive this forward.

“Improving our member services and diversity is a big priority, and the launch of the Women in HVAC&R committee is just the first step. It’s an exciting time to be part of AIRAH and I’m delighted to be president.”

“Being succeeded by a woman under 40 is a great realisation of the vision to make AIRAH relevant to the whole industry,” commented out-going president Nathan Groenhout.