Our Research Team

Matthew Storey is a lawyer and academic with qualifications in law, economics and business. He has worked with and for Traditional Owners in the areas of native title and land rights, cultural heritage, business development and natural resource management for over 30 years.

Matthew is also an Honorary Senior Fellow at the Melbourne Law School, and a University Fellow at the Asia Pacific School of Business and Law, Charles Darwin University (CDU) and has published extensively in the areas of land rights, Indigenous preferential procurement and cultural heritage law.

From 2019 until 2021 Matthew worked as the Director of the Office of the Victorian Aboriginal Heritage Council at the Victorian Department of Premier & Cabinet. Prior to working with the Aboriginal Heritage Council, he had the position of CEO at First Nations Legal and Research Services Ltd (formerly Native Title Services Victoria) from 2012 until 2019 and then as CEO of the National Native Title Council.

Born in Naarm, Matthew lived in the Northern Territory for nearly 25 years. While there he worked in Aboriginal land rights for many years as a Senior Crown Law Officer with the Solicitor for the Northern Territory. He also worked as Associate Professor and Head of Law at the Territory’s Charles Darwin University. He has been a Council member, then President of the Law Society of the NT and a Director of the Law Council of Australia. He returned to Naarm in 2012 to take up the position with Native Title Services Victoria.

Matthew completed a Bachelor of Economics and Bachelor of Laws with First Class Honours course at CDU in 1995. He was also awarded the Attorney General’s Medal and University Medal in that year. Matthew subsequently completed his Graduate Diploma Legal Practice from the ANU, and a Master of Law specialising in environmental law from Macquarie University for which he was awarded the Vice Chancellor’s commendation. He holds post graduate qualifications in Adult and Vocational Education and has completed a Graduate Diploma in Energy and Natural Resources Law at the University of Melbourne. His Doctorate, in Business Administration, is from Deakin University.

Brian Bero LLM GAICD is an Associate Professor at The Mabo Centre, and Principal at Jaramer Legal. He is a Meriam man and one of Australia’s most senior First Nations corporate and commercial lawyers, with extensive experience advising government, Traditional Owner groups, businesses and corporate clients on complex legal, commercial and policy matters.

Brian has worked across private practice, government and major corporations, including roles with the Victorian Government Solicitor’s Office, Gilbert + Tobin, Qantas, Telstra and Oracle. His practice and research focus on First Nations economic empowerment, commercial law, governance, agreement making, clean energy, critical minerals, trade and investment. 

He is particularly interested in how Traditional Owners can participate as rights holders, decision makers, partners, owners and beneficiaries in major projects and emerging markets. Brian is passionate about developing mechanisms that create intergenerational wealth while protecting culture, Country and community priorities.

Brian was awarded Senior First Nations Lawyer of the Year in 2024 and received QUT’s Outstanding Alumni Award in 2025. He is a Director on the Boards of Indigenous Business Australia, Original Power Ltd, Aboriginal Community Housing Ltd and Ilbijerri Theatre Company. He is also an adviser to ARENA, an adviser to DFAT’s First Nations Trade and Investment Unit, and a committee member of the First Nations Clean Energy Network.

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Dr Mahnaz Alimardanian is a social anthropologist, highly experienced in qualitative research and community engagement projects with Indigenous Australia spanning across academia, consultancy, government, and non-for-profit sectors since 2010. 

She is a social researcher and practitioner expert in culturally responsive and sensitive, trauma informed and healing centred approaches to engagement and research across complex policy-legislation settings including native title, Indigenous land, water and cultural rights, social and restorative justice, redress, and compensation. She holds a PhD (La Trobe University 2013) and two master’s degrees (Australian National University 2008, University of Tehran 2005) in anthropology. 

Mahnaz’s publications sit in an intersection of social, philosophical, and psychological enquiries and appear in anthropology and interdisciplinary journals and edited volumes.

Gareth is a Nunda-Yamatji leader, lawyer and governance specialist with significant experience supporting Native Title holders, Prescribed Bodies Corporate (PBCs) and Traditional Owner groups primarily across Western Australia. His work focuses on Native Title governance, cultural heritage protection, land and sea country management, stakeholder engagement, and strengthening community-led decision-making.

Over the course of his career, Gareth has worked alongside Traditional Owners to navigate complex Native Title, heritage and future act matters, while empowering Aboriginal organisations to build strong governance systems and sustainable pathways for self-determination. He brings a deep understanding of the legal, policy and practical considerations involved in achieving positive outcomes for community and Country.

Gareth combines his professional experience with extensive on-Country leadership through a number of Aboriginal governance and representative roles. As a director and committee member across several Aboriginal organisations, he works directly with Traditional Owners to advance cultural, environmental, social and economic priorities across diverse regions of Western Australia.

Known for his collaborative approach and strategic thinking, Gareth is passionate about empowering Traditional Owners to lead decision-making on matters affecting their lands, waters and cultural heritage. He is committed to fostering strong partnerships that deliver enduring benefits for Aboriginal communities while protecting the values that connect people to Country.

Gwynette Govardhan is a lawyer and Senior Research Fellow at the  Mabo Centre within the University of Melbourne.  Admitted in the Supreme Court of Western Australia, she is a contracts and agreements specialist with expertise in Native Title, Indigenous corporate governance, agreement-making processes and Aboriginal cultural heritage protection policy.

She has a background in commercial law and held in house counsel and solicitor roles within Aboriginal Corporations and representative bodies providing advisory in Native Title, corporate governance and compliance acting predominantly for Traditional Owner groups negotiating key agreements with the mining and resources sector. Gwynette has been involved in the development and implementation of Native Title and cultural heritage agreements, stakeholder engagement frameworks, and governance strategies that seek to balance legal, commercial, and cultural considerations, with a focus on fostering sustainable partnerships and supporting long-term cultural, social, and economic outcomes for First Nations communities.

Gwynette is highly experienced working in remote and regional First Nations communities developing corporate policies and providing strategic advice on asset management and legislative compliance whilst managing and harmonising a portfolio of key projects including long term mining and community projects.  She additionally holds a Bachelor of Arts (Journalism) from Curtin University and is a regular contributor to the Law Society of Western Australia’s publication writing on key native title issues, policy reform and Aboriginal cultural heritage legislation.

Her current research within the Mabo Centre includes Native Title agreement-making, cultural heritage management, Indigenous governance structures, and corporate social responsibility. She is particularly interested in the ways statutory and regulatory systems interact with Aboriginal knowledge systems and cultural authority, and how these relationships can be better reflected in policy and practice with a focus on the development of culturally informed and legally robust frameworks which can support the protection of Aboriginal cultural heritage, strengthen Traditional Owner decision-making and improve relationships between Indigenous communities, industry, and government taking into account the evolving relationship between First Nations rights, land management, and resource development in Australia.

Ben Morgan (Ngāti Awa, Te Patuwai) is a legal researcher and policy practitioner with experience spanning international organisations, academia, government, and Indigenous-led organisations across Aotearoa New Zealand and Australia. His work focuses on Indigenous rights, economic development, and legal and policy reform, with expertise in research, stakeholder engagement, and the design of initiatives that advance Indigenous self-determination. 

He previously served as a Policy Analyst at the OECD in Paris, where he contributed to work on Indigenous trade and economic development. He now works at the Mabo Centre, working on initiatives to strengthen Traditional Owner economic empowerment through research, policy development, and cross-sector collaboration.

Ben has previously worked with Ngā Toki Whakarururanga, managed a legal technology company specialising in online mediation and arbitration, worked with the UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and the University of Auckland. 

Ben holds a Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Arts from the University of Auckland, and a Master of Laws from Harvard Law School. His work is driven by a commitment to supporting Indigenous communities to realise their aspirations through strong institutions, economic participation, and rights-based policy reform.