Dr Maxine Cooper is the current Auditor-General for the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). Prior to being appointed as the ACT Auditor-General, Dr Cooper was the ACT Commissioner for Sustainability and the Environment and the Head of the ACT Water Security Taskforce. Dr Cooper has held many senior executive roles in the ACT Government as well as other Australian jurisdictions and private practice.

Dr Cooper has a PhD (Melbourne University); Masters of Environmental Science (Calgary University, Canada); Bachelor of Arts - Urban & Regional Planning from the Western Australian Institute of Technology (WAIT) (now Curtain University), Western Australia. She is a Fulbright Fellow (USA) and Commonwealth Scholarship holder (Canada) and is a Fellow of the Planning Institute and the Australian and New Zealand Environment Institute.

Career highlights:

• Dr Cooper’s career has been as a Senior Executive in a wide range of government areas both in the ACT and in other jurisdictions throughout Australia. In her early career she worked in private practice.
• Currently ACT’s Auditor-General.
• Previously Commissioner for Sustainability and the Environment.
• Prior to these roles, Dr Cooper was Head of the ACT Water Security Taskforce.
• Dr Cooper has been a Senior Executive in the ACT Government managing roles in a wide range of areas including urban and regional planning; environmental management, heritage, land management to business (ACTION Buses, cemeteries, the ACT Nursery, Capital Linen, major venues, and tourism).
• She has a PhD (Melbourne University); Masters of Environmental Science (Calgary University, Canada); Bachelor of Arts - Urban & Regional Planning (WAIT (now Curtain University, Western Australia).
• Is a Fulbright Fellow (USA) and Commonwealth Scholarship holder (Canada).
• Is a Fellow of the Planning Institute and a Fellow of the Australian and New Zealand Environment Institute.