The first keynote lecture "Converting Fe-rich residues from metallurgical processes into novel materials: the process, the properties and some performance-based applications" was given by Prof. Yiannis Pontikes, of KU Leuven, Belgium.

Yiannis Pontikes (1979) is a BOF-ZAP associate professor at the Department of Materials Engineering, KU Leuven, Belgium. He is leading the Secondary Resources for Engineered Material (SREMat) research group, that consists of approximately 10 post-doctoral and postgraduate researchers. SREMat has built an expertise on the valorisation of residues towards ceramic, cement and inorganic polymer (geopolymer) formulations, from the level of binder synthesis all the way to full scale prototypes. He is in the Scientific Advisory Board of the Waste and Biomass Valorization journal, and in 2015, was one of the founders of the Journal of Sustainable Metallurgy, where he serves as the managing editor.

The second keynote lecture "Water- crisis, conflict, resolution (?)" was given by Prof. Robert Dunne, of Curtin University/JKMRC.

Robert was the Fellow Metallurgy at Newmont Mining Corporation before he retired at the end of 2013, prior to this he held the position of Group Executive-Metallurgy Development and Technology. Over the last 35 years Robert has worked for a number of mining companies including Newcrest Mining, Anglo American, Anglovaal and Mintek. He has authored and co-authored over 80 papers and has been an invited conference plenary speaker. Water in the mining industry has been a focus over the last 10 years and Robert has given three plenary talks on this subject. He was nominated as a SME Henry Krumb lecturer and delivered a plenary talk on water to local USA branches of the SME. He is an Adjunct Professor at both Curtin University (Gold Technology Group) and Queensland University (JKMRC).