Dr Karl Smith (PhD, BA Hons) is a cultural sociologist with broad research interests. He has published academic articles in The Australian Journal of Anthropology, The European Journal of Social Theory, and Thesis Eleven, and a book Meaning, Subjectivity, Society: Making Sense of Modernity (Brill, 2010). He is a member of the editorial board of the International Journal of Social Imaginaries.

Karl first worked with Michael Murphy over thirty years ago on a SunSmart project at the Australian Open, and has been working with MMResearch consistently since 2020, focused especially on environmental and political communications and branding for various clients including the Climate Council, the RSPCA, and the Australian Greens.