CRC for Plant Biosecurity - The Vines

Awards highlight outstanding research

CRICHTONA — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 22:38:40 +0000

To recognise some of the outstanding research undertaken as part of the Cooperative Research Centre for National Plant Biosecurity, the Science Exchange Awards Dinner was held at Belvoir in the Swan Valley on 24 May 2012.

The formal awards night provided an opportunity for researchers and participants of the CRCNPB to acknowledge the work and achievements of their peers.

Participant Committee Chair, Martin Barlass, was master of ceremonies for the evening and enjoyed taking a look at the lighter side of plant biosecurity.

Chief Executive Officer Simon McKirdy presented a series of recognition awards to Program Leaders who had played a role in the CRCNPB and would not be continuing. These included Gary Kong, Deb Hailstones, Pat Collins, Darryl Hardie and Paul De Barro. Simon also recognised the achievement of Principal Scientist, James Ridsdill-Smith, who has been an integral part of the CRC since its inception.

After dinner Research Leader David Eagling was called on to the present the Science Committee Awards. David ran through each of the nominees before announcing the award winners in each category.

The winners were:

Science Committee Award for Science Impact – Alisha Anderson and the team for the biosensor-based detection of grain pests (CRC20081). Opportunities exist to apply new technologies to plant biosecurity. This research applied molecular approaches to identify biological detectors and signalling as the basis for a new approach to detect grain insects. It made a number of breakthroughs in the area of insect receptors and signalling, which are being used as proof of concept to drive the development of a new generation of biosensor devices. The project has published two papers in high impact journals and presented findings at three international symposia.

Other finalists for this award were:

David Schlipalius and the team for research on a molecular understanding of phosphine resistance (CRC20080)
Greg Daglish and the team for our understanding of grain insect ecology (CRC50089)

Science Committee Award for Biosecurity Impact - Brendan Rodoni and the team for the development of new tools that impact post entry quarantine (CRC40050). Post entry quarantine is a fundamental part of the fabric of plant biosecurity. This research developed advanced diagnostic methods and tools for the detection of plant viruses, which can be quickly applied to both import and export situations. This project was a trans-Tasman initiative and has generated significant interest and support from both industry and government. The research has been supported through the respective federal biosecurity structures with the potential to make significant impacts on the time and cost associated with quarantine processes.

Other finalists for this award were:

Manoj Nayak and the team for the impact on resistance management in the grains industry (CRC30065)
Sharyn Taylor and the team for the impact on delivery and adoption in the grains industry (CRC30009)

Science Committee Award for Collaboration - Greg Hopkins and the team for improving our ability to effectively apply phosphine (CRC50091). Phosphine underpins the grain industry’s capacity to trade. This project successfully brought together the practical skills of commercial grain protection managers and commercial manufacturers with the engineering and computer modelling abilities of scientists. With shared leadership between industry and CSIRO, the project made a number of recommendations for the application of phosphine which have been widely accepted and put into practice by industry.

Other finalists for this award were:

David Cook and the team for the communication of risk in plant biosecurity (CRC10162)
Tony Clarke and the team for our understanding of fruit fly (CRC20115)

Science Committee Award for Contribution to the CRC – Jo Luck. Jo led large and successful CRC projects and worked hard to promote and explain CRC work to a broader audience. She engaged with the CRC office, often undertaking extra work beyond her core projects. She dealt successfully with complex contractual and funding situations in a positive good-humoured manner. Jo also took a key role in the CRC rebid with her involvement in the development of the exemplar projects.

The other finalist for this award was:

David Cook

Other awards given out at the Science Exchange were:

Science Committee Award for Best Presentation – Mark Schutze. Mark’s presentation was titled ‘The resolution of species boundaries of four past members of the Bactrocera dorsails complex (Diptera: Tephritidae): a multidisciplinary approach’.

Board Directors Award for Best Poster – Philip Burrill. Philip’s poster was titled ‘Measuring working airflow of aeration fans’.

People’s Choice Award for Best Poster – Anna Rathe. Anna’s poster was titled ‘Homalodisca vitripennis (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) and Xylella fastidiosa (Proteobacteria: Xanthomonadaceae): potential Australian invaders’.

Congratulations to each of the finalists and award winners.

Photos from the Science Exchange are available on Picasa Web Albums.

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SX celebrates seven successful years

CRICHTONA — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 22:30:44 +0000

In celebration of what the CRCNPB has achieved over the past seven years, it held its final Science Exchange (SX) at The Vines Resort in the Swan Valley, WA, from 23-25 May 2012.

The SX was the largest during the life of the CRCNPB, with 187 delegates attending from across Australia, New Zealand, the USA, China, Indonesia and Thailand.

The official SX program kicked off on the morning of 23 May, however prior to that a number of other meetings took place, including the Board, the Science Committee, the Participants Committee, a PhD field trip and signing of three MOUs with Chinese organisations.

The three Chinese organisations to sign MOU’s with the PBCRC were the Chinese Academy of Grain, the Chinese Academy of Inspection and Quarantine and Northwest University.

The SX officially began on the morning of Wednesday 23 May, with CRCNPB Chairman John Lovett and Chief Executive Officer Simon McKirdy welcoming guests to the Swan Valley. They also highlighted how the CRC has grown and developed throughout its seven year term.

Once John and Simon had opened the SX they called on Kathy Ophel-Keller to chair the opening session – Preparedness – which included six 15 minute presentations. Highlights from the session included David Cook reintroducing (and trying to kill off) the Jolly Apple Farmer and Kylie Ireland’s interesting talk which looked at science policy and management.

Sessions two and three featured diagnostics, with session two titled Diagnostics and session three Application of Diagnostics. Kim James (Horticulture Australia Limited) chaired Diagnostics and Kim Plummer (La Trobe University) Application of Diagnostics.

Of the 12 presentations on diagnostics, seven were by PhD students – which were all very well received by the audience – and also included the eventual winner of the Science Committee Award for Best Presentation, Mark Schutze.

The final presentation session on the first day was the first Surveillance session and was chaired by Paul De Barro from CSIRO.

The first official social function of the SX saw delegates dress in their finest frocks and sharpest shirts for a cocktail party, which also featured a poster session for the first hour. Delegates wandered through the 20 posters asking the authors questions about their posters while enjoying a selection of beverages and canapés.

Philip Burrill – from the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Queensland – had a particularly interesting (and messy) poster, which included a demonstration of how aeration fans are used with stored grain.

The later part of the cocktail party saw a number of delegates hit the dance floor, which gave them an opportunity to show off their ‘moves’.

Day two saw a continuation of the Surveillance theme, with a further six presentations highlighting scientifically sound sampling tools and survey methodologies. The session was chaired by Jody Higgins from the Grains Research and Development Corporation.

On a shortened day, the only other two sessions were Impact Management – chaired by John Leslie (Kansas State University) – and Post-harvest – chaired by Ben White (University of Western Australia).

The late afternoon provided some down time, during which delegates were given the opportunity to have project meetings or enjoy the resorts facilities, with a number of people using the time to work off some of the delicious food at the gym, by playing golf or hitting the driving range.

Thursday night provided another opportunity for delegates to dress up, this time for the Science Exchange Awards Dinner. The Awards Dinner was held offsite at the Belvoir Function Centre. More information – including all the award winners – is available in a separate Science Exchange Awards Dinner article.

The final day of the SX had two sessions, Delivery and What’s next. David Teulon from Plant and Food Research New Zealand chaired Delivery and Emma Colson from the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Queensland What’s next.

What’s next provided an insight as to what may lie ahead for plant biosecurity, with representatives from industry, government and international delegates providing their perspective.

John Lovett and Simon McKirdy provided closing remarks, in which they highlighted the need to start thinking about and acting on the legacy the CRCNPB and PBCRC will leave behind.

John also presented Philip Burrill with the Board Directors Award for Best Poster and Simon presented Anna Rathe with the People’s Choice Award for Best Poster and Mark Schuzte with the Science Committee Award for Best Presentation.

Simon finally closed the SX by thanking attendees for being involved with the CRCNPB throughout its seven year term and said he was looking forward to those partnerships continuing into the PBCRC.

We would like to thank everyone who completed an SX Evaluation Form – your feedback plays an important role in shaping future events. Congratulations to John Botha, who was drawn out randomly as the winner of a bottle of wine for completing the evaluation form.

Photos from the Science Exchange are available on Picasa Web Albums.

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