CRC for Plant Biosecurity - Kirsty Bayliss

Education and training update

CRICHTONA — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 23:07:12 +0000

This month Matthew Tan submitted his PhD thesis for examination. Matthew completed his PhD on new diagnostic methods for nematodes and amazingly completed more than two months short of the three year mark! Hot on his heels is Rachel Mann (nee Powney) who is also due to submit her thesis on fire blight. Matthew has started working with a diagnostics company in Singapore and Rachel is with the Department of Primary Industries Victoria. Congratulations to Matthew and Rachel.

A happy Matthew Tan following his thesis submission, with his supervisors, David Berryman (left) and Michael Jones (right).

I recently conducted a post-PhD survey of our student cohort. The main purpose of the survey was to determine the satisfaction levels of our current students and to identify areas for improvement in the Plant Biosecurity CRC. It was very pleasing to note that 56% of our students rate their overall experience with the CRC as ‘very good’ and 44% as ‘good’ – the top two categories! Areas of improvement include the need to streamline some processes and more input into the professional development sessions that we provide. Some of the comments received are listed below:

The extra opportunities provided by the CRC were great. I learnt valuable skills through the workshops, was able to make great collaborative links which were fruitful and I finished up with a thesis I am proud of.

Thanks to the CRC's support I obtained a golden chance to gain training in the plant biosecurity field.

The CRC provided excellent opportunities for professional development and networking through workshops, science exchange meetings, and field trips. It was definitely the best way to spend three years.

As the CRCNPB comes to an end I would like to acknowledge the support of all of the PhD supervisors. Wherever possible our students have been supervised by both an academic and an industry supervisor.

The time that supervisors allocate to their students should not be underestimated, with many hours spent planning, analyzing and conducting experiments with the students, as well as plenty of late nights spent editing thesis chapters and manuscripts. And don’t forget the need for several boxes of tissues when the going gets tough!

On behalf of the CRC I would like to thank everyone who has been involved with our student projects and I hope that you have received a lot of enjoyment from working with our students.

Kirsty Bayliss
Education and Training Program Leader

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Education and training update

CRICHTONA — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 22:16:29 +0000

In this edition I am pleased to congratulate Ms Pattaraporn Khuwuthyakorn on submission of her PhD thesis for examination. Patt completed her thesis on ‘Hyperspectral Vision Methods for Automatic Recognition of Emergency Plant Pests’ and has produced some exciting results, including a patent, so congratulations Patt! In the next two months I expect that at least another five PhD theses will be submitted, so we are certainly on track to reaching our original target of 32 PhDs.

Our students are also setting the standard when it comes to publishing their work. David Savage now has four published journal articles and several of our students have published two papers and continue to submit more. Remember that all students who publish their papers in refereed journals are eligible for a cash incentive. So far we have awarded almost $30,000 to students via this incentive.

The postgraduate curriculum is currently undergoing a review that was scheduled to be held during its third year of delivery. The purpose of the review is to examine the finer points of delivery and assessment and to look for any potential areas of improvement. The interim report from this review is expected to be delivered to the curriculum parties in May, after which we hope to re-open enrolments in the Diploma and Masters. Keep an eye on our website for further updates.

The Plant Biosecurity CRC is now calling for expressions of interest from potential PhD candidates. Candidates must have, or will obtain before the end of 2012, an Honours degree at level 2A or above. Areas of interest include but are not limited to: Biology of Emergency Plant Pests, Diagnostics, Surveillance, Entomology, Plant Pathology, Predictive Simulation Models, Remote Sensing, Risk Analysis, Social Science and Taxonomy.

Projects are available through our Australian participant universities (Charles Darwin University, La Trobe University, Murdoch University, Queensland University of Technology, University of Adelaide, University of Queensland and University of Western Australia), and at our overseas partners, Lincoln University (NZ) and Kansas State University (USA).

All of our students have at least one supervisor from a non-university research organisation and their projects may be based with that organisation or at their University (or both). Other benefits of being a student with our CRC include attendance at our annual Symposium, and an extensive professional development program, preparing you for the future. The annual stipend is $30,000, plus a generous allowance for operating, travel and professional development.

Candidates must be able to commence on or before 1 January 2013. For further information, contact the CRC Education and Training Program Leader, Dr Kirsty Bayliss (08 9360 2814).

As a reminder I also have a Facebook page and Twitter account. These are designed for the promotion of formal qualifications in biosecurity and resources for biosecurity education and awareness. You can follow us @BiosecurityEdu or ‘Like’ us on Facebook.

Kirsty Bayliss
Education and Training Program Leader

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Education and training update

CRICHTONA — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 22:27:10 +0000

In this issue I am very pleased to report on the incredible success of our postgraduate courses in plant biosecurity. These courses are delivered by four of our partner universities – Charles Darwin, LaTrobe, Murdoch and the University of Adelaide. The courses are designed for students to gain knowledge and an understanding of plant biosecurity at the highest level of industry requirements, whilst also providing a world-first university degree in plant biosecurity.

For the first semester of 2012 we have had an intake of more than 20 new students in the graduate Certificate, the majority of which come from the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. We have also attracted new students from industry, including some who work in the agronomy field. We now have students from every state and territory of Australia, which is a wonderful achievement. Our next aim is to start recruiting more international students.

Based on current enrolment data we now have more than 35 students in the graduate certificate, four in the diploma, and three in the Masters. There have been two completions in the Certificate and one completed Masters. Both the Diploma and Masters are expected to re-open for enrolments in mid 2012. For further information please contact me.

The new PBCRC PhD scholarships will be available from July 2012. If you would like more information about developing PhD projects or the larger training projects that are being planned, please talk to me at the upcoming project planning workshops in Melbourne or Perth. Honours scholarships of $5000 remain available and more information about these can be found here.

Kirsty Bayliss
Education and Training Program Leader

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Education and training update

CRICHTONA — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 05:58:53 +0000

In this edition I would like to congratulate Alex Rea – who is due to submit his PhD thesis for examination on 16 December – and Kylie Ireland – who had her PhD thesis passed in early December. Both Alex and Kylie studied Phytophthora-related projects – Alex examining the taxonomy of the pathogen and Kylie the epidemiology. Well done to both of you.

The 2012 Grain Storage and Biosecurity Training Program is now open for enrolment at Charles Sturt University (CSU). As you may be aware, the training program offers a certificate of attainment in the competency unit Maintain Grain Quality in Storage (AHCBAC406A). The training program consists of self-paced study plus a hands-on workshop in Wagga Wagga. Enrolment is open until the end of January 2012, with the workshop held from 11-13 April 2012.

For the convenience of participants in the training program who do not have the required certification for farm chemical use, CSU will also be offering an optional one day training program immediately prior to the workshop. Alternatively, participants requiring chemical use training may make their own arrangements. Participants who have already been certified for pesticide use (e.g. via ChemCert, SmartTRAIN, etc.) will have met this requirement and do not need to undergo this training again. You will find detailed information about the training program as well as a registration form here. For further information, please contact Dr Paul Weston.

Since the wonderful announcement that the CRC was successful in its rebid I have received many enquiries from people interested in studying with us. Rest assured that new PhD scholarships will be available, and as soon as projects are approved these will be advertised on the CRCNPB website. A number of other exciting new education projects are also on the drawing board, so watch this space for news on these over the coming months.

For those of you who cannot get enough of all things related to biosecurity education, I have also recently launched a Facebook page and Twitter account. These are designed for the promotion of formal qualifications in biosecurity and resources for biosecurity education and awareness. You can follow us @BiosecurityEdu or ‘like’ us on Facebook.

Kirsty Bayliss
Education and Training Program Leader

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Education and training update

CRICHTONA — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 03:13:30 +0000

In this issue I am pleased to announce that David Savage and Bonnie Vogelzang have submitted their PhD theses. Further, Ashley Zamek has completed her Honours thesis.

Both David and Bonny completed their PhDs on spore-trapping related topics, with David looking at the dispersal of spores and Bonnie focussing on their detection. Ashley investigated native parasitic wasps and their use as a new eradication tool for fruit fly incursion management. All three projects contribute significantly to plant biosecurity science and capacity building.

I would like to congratulate two of our PhD students who won prizes at the recent Australasian Plant Pathology Society (WA) Annual Student Symposium. Matt Tan went home with a $400 cash prize for the best presentation, while Steve Coventry, now an honorary sandgroper, took home $250 and a book for the Scientific Endeavour award. The competition was fierce and both should be congratulated on their fantastic presentations.

Enrolments in the Postgraduate Certificate in Plant Biosecurity are now open for 2012. At the moment enrolments in the postgraduate Diploma and the Masters remain closed whilst some alterations are made to these courses. However, candidates can commence the Certificate and progress to the Diploma and/or Masters, as the first semesters of the three courses are identical. Direct enrolment into the Diploma and Masters should be open soon.

If you wish to take a single unit that is offered by the Plant Biosecurity Program, rather than enrol in a whole degree, you can. To enrol in one unit only, you must apply directly to the university teaching the unit. If you are enrolled in a postgraduate course elsewhere you can apply for a ‘cross-institutional enrolment’ in the unit you are interested in.

If you are not enrolled anywhere else but wish to take the unit for your own interest or for professional development, you should apply as a ‘not for award’ student. In both cases you will receive a grade on completion of the unit. Remember you must apply directly to the university that teaches the unit that you are interested in. This applies to people taking single units only.

Enrolments can be made at Murdoch University.

Once enrolled you can select the unit(s) you wish to take during the semester. The fees for 2012 are $2600 per unit for domestic students and $2813 for internationals, which is very reasonable for a 12 week unit. Please note that enrolments will close 31 January 2012. Questions regarding any of the courses should be directed to Kirsty Bayliss.

Kirsty Bayliss
Education and Training Program Leader

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Education and training update

CRICHTONA — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 03:49:40 +0000

PhDs
Congratulations to Steven Coventry and Kylie Ireland, both of whom have recently submitted their theses for examination. Steve investigated the biotic factors that affect the dispersal of rain-splashed asexual spores (conidia) and wind-borne sexual spores (ascospores), using Ascochyta of chickpea as a model. Steve has now taken up employment with the Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia (DAFWA). Read more about Steven’s PhD project in this edition of The Leaflet.

Kylie’s study had a strong international focus, looking at the susceptibility of Australian plant species, grown and sold as ornamentals within parks and gardens, to Phyophthora ramorum. As this pathogen is not present in Australia, Kylie spent a large part of her PhD based in the USA gaining firsthand experience in the biology, ecology and management of this disease. Kylie has recently taken up a position with the Queensland Government where her focus will be on myrtle rust. More information about Kylie’s research project is available here.

Grains workshop
The CRCNPB – in conjunction with Cooperative Bulk Handling (CBH) and the Crawford Fund – recently supported a workshop in correct grain storage and biosecurity for some of Australia’s near neighbours. Ten representatives from flour milling companies in Indonesia, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Singapore and Vietnam travelled to Perth to gain an insight into the control of grain storage pests, to participate in training exercises to reduce their grain losses, and to improve their biosecurity practices.

The training provided participants with experience in the principles of grain storage and fumigation to control pests and thus avoid losses, estimated at 10% worldwide. The course also explained the need for better grain protection and biosecurity for international import and export trade. CBH – who have strong relationships with grain milling companies throughout Asia – hosted the trainees at their Australian Grain Centre Laboratory and Metro Grain Centre. The participants also received in-the-field experience of on-farm storage and experimental silo trials at Arthur River and Lake Grace, and a ‘behind the scenes’ tour of the Australian Quarantine Inspection Service (AQIS) facilities at Perth airport.

All participants mentioned the value of the training and the importance of viewing the value chain, from the farm to storage. All participants recognised that they have been applying too much fumigant to their stored grain and realised they could save their companies a significant amount of money by using less. A number also admitted that they apply the fumigant incorrectly and do not use sealed silos, which negates the purpose of the fumigation. A number of the participants were going to implement changes to their fumigation programs on their return home.

The five-day workshop was held at Murdoch University and was delivered by Pat Collins, Michelle Chami (DAFWA), YongLin Ren, James Newman, Michael Thompson, Chris Edmeades and Kirsty Bayliss. The ABC interview (podcast) can be downloaded from the ABC website.

James Newman (Murdoch University) introducing participants to the Giant Ram in Wagin. Left to right – James Newman, Hendra Tanumihardja, Elmar Nau, Sultan Ahmed, Yannes Piung, Arief Zakaria, Seymour Magabe, Kelly Lai, Thoa Kim, Imron Tengriano, Rasheen Bappu.

Ms Seymour Magabe and Mr Arief Zakaria, both from Indonesia, identifying stored grain pests under the microscope in the Murdoch postharvest laboratory.

Postgraduate study in plant biosecurity

VANMEURSA — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 22:49:19 +0000

Establishing a university course in plant biosecurity is a key indicator of success for the Cooperative Research Centre for National Plant Biosecurity’s Education and Training Program.

Through the CRC’s plant biosecurity curriculum project led by Associate Professor Tony Clarke from the Queensland University of Technology (QUT), this success was realised in February 2010 when the first cohort of students were able to enrol at Murdoch University and begin their studies.

The curriculum is comprised of three new postgraduate degrees – a Graduate Certificate, Graduate Diploma and a Masters. These are all delivered online, meaning that students can study in the comfort of their own home.

The National Plant Biosecurity Curriculum is a collaborative effort between five universities; University of Adelaide, Charles Darwin University, La Trobe University, Murdoch University and QUT. The project received the majority of its monetary support from the federal government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations through a Collaborative and Structural Reform Grant. It also received significant in-kind support through the Commonwealth Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.

CRC Education and Training program leader, Dr Kirsty Bayliss said the first semester was very successful and it was rewarding to see students coming from government departments who play key roles in Australia’s plant biosecurity system.

‘All the students this semester were employees of either Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Department of Primary Industries Victoria or Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia. The curriculum is a great opportunity for staff to gain an understanding in areas of plant biosecurity where they may not have expertise,’ she said.

Units that were studied this semester were Plant Biosecurity in Practice and Detection and Diagnostics (taught by Murdoch), Biosecurity Plant Pests – Invertebrates (taught by QUT) and Biosecurity Plant Pests – Plant Pathogens (taught by LaTrobe).

Dr Bayliss said the first semester students have just finished their teaching surveys and the feedback has been extremely positive with many saying the course content and format is excellent and very relevant and useful to them.

‘We have one student who hasn’t studied for 15 years and never online, so the fact that they have found this a pleasant return to study is a great indicator for us,’ she said.

Mid-semester enrolments in the Diploma and Masters are currently being accepted at Murdoch University, enrol online NOW. La Trobe and QUT are expected to enrol students in 2011. For more information visit the curriculum website

Content supplied by: Dr Kirsty Bayliss (Murdoch University) and Associate Professor Tony Clarke (QUT)