Growing Australian agriculture’s contribution to a more sustainable world will be the focus of this year’s Nuffield Australia national conference and you won’t need to notch up any GHG emissions to attend.
Registrations for the free online conference – held on Tuesday 12 October and Wednesday 13 October, from 1pm to 3.30pm on both days – are now open.
An exciting line-up of speakers from both Australia and overseas will explore how Australian agriculture can align with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to contribute to achieving a better and more sustainable future for all.
Program highlights include a presentation from Dick Wittman, Idaho farmer and farm business management specialist. The Wittman family’s exceptional approach to environmental stewardship saw them selected as the national Millennium Farm Family in 2000 by the Ag Earth Partnership.
Rabobank’s global head of sustainable business development, Lachlan Monsbourgh, will discuss sustainability requirements from the world’s top food companies and how Australian agriculture can meet them.
“To meet consumers’ expectations, our producers will increasingly have to show how they manage carbon emissions, animal welfare, water, biodiversity and soil health,” Lachlan says.
He will expand on how Australian producers can report, certify and validate their incremental improvements to capture future opportunities.
Dr Jen Taylor, who participated in a six-week Nuffield Global Focus Program in 2016, and now leads the Systems research program in CSIRO Agriculture and Food, says the time is right for Australia to leverage its strong tradition of agricultural innovation to tackle the large and complex challenge of climate resilience.
“Our research and agrifood sectors, government and vibrant rural communities all hold keys to the innovative solutions needed for a climate-resilient Australia. As we can achieve greater things together, Australia is changing how we develop and deliver science-backed solutions on-farm,” she says.
“I look forward to sharing CSIRO’s recently launched mission programme as a new ambitious approach to innovation that will lead to results this decade.”
Nuffield Australia CEO Jodie Redcliffe says having this year’s flagship event online would allow the organisation to bring the world of agricultural innovation and leadership to more people – to their home, office or tractor cab!
“We’re excited to welcome people from across Australia and the world. It is a free event, but you must register to attend,” Jodie says.
“We’re inviting scholars, investors and broader agricultural industry, to join us in this very special year as Nuffield Australia celebrates our 70th anniversary.
“Since the first Nuffield Scholar was selected in Australia in 1951, we have been ‘Bringing the World ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾’, taking Australian agriculture, its people and businesses, to the next level.”
Jodie says the 70-year milestone has seen Nuffield Australia reflect on how the organisation can best support industry to prosper and thrive for the next 70 years and beyond.
“We’re excited to focus our ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Conference on some of the vitally important United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, to take our place as an active part of solutions – both challenging and positive – that the agricultural industry must embrace now, and into the future.”
Nuffield Australia’s 2022 Scholars – whose study and ideas will focus on positive change across a range of sectors – will be introduced at the conference.
There will also be opportunity to network with these established and budding agricultural leaders.
