grdc growers' report - Grains Research & Development Corporation

investment highlights
Each student works on a project alongside
a CSIRO research scientist at one of CSIRO
Plant Industry’s sites, in Adelaide, Brisbane,
Canberra, Narrabri (New South Wales) or
Perth. Projects are designed to ensure that
students have the opportunity to learn new
techniques and approaches, and to
understand the importance of scientific
research in the context of the delivery of
practical outcomes.
Science and Innovation Awards for
Young People
The GRDC is a sponsor of the Department
of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
Science and Innovation Awards for Young
People in Agriculture.
To qualify, applicants must be aged between
18 and 35 and working or studying in an
agricultural, fisheries, food, forestry or natural
resource industry. Applicants are required to
submit a proposal for an innovative project
that could be completed within 12 months,
and addresses a significant issue facing
rural industries. Winners are selected from
a competitive field from across Australia,
based on their projects’ potential benefit to
Australia’s rural industries.
Nuffield Australia Farming Scholarships
The GRDC supports the skill and leadership
development of people working in the grains
industry through its sponsorship of the
Nuffield Australia Farming Scholarships.
The 2010–11 GRDC scholars are:
• Craig Duffield, from Ramco in South
Australia, who plans to visit Brazil,
Canada, the United Kingdom and the
United States to study the future of the
family farm in marginal areas.
• Michael Foss, from Bruce Rock in Western
Australia, who plans to visit New Zealand,
South America, the United Kingdom and
the United States, to study corporate and
family farming structures and the impact
they have on issues such as productivity,
profitability, the environment and R&D.
What’s in the
RD&E pipeline
for 2011–12
Presentation of the Department of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Forestry Science and Innovation
Award for Young People in Agriculture to Timothy
March by Senator the Hon. Joe Ludwig, the Minister
for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.
Photo: Steve Keo
• Aaron Sanderson, from Ayr in
Queensland, who will travel to countries
such as Brazil, Cambodia, Thailand and
Vietnam to study on-farm practices and
systems in wet tropical areas and how
they may relate to food production in
similar environments in Northern Australia.
• Support for activities that provide growers and others in the
grains industry with opportunities to develop leadership skills,
including investment in industry-based awards such as the
Nuffield Foundation and the Australian Rural Leadership
Foundation scholarships.
• Support for travel awards, conferences and workshops to
maximise targeted awareness of the research outcomes of
GRDC-supported projects.
• Publication of a suite of fact sheets on spray application, which will
address Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority
spray requirements as well as technology and techniques for
optimising the use of chemicals and controlling spray drift.
Australian Rural Leadership Program
The GRDC supports the development of
grains industry leaders through the
Australian Rural Leadership Program. The
program’s objective is to produce a network
of informed, capable and ethical leaders
who are able to work collaboratively to
advance the interests of their industries and
communities and rural Australia in general.
The GRDC-sponsored participants on the
course commencing in 2010–11 were:
• David Jochinke, from Murra Warra, Victoria.
David is a self-employed, third-generation
farmer primarily producing cereal, pulse
and oilseed crops as well as finishing
prime lambs as a secondary enterprise.
He plans, manages and executes daily
operational activities related to the
production of crops as well as livestock
nutrition, husbandry and welfare on his
2,000 hectare property.
• Andrew Rice, from Parkes, New South
Wales. Andrew is an agricultural
consultant with more than 16 years
experience in providing integrated
technical and management advice to
farmers and grain growers in central-west
New South Wales. Andrew is an active
member of a mixed farming business
that includes winter crops (wheat, barley
and canola), beef cattle for yearling
production, and merino sheep for wool
and lamb production.
Nuffield Australia Farming Scholarship recipients. (From left) Michael Foss, Craig Duffield, Aaron Sanderson.
Photos: GRDC
Vavilov–Frankel Fellowships
The GRDC supports the conservation and
use of plant genetic resources through the
Vavilov–Frankel Fellowship Fund, which
enables outstanding young scientists
(aged 35 years or under) to carry out
relevant, innovative research outside their
own countries for a period of three to
12 months. Applicants must demonstrate
the importance and benefit of their proposed
research to their home country, and indicate
how it will be applied upon their return. In
this way, the Vavilov–Frankel Fellowship
Fund helps countries to build the scientific
capacity they need to effectively manage
and use plant genetic resources.
28 GRDC GROWERS’ REPORT 2010–2011