Professor Peter Solomon is the Director of the Australian Research Council (ARC) Training Centre in Plant Biosecurity at the ANU. Photo: Crystal Li/ANU.
A centre dedicated to safeguarding Australia’s flora from dangerous pests and diseases has officially opened at the Australian National University.
The Australian Research Council (ARC) Training Centre in Plant Biosecurity aims to train the next generation of scientists to tackle some of the world’s biggest biosecurity threats.
Centre director Professor Peter Solomon said the work researched there would cover “everything, from farm and field to the environment”.
“[These people will] keep protecting Australia, enhancing our barriers to keep pests out of the country, and keep diseases from moving within the country,” he said.
“We need a pipeline in place … so that in 15 years’ time, these PhD students are the ones leading in this space.
“From the multi-billion dollar agricultural, horticultural and forestry sectors, to native plants and their cultural meaning to First Nations people, Australia’s flora impacts us all. We need to be proactive in our efforts to protect it.”
Currently 21 PhD students, all of whom are linked to partner organisations in government, peak bodies and the grower industry, are researching at the centre.
One of the PhD projects underway at the centre has a social science slant, examining the emergency response to the parasitic varroa mite.
Aphrika Gregson (who is also a biosecurity officer with the NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development) wants to understand how to build and maintain connections between decision-makers, stakeholders and the public during a biosecurity outbreak.
“We have an opportunity with this project to interrogate the varroa response retrospectively for its strengths and weaknesses,” she said.
“A critical factor for a successful response is social licence-to-operate, which depends on how stakeholders perceive the impacts of both the pest and the response. Effectively communicating the science, building trust and ensuring meaningful engagement are essential.”
Prof Solomon expected this project could reshape how Australia responded to biosecurity threats.
“It’s all about the lessons learned, mistakes made and how we can do better next time,” he said.
“There will be other serious threats, and we want to be ready, not just in a science sense but in terms of communication.”
Another PhD project at the centre will research the use of statistics and data to improve biosecurity surveillance practices.
It’s hoped this will boost community confidence when an area is declared free from a pest or disease.
Prof Solomon said it was about training young scientists in the use of AI and machine learning to enhance their surveillance methods, and providing future scientists a place where they could complete this training.
“Technology is changing so rapidly, it’s hard to keep up with training,” he said.
“This centre will train the next generation of innovators to transform the sector to meet future challenges.”
The centre has been funded through the Federal Government’s Industrial Transformation Research Program.
