The newly launched ARC Centre of Excellence for Plant Success in Nature and Agriculture is cultivating the next crop of plant science experts. Administered by The University of Queensland, the collaborative research initiative aims to develop tools to improve plant productivity and resiliency. Deputy Centre Director (Research) Professor Mark Cooper said the next generation of plant scientists was urgently needed to tackle the
The Australian Research Council (ARC) officially launched the ARC Centre of Excellence for Plant Success in Nature and Agriculture on Thursday 11 August 2022. ARC Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Ms Judi Zielke, said the Centre’s work will only become increasingly important as our climate continues to change. “As the amount of arable land decreases, we need research that boosts food
Increasing crop production is at the core of achieving food security in the 21st century. A group of scientists is addressing this challenge by studying shoot branching, one of the key factors affecting yield. They simulated breeding trials with selection for branching using computational simulations ofgene-controlled traits. They found that selection for branching is difficult due to the complex interactions among
The life of a scientist can be complex. Scientists need to be creative, executive, and efficient. They also need to be leaders, managers, administrators, teachers, and mentors. Becoming a scientist is challenging because of the plethora of hard and soft skills the job demands, and there is little time to develop them before entering the job market. So, how do you
Dr Franziska Fichtner is a postdoctoral researcher in Professor Christine Beveridge’s lab at The University of Queensland Node of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Plant Success in Nature and Agriculture. Franzi specialises in plant metabolism and sugar-signalling. Where do you work and what is it like living in your city?I am working at the University of Queensland located in Brisbane (Australia).
I can’t believe we are halfway through the year already! We held our annual Research Retreat at the end of May/start of June, and it was fantastic to finally be able to get many of our Plant Success members together in person. Listening to the variety of exciting research going on across our Centre and celebrating our people was so
There are many reasons teams are formed. For our early career Centre members, you are likely to be undertaking new research and administrative roles as you engage in teamwork within the Centre. Team effectiveness for the Centre’s tasks and research projects, with many examples on display in our 2021 Annual Report, will vary along a complex continuum, from low to high
Plant Success Associate PhD student (now Associate Postdoctoral Researcher), Kate Johnson recorded a series for the That’s What I Call Science radio show/podcast called ‘Tassie Plant People’ in which she interviews members of the Centre for Plant Success about their research. EPISODE 147: Chief Investigator and UTAS Node Leader, Professor Tim Brodribb. Feeding the world, fieldwork in wild forests, navigating
True “transdisciplinarity” is starting to take form in the Centre – and I think it’s great! A major challenge in the plant/crop science communities has been to enhance the ability of scientists operating at differing scales of biological organization to connect their efforts. We have not been able to capture well the nexus between molecular and ecophysiological understanding and concepts
