Crawford Fund Annual Parliamentary Conference2010 Annual Development Conference

Biodiversity and World Food Security:

Invite from the Chairman

The Hon Neil  Andrew

I am pleased to invite you to join me at another of the Crawford Fund’s thought provoking annual international conferences. Our 2010 event, “Biodiversity and World Food Security: Nourishing the Planet and its People” will be held in Parliament House, Canberra over the period 30 August to 1 September. The conference brochure is attached.

This will be the key event in the Australasian region and one of very few international events focusing on food security imperatives in relation to biodiversity conservation.

The conference will highlight the value and vulnerability of biodiversity in agriculture, food security and rural livelihoods, especially for developing nations and Australia; address the additional pressures that climate change impacts will bring to bear on both the conservation and use of biodiversity, and offer some policy directions for Australia and the developing world.

Confirmed key speakers include:

• Dr Cristián Samper, Director, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution;
• Professor Steve Hopper, Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew;
• Dr Emile Frison, Director General, Bioversity International;
• Dr Megan Clark, Chief Executive, CSIRO;
• Dr Meryl Williams, Chair of Commission, Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research;
• Professor Hugh Possingham FAA, Director of The Ecology Centre at the University of Queensland

We are improving on last year’s well-received changes to the conference structure and have included an additional opportunity for gaining new perspectives, feedback and networking. You are able to register for all or any combination of the conference events at low fees, set to cover the catering and venue costs.

I hope to welcome you to our conference to discuss the options and issues involved and the important role of international agricultural research.

Yours faithfully,

The Hon Neil  Andrew AO, Chairman, The Crawford Fund

Background

The topic has been chosen to coincide with the UN International Year of Biodiversity, a celebration of life on earth and of the value of biodiversity for our livelihoods.

Our conference will be the key event on the topic in the Australasian region, and one of very few international events focusing on food security imperatives in relation to biodiversity conservation. It will emphasise the importance of biodiversity for agriculture, food security and rural livelihoods, especially for developing nations and Australia, and the additional pressures that climate change impacts will bring to bear for both the conservation and use of biodiversity. We have assembled a group of internationally renowned speakers addressing issues related to the threats being faced to conserve biodiversity for food security in the face of climate change. What are the solutions and what does international agricultural research have to offer?

Biological diversity, in the context of the conference, is made up of the plants that feed, clothe, house, and heal people; crops, aquatic and livestock species that feed us; insects that pollinate fields; the forests that are the lungs of the planet; and microorganisms that regenerate the soils that grow our food.

Conserving and using biodiversity sustainably is key to feeding the more than one billion malnourished people in the world. The conference topic is of particular interest in Australia, as climate change, species invasions, ignorance and neglect erode the globe’s genetic resources, threaten the biodiversity of large and small organisms - in land, sea and air - on which the health and resilience of the planet depends. In the developing world, population growth and poverty exacerbate the pressures.

Australian agriculture is highly dependent on imported genes. Other than our rich forest genetic resources, we have contributed little directly to the productive global pool from our indigenous plant and animal resources although we are a major contributor in relevant research and development that benefits our own farmers and consumers and those in the developing world.

Keynote Speakers

	Dr Cristián Samper Director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History		Professor Steve Hopper  Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
	Dr Emile Frison Director General of Bioversity International		Professor Hugh Possingham Chair of the  Australian Federal Government Biological Diversity Advisory Committee
	Dr Meryl Williams Chair of the Commission of the Australian Center for International Agricultural Research		Dr Megan Clark Chief Executive of the CSIRO