The Crawford Fund appoints new CEO

December 21, 2023

The Board of Directors of the Crawford Fund has appointed Stephen Bartos as the new Chief Executive Officer. Stephen is currently Professor at the Centre for Environmental Governance, within the Faculty of Business, Government and Law at the University of Canberra.

“The Crawford Fund is pleased to have Stephen coming into this important role. He has big shoes to fill but so much to offer as an expert in food resilience and in public sector governance, finance, strategy and risk,” said The Hon John Anderson, AC, chair of the Crawford Fund.

Stephen will succeed Dr Colin Chartres who will retire from the Fund on 15 March.

“On behalf of the Fund’s Directors, State and Territory Committees and Staff, I would like to thank Dr Colin Chartres for his leadership of the Fund and setting the Fund on a magnificent trajectory to maximise Australia’s contribution through our outstanding agricultural science and research base. Colin’s commitment to our objectives, both in his role as Director of Master Classes from 2014, and as CEO from 2017, has him leaving the Fund as a lifelong friend and we wish to express our sincere thanks and very best wishes,” said John.

Prior to joining academia, Stephen’s work experience included three terms as Parliamentary Budget Officer for NSW, Deputy Secretary and Head of Budget Group in the Australian Department of Finance, senior adviser to the Royal Commission on Aged Care, and head of the Canberra office of ACIL Allen consulting. 

Stephen is widely published in news media and academic journals. He is author of two books – Against the Grain: the AWB Scandal and why it Happened (UNSW Press) and Public Sector Governance – Australia (CCH).  Among his published research reports are a study of the impact of climate change on Australia’s food supply (2022) and of the resilience of the food supply chain (2012). 

“The Crawford Fund does immensely valuable work in capacity building in agricultural research. Sharing Australia’s expertise with other countries benefits both those countries and our own researchers.  It is practical, useful, and needed more than ever today in the face of threats such as climate change, wars and conflicts,” said Stephen.

“As an economist who has worked extensively on agriculture and food supply issues, I am particularly pleased to join an organisation named for Sir John Crawford, an outstanding economist who fostered Australian agricultural research and helped establish our global reputation for excellence in the field,” he said. 

Stephen will take up his role from mid-March 2024.