OPINION: CAN WE AVOID A GLOBAL NUTRITION CATASTROPHE?
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 The Hon John Anderson, chair of the Crawford Fund and former Deputy PM, and the Fund’s CEO, Dr Colin Chartres, have penned an opinion piece that argues that Australia can take a leadership role in improving the understanding of the relationship between agriculture, food, nutrition and health.
"Focus on gender equity, governance and agricultural careers and training can go so far both here and abroad. However, as should be clear to all, the issues of nutrition, diets and health are complex and cross disciplinary. We think that new coalitions of agricultural scientists, dietary specialists, and health professionals will be needed to tackle the growing problem of over nutrition." Continue reading.
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CONFERENCE REGISTRATION NOW OPEN
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The Crawford Fund’s annual conference is a highlight of Australia’s agricultural development and food security calendar. For almost 30 years we have drawn significant focus to issues worthy of global and Australian attention, and this August we continue that proud tradition.
Titled ‘Reshaping Agriculture for Better Nutrition: The Agriculture, Food, Nutrition, Health Nexus,’ our 2018 annual conference will be held in Canberra on 13 and 14 August and it will ask: how can we feed the world’s increasing population with a nourishing diet that promotes good health and at the same time minimises further environmental impact? Our speakers and the program show an interesting and interactive event.
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THE CRAWFORD FUND STRATEGIC PLAN 2018-2023
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 Over the last 6 months, the Fund has been working with key stakeholders to identify future directions to help us make a contribution to regional food and nutrition security and to support Federal, State and Territory Governments with their aid, economic diplomacy, biosecurity and trade goals. This has culminated in the publication and launch of the Crawford Fund Strategic Plan 2018-2023. Continue reading. |
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SUBMISSION TO THE PARLIAMENTARY INQUIRY ON AID EFFECTIVENESS
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The Crawford Fund has made a submission to the Parliamentary Inquiry into the strategic effectiveness and outcomes of Australia’s aid program in the Indo-Pacific and its role in supporting our regional interests. Continue reading.
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OVERSEAS VOLUNTEERING OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE
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 The Crawford Fund in association with Australian Volunteers Program is seeking passionate and energetic volunteers as part of its ongoing capacity building program in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR).
There are currently two opportunities available: |
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AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH LEADERSHIP MASTER CLASS
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 The third Master Class in Agricultural Research Leadership and Management, delivered by The Crawford Fund, in conjunction with ACIAR will be held in Penang, Malaysia in November.
Applications for this highly regarded 5-and-half-day training opportunity are now open. The size of the Master Class is strictly limited. Continue reading. |
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 Over the last two years, The Crawford Fund has partnered with Dr Leigh Vial on a project to improve the livelihoods and food security of Laos farmers through the introduction of dry-seeding technology.
In 2018, Dr Vial revisited the dry-seeder program where he met with program participants to review progress and uptake of the seeders. Dr Vial addressed common issues, barriers for uptake of the technology, upskilled participants and introduced new technology to improve outcomes. Continue reading. |
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The following is a sample of the training that we are supporting in the months ahead:
- Strengthening Impact Pathways through understanding the Adoption Process; a short course for Indonesian agricultural professionals, supported by our South Australian Committee.
- IRRI Rice production training for 3 Australian students, supported by the NSW and ACT Committees
- Improved Plant protection for the banana industry, supported by the QLD committee for
Dr Maurice Wong from French Polynesia
- Crawford Fellowship awardee, Mr Manh from Vietnam, in wood drying and the measurement and modelling of key wood drying properties that govern drying rate and wood quality during drying, supported through a private donation.
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IT'S THE END OF FINANCIAL YEAR
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It’s that time of year and this is a reminder that the Crawford Fund welcomes your tax deductible donation to our work. In addition to a general donation, you can donate to support our training program or request that your support goes to a specific purpose such as our mentoring programs in Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam, our work to encourage young Australians in their involvement in agricultural research for development, or for our conference or our conference scholar program. With our Deductible Gift Recipient Status, your contribution is tax-deductible and you can donate using our online donation form or contact Cathy Reade and she will be happy to discuss options.
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 The recent RAID Training Workshop on “Agricultural Research Leadership and Management” hosted with the Crawford Fund was well attended and received very positive feedback which will mean the next workshop is even better. Stay tuned for further information. The RAID agricultural networking event at our conference on 13 August will be in the next newsletter and we hope to attract lots of interest from the young and young at heart. Finally, we have a very special rate of $245 instead of $460 to our Parliamentary conference for RAID members (and students who should be RAID members!) – more information on the conference website.
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UPCOMING FOOD & NUTRITION SECURITY EVENTS
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We would like to highlight some upcoming events that have a food security focus, some of which have Crawford Fund support or involvement. We welcome information about any events you may have planned.
- Strengthening Food and Nutrition Security Through a Planetary Health Lens in Resource-Limiting Settings, 11-12 July, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
- Mark Lynas, 'Seeds of Science - Why We Got it so Wrong on GMOs', 11 July in Canberra and 12 July in Brisbane
- Crawford Fund Annual Conference, 13-14 August, Canberra, Australia
- International Agricultural and Food Exhibition Farmer Expo, 17-20 August, Debrecen, Hungary
- The International Civil Society Conference on the Sustainable Development Goals, 11-13 September, Yaoundé, Cameroon
- 3rd International Whitefly Symposium 2018,16-21 September, Perth, Australia
- 5th International Rice Congress, 14-17 October, Singapore
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