by Peter Wren-Hilton | Apr 18, 2022 | 2035 Oceania Summit
The Sydney pre-2035 Oceania Summit is designed to bring together New South Wales scientific & research community, its industry leaders, agribusiness & agritech companies, farmers & growers, regulators and policy makers to meet and discuss how agrifood tech innovation and on-farm application can help address the existential threat posed by climate change.
The 2035 Oceania Summit would like to acknowledge the significant support provided by Agrifutures Australia, Food Agility and Investible in assisting develop the Workshop Programme.
You can register your free seat here.
The Sydney Workshop Programme
8.00am – 9.00am; Registration & Coffee on arrival
9.00am – 9.10am; Welcome and introduction to the day’s themes from the MC (to be confirmed)
9.10am – 9.25am; Introduction to the 2035 Oceania Summit / What is happening in NZ + Q&A (Peter Wren-Hilton – Convener, The 2035 Oceania Summit)
9.25am – 9.45am; Keynote Speaker (to be confirmed)
9.45am – 10.05am: Rob Waterworth, CEO Mullion Group/FLINTPro. Measuring carbon in Australian cattle farming
10.05am – 10.45am: Panel Discussion – Targeting a Net-Zero food future
Introduction: Dr. Victoria Hatten; Director of Sustainability, PwC NZ
Nick Hazel, Founder, V2, Australia’s #1 plant based meat company
Professor Michelle Colgrave, Future Protein Lead, CSIRO
10.45am – 11.15am: Coffee Break
11.15am – 11.45am; Panel Discussion – Understanding the Importance of Supply Chains
Anna Spear, Greenstock, Woolworths
Stuart Austin, Farmer, Wilmot Cattle Company
Justin Webb, CEO, Agriwebb
11.45am – 11.55am: Sam Brown, CEO Agricultural Innovation Australia. Introducing AIA and its programme around addressing sustainability and climate change
11.55am – 12.05pm: Tracey Martin, CEO Australian Agritech Association. How Australian agritech companies are addressing sustainability and climate-related challenges
12.05pm – 12.35pm; Panel Discussion – Securing Investment into the AgriFoodTech sector
Moderated by Phil Morle, (Partner, Main Sequence Ventures)
Sarah Nolet – Partner, Tenacious Ventures
Patrick Sieb – Partner, Investible
Mick Liubinskas – Founder, Climate Salad
12.35pm – 12.45pm; Wrap up (MC & Peter Wren-Hilton)
12.45pm – 1.45pm; Networking with light refreshments
by Peter Wren-Hilton | Apr 13, 2022 | 2035 Oceania Summit
As part of our 2035 Oceania Summit planning, we are delighted to announce the programme for the first pre-Summit workshop. It will take place in Canberra, ACT on Wednesday 27 April 2022. The event will be hosted at the China in the World Building, Australian National University.
This workshop has been made possible through the assistance and support of our two ACT partners, the Centre for Entrepreneurial Agri-Technology & the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research .
The purpose of the pre-Summit workshop is to enable participants to share how research they do, or support, is helping reduce the carbon footprint of the agrifood production sector. Our hope is that this workshop will help identify topics that could be further explored at the 2035 Oceania Summit in October 2022, and to help forge new links among industry, research and government stakeholders in the ACT.
You can register here for a complimentary ticket to the event.
The Canberra Workshop Programme
8.00am – 8.30am Registration & Coffee on arrival
8.30am – 8.35am Welcome by MC (Professor Owen Atkin, Director of the Centre for Entrepreneurial Agri-Technology)
8.35am – 8.50am Introduction to the 2035 Oceania Summit + Q&A (Peter Wren-Hilton, Convenor, 2035 Oceania Summit)
8.50am – 9.10am Existing Emission – reduction options – technical + Q & A (Dr. Andy Reisinger, Vice-chair for Working Group III (mitigation) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, NZ Climate Change Commissioner)
9.10am – 9.30am: Existing Emissions – reduction options – whole-of-system + Q&A (Dr. Steven Crimp, Climate Scientist at the Institute for Climate, Energy & Disaster Solutions at the Australian National University)
9.30am – 10.00am: Panel Discussion: Industry Perspectives:
Margo Andrae – CEO, Pork Australia
Petr Adamek – CEO, Canberra Innovation Network
Olympia Yarger – CEO, Goterra
10.00am – 10.30am: Panel Discussion: Research Perspectives:
Dr. Anna Okella – Lead, Livestock Systems Program, ACIAR
John Harvey – Managing Director, AgriFutures Australia,
Katie Ricketts – Senior Research Scientist, Sustainability Assessment & Metrics – CSIRO Research
10.30am – 11.00am: Coffee Break
11.00am – 11.30am: Panel Discussion: Policy Options:
Christine Mulhearn – Assistant Secretary of the Agriculture Policy Division, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment
Dr Cate Rogers – Assistant Secretary of the Climate Financing and Programming Branch, Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade
11.30am -11.55pm: Future Options – Emerging and Over the Horizon + Q&A (Professor Mark Howden – Director of the Institute for Climate, Energy & Disaster Solutions at the Australian National University, Vice Chair, The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change)
11.55am – 12.00pm: Workshop Summary & Close
12.00pm – 1.00pm: Networking with light refreshments
by Peter Wren-Hilton | Jan 25, 2022 | AgriFutures
Following on from the success of two sell-out events in 2019 and 2020, evokeAG. organiser AgriFutures Australia, today announced Adelaide as the host city for the internationally acclaimed agrifood tech event slated for 21-22 February 2023 in South Australia.
From the AgriFutures Media Release:
Off the back of the cancellation, announced yesterday, of evokeAG. 2021 and 2022 events (Perth and Sydney), AgriFutures Australia Managing Director, John Harvey, believes next year’s event will play an even more crucial role in powering globally relevant conversations within the agrifood tech ecosystem.
“The disruptive impact of the pandemic has highlighted serious shortfalls in our food security systems. There is an increasing sense of urgency around how we engage in global conversations, mitigate risk to our supply chain and challenge the conventions of what we grow, how we grow it and what we eat. Balance this with an extremely productive Australian agricultural landscape including big yields, and all-time high prices, the evokeAG. 2023 event brings together a collision of opportunities and challenges with the best local and global minds to solve some of these issues,” said Mr Harvey.
The View from Tauranga:
Whilst I was deeply disappointed by the cancellation of the planned 2022 evokeAG conferences in Perth & Sydney, I am delighted by today’s announcement around the appointment of Adelaide as host city in 2023.
I have a particular interest. Back in October, I was the keynote speaker at South Australia’s AdvanceAG conference. I had hoped to attend in person, but unfortunately because of closed borders could only present virtually. It was a strange experience speaking to 500 delegates for ½ hour from my home office in Tauranga. Next February, I’ll have no such excuse and both Jacqui and I are already looking forward to meeting and engaging with so many of the folk connected with post-AdvanceAG.
For some additional context: Back in October 2020, the Government of South Australia released the ‘South Australia AgTech Strategic Plan’. It was a significant piece of work and a number of its recommendations resonated. I recognised that it had brought together different stakeholders including producers, government, research, industry and startups. It was as close as I have seen to the original intent of New Zealand’s own Agritech Industry Transformation Plan. It has seen the State’s agritech ecosystem emerge as one of the most connected across all of Australia. The selection of Adelaide as next year’s evokeAG host city is well deserved.
For more details about the 2023 programme and speakers, check out the evokeAG conference website at www.evokeag.com
by Peter Wren-Hilton | Jan 25, 2022 | Events
It’s with deep regret that AgriFutures Australia has had to announce the cancellation of the 2022 evoke AG. conference in Sydney on 15 March.
Whilst it is disappointing that the region’s agrifood tech community will not be able to connect in person, the health and wellbeing of the evokeAG .community – delegates, speakers, event staff and suppliers – is the most important priority. Given the current COVID outbreak in NSW, now is not the time to place unnecessary pressure on frontline workers, the healthcare system, and supply chain. This is a time to be thinking of others and placing the community at the heart of everything we do.
As a member of the evokeAG steering committee, I fully support the decision. I also acknowledge the sterling work done by the team at AgriFutures and the impact of making such a decision can have. It’s a very unfortunate sign of the times that those of us in New Zealand know only too well. Since our own move to Traffic Light Red on Sunday, my Inbox has been slammed with news of postponed and cancelled events across New Zealand over the coming weeks. These surely are challenging times.
Looking ahead, Wharf42 is looking forward to working with the AgriFutures evokeAG team, as major sponsors of the 2035 Oceania Summit. We are working to bring both New Zealand and Australia’s emerging agrifood tech ecosystem together to discuss one of the world’s biggest long-term challenges; how to support farmers and growers across the globe continue to produce nutritious and affordable food in the face of our changing climate. Over the coming weeks, we will be sharing details across our social media platforms about some significant developments in this space.
It’s a challenge that COVID will not slow down.
by Peter Wren-Hilton | Dec 20, 2021 | Wharf42
As we wind down for the festive season, it’s hard not to reflect on what has been an interesting and at times, a challenging 12 months.
Our focus though is on what’s to come, rather than what’s already happened. For Wharf42, the big news in 2022 is that the delayed 2035 Oceania Summit will end up being bigger and more impactful than originally planned. A number of pre-Summit initiatives now have an extra 5 months of activity to build in advance of the October event. This will include a more significant (in-person) engagement with partners and friends on the other side of the Tasman. The evokeAG conference in March provides both a platform and an opportunity to travel to different parts of Australia. We expect to share some of our planned itinerary in late January.
2022 will no doubt bring new challenges. What we have learnt over the past 20 months however is that people and business have an amazing ability to adapt to the ‘new normal’. Whilst announcing a delay to the original Summit date was unfortunate, we have focused on the silver linings that that delay has created. There are many which is why we approach the New Year with such confidence and excitement.
Jacqui and I would like to thank everyone for their support and encouragement over the past 12 months. We are looking forward to getting some time to relax and rest over the summer holidays. From where we are seated, 2022 looks like it it is going to be an A1 year with the opportunity for Wharf42 to do what it does best;
Vision. Execution. Impact.
Wishing everyone a very Happy and a Safe Festive Season!
