Sustainability Science Symposium Program

Setting the scene – a welcome from Bronwyn Fox, CSIRO Chief Scientist, reflecting on the challenges and opportunities for sustainability science in Australia

Sustainability science beyond disciplines.  A series of short presentations and panel discussion on what is needed, why, and where to drive sustainability transitions.

Moderated by Ian Watson, Group Leader and VS FSP Leadership Team, CSIRO

Panel:

• Leading mission-oriented innovation. Amelia Olsen-Boyd, Strategy, CSIRO
• Regional transitions to net zero. Jody Bruce, Group Leader, Towards Net Zero Mission Theme Lead, CSIRO
• Managing fisheries in a changing climate. Nick Rayns, FutureCatch Consulting, VS FSP Science Reference Group
• Energy transitions with and for communities. Peta Ashworth, Director, Curtin Institute for Energy Transition, Curtin University  

Land and Sea Stewardship. With rapid change in our environments we need new ways to monitor change, understand shifting baselines, and predict thresholds and tipping points, and ensure these forms of science can drive outcomes with people who manage land and seascapes. 4 short talks followed by Q&A and a panel discussion.

Moderated by Esther Onyango, Research Scientist, VS FSP
Panel:

• People as stewards. Nikki Dumbrell, Post-doctoral research fellow, VS FSP
• Seascapes. Delphi Ward, Post-doctoral research fellow, VS FSP
• Landscapes. Katrina Szetey, Post-doctoral research fellow, VS FSP
• Soil Health. Erinne Stirling, Post-doctoral research fellow, VS FSP  

Innovation for sustainability.  The innovation that moves society out of unsustainable ruts will be quite different from innovation that got us into them. This session will demonstrate how directed innovation for sustainability can bring together different approaches at different scales. Short talks followed by panel discussion and Q&A.

Moderated by Maren Strachan

Panel:

• Why innovation needs to change. Andy Hall, Team Leader, CSIRO
• How can we track changes in innovation narratives? Shima Khanehzar, Post-doctoral research fellow, VS FSP
• What functions are needed for sustainability in Australia’s agrifood system? Heleen Kruger, Senior Social Scientist, Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) 
• Exnovation for sustainability: exploring food systems transitions. Sabrina Chakori, Post-doctoral research fellow, VS FSP
• Innovations with First Nations communities. Torres Webb, Innovation broker, CSIRO
• International examples of innovation for sustainability. Rajesh Gopalakrishnan, Post-doctoral research fellow, VS FSP

Big transitions in science and society. Orchestrating the big transitions in our society and economy is underway. Our keynote speaker in this session, Clark Miller (Professor and Director, Center for Energy & Society, Arizona State University), will bring together big lessons from putting such transitions into practice in Arizona, and how sustainability science can best serve societal outcomes. Following the talk panellists will explore similarities and differences from their perspectives and positions, before opening to wider discussion and Q&A.  

Moderated by Cathy Robinson, Principal Research Scientist, VS FSP Leadership Team, CSIRO.

Panel:

• Uta Wehn, Associate Professor of Water Innovation Studies, University of Delft, Netherlands
• Gretta Pecl, Director, Centre for Marine socio-ecology, University of Tasmania
• Nicole Yazbek-Martin, Director, Australian Sustainable Finance Institute

• Introduction. Rebecca Riggs, Research Scientist, VS FSP
• Justice in Political philosophy and implications for transitions. David Douglas, CSIRO
• Integrating Data Justice Principles into Participatory Sustainability Research. Danilo Urzedo, Post-doctoral research fellow, VS FSP
• Engaging with justice in institutional settings. Nicky Grigg and James Langston, CSIRO  

Parallel Session

Knowledge practices in the digital age. This session explores collaborative practice, generative AI tools, and the risks and opportunities associated with different tools and approaches. It showcases knowledge governance research in the VS FSP to spark a series of break-out discussions about the information we all use and its diverse consequences.

Facilitated by Maren Strachan, this session will explore 2 key themes:

1. Co-production and intermediaries shaping knowledge governance, led by Emma Ligtermoet and Gillian Cornish, Post-doctoral research fellows, VS FSP
2. Digital tech, generative AI, ethics, the future of knowledge production, led by Danilo Urzedo and Bernardo Cantone, Post-doctoral research fellows, VS FSP

Parallel Session

Leading and progressive indicators for healthy ecosystems and society. Can we develop leading indicators of ecosystem function, and for human health and sustainability investment decisions? What is the potential for these to inform action, interventions, and to enable investment and innovation to drive system improvement e.g. in the national wellbeing and agricultural sustainability frameworks, the nature repair market?

This session is chaired by Katie Ricketts, CSIRO, with short presentations by early career researchers in the VS FSP, followed by a panel discussion and Q&A with leading thinkers and doers from industry, government and academia.

Speakers are:

• Introduction: leading indicators and measures that matter. Esther Onyango, Research Scientist, VS FSP
• Ecosystem health showcase. Sarah Luxton, Post-doctoral research fellow, VS FSP
• Human health showcase. Esther Onyango, Research Scientist, VS FSP
• Economics showcase. Nikki Dumbrell, Post-doctoral research fellow, VS FSP

Panel:

• Katie Ricketts, Research Scientist, VS FSP (moderator)
• Ayesha Tulloch, Queensland University of Technology – ARC Future Fellow & Conservation Decision Scientist
• Tom Picton-Warlow, WA DPIRD – Business Development and Natural Capital Lead
• Warwick Ragg, National Farmers Federation – General Manager, Natural Resource Management
• Vanessa Prescott, Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) – Head, Prevention and Environmental Health
  Unit.