Collaborative Leadership

SAAFE’s research programs and leads are supported and advised by the SAAFE Research Advisory Committee (RAC), chaired by Dr Barry McGookin (SAAFE’s Food Sector Lead).

The RAC comprises industry sector leads representing water (Karen Rouse, WaterRA), wine (Liz Waters, Wine Australia), fisheries and aquaculture (Wayne Hutchinson, FRDC), horticulture (Bianca Cairns, Hort Innovation), animal industries (Peter Coombe, AIAS), and animal feed (Duncan Rowland, SFMCA).

The RAC gathers and shares sector insights, identifies trends and emerging issues and cross-sectoral opportunities for collaboration, as well as assisting in research needs evaluation, performance evaluation, and the success of key research programs.

SAAFE’s International Expert Advisory Committee (IEAC) will comprise eight pre-eminent global research leaders with One Health, AMR or other relevant expertise, each with the ability to bridge scientific, industrial and social policy issues including public health.

The committee’s primary role is to independently review SAAFE’s research activities, outputs and outcomes to ensure quality and progress.

IEAC Chair, Distinguished Professor Ed Topp, is one of the world’s leading experts on One Health AMR. We are delighted he will chair the IEAC for an initial term of three years.

The IEAC has seven founding members, with one further member to be confirmed.

• Distinguished Professor Ed Topp (ANR/ INSERM Distinguished Research Chair, Priority Research Program on AMR; Research Director, Agroecology mixed research unit, INRAE, University of Burgundy, France)

• Chair Professor Ir. Dr. Tong Zhang (Department of Civil Engineering, University of Hong Kong, China).

• Professor Heike Schmitt (Principal Investigator, RIVM National Institute for Public Health and Environment, Netherlands; Professor, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands)

• Professor Max Troell (Beijer Institute for Ecological Economics, Sweden, Research Leader, Stockholm Resilience Centre)

• Professor Despo Fatta-Kassinos (Head - Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Cyprus; Director, NIREAS-International Water Research Centre)

• Dr Ir. Bart Fraaije (Senior Researcher, Biointeractions and Plant Health, Wageningen University and Research, The Netherlands)

• Professor Tom Wittum (Professor and Chair of the Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine, Ohio State University, USA; UN FAO International Reference Centre for Antimicrobial Resistance, USA)

Other SAAFE advisory committees in establishment include the Policy and Regulatory Advisory Group (PRAG), the First Nations Advisory Committee (FNAC), and a Youth Advisory Committee (YAC). Committee members will be selected based on their relevant expertise and activities, while actively considering the need for sectoral, gender and geographical representation.