WA science teachers meet international agriculture’s Nextgen
November 30, 2020
On 3 December, we will be introducing WA Science Teachers to our NextGen!
Our WA Coordinator, Emerita Professor Lynette Abbott, has put together a workshop for the WA Science Teachers Conference “Future Science 2020” along with a group of former Crawford Fund awardees and scholars and to raise awareness of international agricultural opportunities in a COVID-19 world. This will be the second NextGen event that Lyn has kindly organised as part of our boosted NextGen work, supported by ACIAR.
“This workshop will address how science is applied to global issues of food production, especially in developing countries. Australia has considerable scientific expertise in agricultural science which is extended internationally with support of the Crawford Fund via the program of training workshops and project collaborations,” explained Lyn.
“Current global events, including COVID-19, have interrupted the usual direct exchanges, but new opportunities for e-learning are emerging. The Crawford Fund supports knowledge, studies, research careers and volunteering related to food and nutrition security, by connecting scientists in Australia and communities in developing countries seeking scientific expertise.”
“This workshop will explore approaches to ensuring how scientific knowledge continues to be communicated despite the current global challenges. Several of the Fund’s NextGen university students will present their experiences and participate in the discussion on how agricultural science supports international agricultural research and development,” she said.
Alicea Garcia from University of WA, who has been a former Crawford Fund conference scholar and is now the RAID Network representative in WA, will make a presentation on her research in Ghana. Her recently submitted PhD focused on the gendered dynamics of climate change adaptation in agricultural communities of Ghana’s Central Region.
Clara Obregón Lafuente, a PhD Candidate from Murdoch University, was recently announced as one of the Fund’s 2020 Student Awardees. She will talk about the award and her plans, post-COVID restrictions, to travel to WorldFish in Malaysia to work on the social-ecological dimensions of the blue swimmer crab fishery.
Lyn will also present on the Fund’s recent package of free high school teaching resources for science teachers developed as part of our NextGen program.
A big thank you also to Dr Richard Bell, Professor of Sustainable Land Management at Murdoch University, now a member of the WA Committee who has delivered Crawford Fund training in the past – most recently a workshop boosting skills and building the confidence of young to mid-level Bangladeshi researchers.
