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Collaboration Driving Improved Research Outcomes: Growers Research Advisory Committee

The Growers Research Advisory Committee (GRAC) is a flagship initiative of Forest & Wood Products Australia (FWPA), placing collaborative decision-making at the heart of research, development and extension (RD&E) efforts. 

Established in 2017, the GRAC is a formal mechanism for FWPA to understand industry priorities and gain direct input from members when designing RD&E programs. This results in industry-led RD&E, designed to improve the quality of the resource base, reduce risk and increase productivity and utilisation, delivering value directly back into the industry. 

Why form an advisory committee? 

Engagement and consultation with stakeholders are pivotal for FWPA to continue delivering programs that meet member needs and remain relevant as industry priorities evolve. 

A formal advisory committee ensures a range of perspectives are considered and provides a clear process by which priorities are discussed, confirmed and drawn on to plan RD&E activities. It also creates an avenue to assess the outcomes of research and discuss its application and adoption by the industry. 

The GRAC’s mission, driven by growers, is to “double the value of Australia’s commercial forests by 2040, by fostering an innovation culture in our enterprises, applying world’s best practices, collaboration and investing into research and development as appropriate. 

How the GRAC works 

The GRAC represents all large Australian forest growers and managers. All FWPA grower members are invited to join, with most organisations represented by a senior leadership member, such as a CEO, general manager or science manager. 

This membership helps to maintain a commercial focus and perspective when assessing RD&E programs and ensure they contribute to factors such as increasing plantation productivity, building resilience, improving quality, mitigating risk and losses and reducing costs. 

For example, Suzette Weeding, General Manager Land Management, Sustainable Timber Tasmania (SST) explains most of their aims focus on enhancing value and understanding risk, as well as managing and monitoring threatened species that live in native forests. Reflecting this, GRAC-supported research published in March 2024  developed a method for surveying giant freshwater crayfish using E-DNA. It used water sampling analysis to locate threatened freshwater crayfish and facilitate their management and monitoring. Another project contracted in 2024 will address the issue of automatically monitoring multiple threatened forest species in real-time using acoustic detectors. 

An Executive Committee (EC) provides leadership to the GRAC, with grower members appointed from the breadth of forest types and geographies that make up Australia’s commercial forest estate. Harnessing their diverse expertise, they focus on delivering benefit across the whole industry. The EC is chaired by FWPA Board Chair, Craig Taylor and coordinated by Head of Forest Research, Jodie Mason. 

The EC meets around eight times a year to assess proposals and make recommendations for the broader GRAC membership to consider, as well as providing an additional level of governance for the program. RD&E projects are considered against identified industry priorities, cost benefit analyses, and input from a scientific advisory committee. 

GRAC meets quarterly to consider investment recommendations, as well as discussing strategy, tactical direction for procuring RD&E projects, learning about research findings, and providing feedback on research outcomes. 

FWPA also seeks feedback from GRAC on RD&E Investment Plans, which identify priority topics to focus research investment and effort.  

How collaboration drives better outcomes 

Suzette sits on the GRAC Executive alongside Sharon Occhipinti, General Manager Forest Services, HVP Plantations. They agree that the GRAC has provided significant benefits towards collaboration, prioritisation and efficient use of resources. 

“The GRAC has given industry and STT a means to collaborate on research projects and understand our priorities as a whole, rather than on an individual level,” Suzette explains.  

“It has enabled us to better coordinate research and grow what we saw as a dwindling research capacity in our industry. It allows us to coordinate and collaborate on our organisations’ funding. People need to be confident that research priorities are appropriately identified and followed through on. I’m a huge fan and advocate of the GRAC process.” 

Sharon shared that the GRAC has united varying expertise to address complex research questions. “Some challenges are too big for one organisation to solve,” she says. “The GRAC brings a breadth of experience and skillsets into the conversation, and allows the industry to address challenges, risks, opportunities and research gaps.” 

Suzette is especially pleased with how the committee has driven researcher collaboration. “I think it’s about bringing people together,” she says. “It allows researchers to have a home among other researchers and provides a means for them to understand one another.” 

Impact of the GRAC model 

GRAC is now a strong model of meaningful engagement and collaborative decision-making to benefit the forestry industry.  

Grower Collaborative Commitments form about 50% of the funds for investment through the Growers RD&E program, and the other 50% comes through levy revenue. Both streams are matched by Australian Government funding if invested in RD&E activities.  

In the past four years, growers have committed a total of $6.9 million through Grower Collaborative Commitments. 

Sharon is excited the model has improved existing processes around research proposals. “Typically, an academic will pitch an idea to you. We’re trying to flip that on its head by deciding what research we want to do and who to work with,” she explains.  

“FWPA has set up thorough processes around research proposals, requiring researchers to get industry support for proposed projects. This helps confirm that research is valuable with potential utilisations on the ground.” 

“FWPA is a leader in the space,” Suzette says. “They have brought in collaboration and kept everyone on the road. The GRAC is driven by maintaining collaboration, keeping people in the tent, and keeping them informed. That gives everyone the confidence that it’s working and it’s a model for the future.” 

In October 2024, two GRAC-supported research projects were selected among eight projects to receive funding through Australian Forest and Wood Innovations’ inaugural $5 million National Open Call for research: 

  • Developing more productive plantation trees better adapted to changing environments, through Tree Breeding Australia. 
  • Enhancing fire resilience in Australian plantations, through the University of Melbourne.
     

Positive feedback from members and the GRAC’s demonstrated impact on the industry are becoming more widely recognised. As a result, FWPA is looking at how the GRAC model could be applied to other areas of the industry, such as improving and expanding research investments for processor members. 

The GRAC is a great example of how FWPA collaborates with industry and government to deliver transformative RD&E initiatives that help grow Australia’s forestry industry. 

For more detail on the GRAC, click here.

Learn more about GRAC

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