Research in biosecurity, cybersecurity and food security

Research groups and labs

• Plant Pathology

  Plant Pathology focuses on using the latest molecular biology tools combined with a basic disciplinary approach to drive cutting-edge research in host-pathogen relationships, taxonomy and genetic diversity of fungal plant pathogens and development of diagnostics for biosecurity.

• Agricultural and Resource Economics and Agribusiness (AREA)

  The Agricultural & Resource Economics and Agribusiness (AREA) group undertakes research into the benefits, costs and risks of change in agricultural production and marketing and in the resources used in these sectors.

• Adaptive Evolution Lab

  Combining experimental and computational approaches to study the effect of environmental variation and stress on natural population.

• Baxter Group - Biology of Insect Pests

  We analyse and manipulate insect genomes using molecular genetics to better understand the biology of economically important pests.

• Centre for Environmental and Economic Research

  A multidisciplinary research group of ecologists, data analysts, economists and animal and plant health specialists that focuses on environmental and economic outcomes.

• CEBRA - Economics of Biosecurity

  Strategic thinking and practical solutions across the biosecurity continuum. We deliver practical, rigorous solutions and strategic advice for biosecurity risk assessment, management, and communication.

• Food Politics, Philosophy & Policy

  Addressing the politics, philosophy and policy dimensions of food, nutrition, agriculture, and engaging with issues related to nutrition, public health, ecological sustainability, animal welfare, social justice and corporate power in food systems.

• Hunt Lab - Analytical Reasoning

  The Hunt Lab’s research and training focuses on intelligence analysis, security and policy, with expertise in epistemology, analytics, intelligence studies, disinformation, strategic thinking, risk analysis and futures thinking, expert elicitation, and software development.

• Mathematical Ecology, Epidemiology and Biosecurity

  This group works on interdisciplinary research problems that focus on developing mathematical and statistical models to support real-world decision-making and policy across the biological sciences.

• McFadden Lab - Malaria and Endosymbiosis

  Our group is interested in malaria and symbiosis - two topics that seem somewhat far apart but are in fact strangely interconnected. Our research has led to a paradigm shift in understanding the malaria parasite.

• Nabity Lab - Plant and Insect Ecology

  Research in the lab broadly addresses questions on species interactions and adaptation. We also continue longstanding interests to understand plant growth, defense, and other functional traits as they change under biotic and abiotic stress.

• Nitrogen Management and Fertiliser Technology

  Our research aims to improve the productivity potential and environmental outcomes of food production systems for future food security.

• PEARG Lab - Pest and Environmental Adaptation

  Research on adaptation of organisms (particularly invertebrates) to environmental stresses including climate change and chemical pollutants, using field sites in the Victorian mountains, in tropical rainforests and in wetlands around Melbourne.

• Specifly Lab

  Combining evolutionary genomics, functional genetics, and cutting-edge genetic engineering to understand how arthropods evolve resistance to chemical insecticides — and to build the next generation of precise, species-specific alternatives.

• Taking the Query out of Q Fever

  Taking the query out of Q fever is a multidisciplinary research-industry group that aims to improve understanding of Q fever reservoirs, amplification and transmission pathways.

• Veterinary Epidemiology @ Melbourne

  The veterinary epidemiology group aims to generate new knowledge and techniques that can lead to improvements in animal health, with an emphasis on identifying emerging areas of inquiry, particularly those that cross disciplinary boundaries.