A model to achieve sustainable improvement and innovation in organisations, industries, regions and communities

The achievement and measurement of improvements and innovations is not often an overt practice in the design and delivery of government services other than in health services. There is a need for specific mechanisms proven to increase the rate and scale of improvements and innovations in organisations, communities, regions and industries. This paper describes a model for the design, measurement and management of projects and services as systems for achieving and sustaining outcomes, improvements and innovations.The development of the model involved the practice of continuous improvement and innovation within and across a number of agricultural development projects in Australia and nternationally. Key learnings from the development and use of the model are: (1) all elements and factors critical for success can be implemented, measured and managed; (2) the design of a meaningful systemic measurement framework is possible; (3) all project partners can achieve and sustain rapid improvements and innovations; (4) outcomes can be achieved from early in the life of projects; and (5) significant spill-over benefits can be achieved beyond the scope, scale and timeframe of projects

Implementation of an electronic nose for continuous odour monitoring in a poultry shed

Continuous odour monitoring technologies are necessary to understand the complex odour-generating mechanisms within poultry housing as well as to identify strategies to reduce the impact of odour emissions on local communities. To evaluate electronic nose (EN) technologies for continuously assessing odour concentration in poultry housing, a mobile laboratory containing an electronic nose and an associated sample delivery system was deployed to a commercial poultry farm and tested over a broiler production cycle. The results demonstrated that it was possible to develop a model to allow an electronic nose to provide a semi-continuous measurement of odour concentrations. The electronic nose was also able to demonstrate the influence of shed conditions on odour emissions.

High resolution genetic and physical mapping of the I-3 region of tomato chromosome 7 reveals almost continuous microsynteny with grape chromosome 12 but interspersed microsynteny with duplications on Arabidopsis chromosomes 1, 2 and 3

The tomato I-3 gene introgressed from the Lycopersicon pennellii accession LA716 confers resistance to race 3 of the fusarium wilt pathogen Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici. We have improved the high-resolution map of the I-3 region of tomato chromosome 7 with the development and mapping of 31 new PCR-based markers. Recombinants recovered from L. esculentum cv. M82 × IL7-2 F2 and (IL7-2 × IL7-4) × M82 TC1F2 mapping populations, together with recombinants recovered from a previous M82 × IL7-3 F2 mapping population, were used to position these markers. A significantly higher recombination frequency was observed in the (IL7-2 × IL7-4) × M82 TC1F2 mapping population based on a reconstituted L. pennellii chromosome 7 compared to the other two mapping populations based on smaller segments of L. pennellii chromosome 7. A BAC contig consisting of L. esculentum cv. Heinz 1706 BACs covering the I-3 region has also been established. The new high-resolution map places the I-3 gene within a 0.38 cM interval between the molecular markers RGA332 and bP23/gPT with an estimated physical size of 50-60 kb. The I-3 region was found to display almost continuous microsynteny with grape chromosome 12 but interspersed microsynteny with Arabidopsis thaliana chromosomes 1, 2 and 3. An S-receptor-like kinase gene family present in the I-3 region of tomato chromosome 7 was found to be present in the microsyntenous region of grape chromosome 12 but was absent altogether from the A. thaliana genome.

Long-term trends in fertility of soils under continuous cultivation and cereal cropping in southern Queensland. IX. Simulation of soil carbon and nitrogen pools using CENTURY model

Cultivation and cropping of soils results in a decline in soil organic carbon and soil nitrogen, and can lead to reduced crop yields. The CENTURY model was used to simulate the effects of continuous cultivation and cereal cropping on total soil organic matter (C and N), carbon pools, nitrogen mineralisation, and crop yield from 6 locations in southern Queensland. The model was calibrated for each replicate from the original datasets, allowing comparisons for each replicate rather than site averages. The CENTURY model was able to satisfactorily predict the impact of long-term cultivation and cereal cropping on total organic carbon, but was less successful in simulating the different fractions and nitrogen mineralisation. The model firstly over-predicted the initial (pre-cropping) soil carbon and nitrogen concentration of the sites. To account for the unique shrinking and swelling characteristics of the Vertosol soils, the default annual decomposition rates of the slow and passive carbon pools were doubled, and then the model accurately predicted initial conditions. The ability of the model to predict carbon pool fractions varied, demonstrating the difficulty inherent in predicting the size of these conceptual pools. The strength of the model lies in the ability to closely predict the starting soil organic matter conditions, and the ability to predict the impact of clearing, cultivation, fertiliser application, and continuous cropping on total soil carbon and nitrogen.

Sustainable Beef Industry Improvement and Innovation

This project ensures Queensland's involvement in Beef CRC Project 5.4 Accelerated Adoption through Sustainable Beef Profit Partnerships (BPP). The project researches, develops and achieves measurable improvements in business and industry productivity, profit and efficiency.

Fast FIR Algorithms for the Continuous Wavelet Transform From Constrained Least Squares

New algorithms for the continuous wavelet transform are developed that are easy to apply, each consisting of a single-pass finite impulse response (FIR) filter, and several times faster than the fastest existing algorithms. The single-pass filter, named WT-FIR-1, is made possible by applying constraint equations to least-squares estimation of filter coefficients, which removes the need for separate low-pass and high-pass filters. Non-dyadic two-scale relations are developed and it is shown that filters based on them can work more efficiently than dyadic ones. Example applications to the Mexican hat wavelet are presented.

Continuous combined microwave and hot air treatment of apples for fruit fly (Bactrocera tryoni and B. jarvisi) disinfestation

Apples at 24 ± 2 °C were heated in a pilot scale hot air assisted (40 °C) continuous pentagonal microwave system, to evaluate the effectiveness of this treatment on insect mortality (variety Mutsu) and fruit quality (variety Granny Smith). An average temperature of 53.4 ± 1.3 °C at core, bottom and flesh of the apple was recorded at the end of the treatment. One hundred percent mortality of the most tolerant stage of Queensland fruit fly (Bactrocera tryoni, Froggatt) and Jarvis's fruit fly (Bactrocera jarvisi, Tryon), were observed when the Mortality value (M52, equivalent time of isothermal treatment at 52 °C) at the slowest heating point applicable for each experiment was ≥ 50 min and ≥ 37 min, respectively. Results showed that microwave heat treatment is effective for insect disinfestation without any adverse impact on total soluble solids, flesh or peel firmness of the treated apples. The treated apples recorded a significantly higher pH and lower ion leakage than the untreated apples after 3 or 4 weeks. Therefore, the microwave heat treatment has the potential to be developed as an alternative chemical free quarantine treatment against economically significant insect pests. Industrial relevance Hot air assisted microwave heating of fruits and vegetables, is more cost effective compared to vapour heat treatment and ionising radiation for disinfestation of insects. Microwave treatment is environmentally friendly compared to fumigation and chemical treatments. Hot air assisted microwave disinfestation can be performed at farms or centralised pack houses since the capital cost would be comparatively lower than vapour heat or ionising radiation treatments.

Connecting people and ideas from around the world: global innovation platforms for next-generation ecology and beyond

We present a case for using Global Community Innovation Platforms (GCIPs), an approach to improve innovation and knowledge exchange in international scientific communities through a common and open online infrastructure. We highlight the value of GCIPs by focusing on recent efforts targeting the ecological sciences, where GCIPs are of high relevance given the urgent need for interdisciplinary, geographical, and cross-sector collaboration to cope with growing challenges to the environment as well as the scientific community itself. Amidst the emergence of new international institutions, organizations, and meetings, GCIPs provide a stable international infrastructure for rapid and long-term coordination that can be accessed by any individual. This accessibility can be especially important for researchers early in their careers. Recent examples of early-career GCIPs complement an array of existing options for early-career scientists to improve skill sets, increase academic and social impact, and broaden career opportunities. We provide a number of examples of existing early-career initiatives that incorporate elements from the GCIPs approach, and highlight an in-depth case study from the ecological sciences: the International Network of Next-Generation Ecologists (INNGE), initiated in 2010 with support from the International Association for Ecology and 20 member institutions from six continents.

Boosting the productivity and profitability of northern Australian beef enterprises: Exploring innovation options using simulation modelling and systems analysis

The financial health of beef cattle enterprises in northern Australia has declined markedly over the last decade due to an escalation in production and marketing costs and a real decline in beef prices. Historically, gains in animal productivity have offset the effect of declining terms of trade on farm incomes. This raises the question of whether future productivity improvements can remain a key path for lifting enterprise profitability sufficient to ensure that the industry remains economically viable over the longer term. The key objective of this study was to assess the production and financial implications for north Australian beef enterprises of a range of technology interventions (development scenarios), including genetic gain in cattle, nutrient supplementation, and alteration of the feed base through introduced pastures and forage crops, across a variety of natural environments. To achieve this objective a beef systems model was developed that is capable of simulating livestock production at the enterprise level, including reproduction, growth and mortality, based on energy and protein supply from natural C4 pastures that are subject to high inter-annual climate variability. Comparisons between simulation outputs and enterprise performance data in three case study regions suggested that the simulation model (the Northern Australia Beef Systems Analyser) can adequately represent the performance beef cattle enterprises in northern Australia. Testing of a range of development scenarios suggested that the application of individual technologies can substantially lift productivity and profitability, especially where the entire feedbase was altered through legume augmentation. The simultaneous implementation of multiple technologies that provide benefits to different aspects of animal productivity resulted in the greatest increases in cattle productivity and enterprise profitability, with projected weaning rates increasing by 25%, liveweight gain by 40% and net profit by 150% above current baseline levels, although gains of this magnitude might not necessarily be realised in practice. While there were slight increases in total methane output from these development scenarios, the methane emissions per kg of beef produced were reduced by 20% in scenarios with higher productivity gain. Combinations of technologies or innovative practices applied in a systematic and integrated fashion thus offer scope for providing the productivity and profitability gains necessary to maintain viable beef enterprises in northern Australia into the future.