Australia and New Zealand Biocontrol Conference 2008
10 - 14 February, Sydney, Australia
The inaugural Australia and New Zealand Biocontrol Conference was held at the Menzies Hotel in Sydney, Australia, 10 - 14 February 2008.
The conference spanned the disciplines of insect pest, weed, plant pathogen and vertebrate pest biological control and there were sessions dedicated to various biological approaches and techniques. Conference sessions and an integrative workshop explored underlying themes including ecology and economics. Combined with European and American keynote speakers and participants, the meeting had strong international relevance.
Sessions and keynote presentations discussed biocontrol success stories, eradication of emergency plant pests with the use of biocontrol agents, ecological control of insects, vertebrate pest control, biocontrol safety, the way forward for Australasia and many more topics.
The fourth day of the conference involved an all-day workshop which involved several leading overseas and Australasian researchers including Steve Wratten from Lincoln University, New Zealand, Steve Goldson from AgResearch, New Zealand, Frank Howarth from Bishop Museum, Hawaii, Nick Mills from the University of California and local identities such as Glen Saunders and Paul Horne. These leading researchers drew overarching messages from the preceding days' presentations and explored the scope for the creation of greater links between research groups within, and between, entomological, plant pathogen, weed and vertebrate biocontrol.
The Australia and New Zealand Conference 2008 was funded by Horticulture Australia Limited voluntary contributions. The conference was sponsored by the E H Graham Centre for Agricultural Innovation and the International Organisation for Biological Control and supported by the NSW Department of Primary Industries.
