Public Forum in conjunction with OzBio2010 WEDNESDAY 29 SEPTEMBER 2010 1830-2000 This public forum does not require registration and is free of charge. BIOSCIENCES AND GLOBAL WARMING – OPTIONS FOR LOW CO2 ENERGY PRODUCTION Sponsored by ANZAAS, La Trobe Institute for Molecular Science, Bio21 University of Melbourne and The Victorian Government Location: Plenary Hall 2, Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre Three panel members will each give a 10-15 minute talk, and the rest of the time will be questions and answers, and general discussion. Moderator: Robyn Williams (host of the ABC’s Science Show since 1975) Speaker / Panel Member 1: Dr Deborah O’Connell, Sustainable Ecosystems, CSIRO, Canberra “Energy from Biomass” Dr O’Connell currently leads a major interdisciplinary team of 20 scientists on a project entitled Sustainable Biomass Production for Biofuels and Bioenergy in Australia: Can biomass provide low emission fuel and energy without compromising food, water and biosecurity? She has specialised in the emerging area of ‘integration’ science and systems analysis to provide insight into complex issues. This requires integrating multiple disciplines, being able to elicit complex research questions and provide tractable research approaches that draw on different forms of knowledge and skills. Since 2005 Dr O’Connell has led the CSIRO team that produced a series of industry reports including the high profile report Biofuels in Australia – an overview of issues and prospects. These reports have set the agenda for biofuels and bioenergy research in Australia. Speaker / Panel Member 2 A/Prof Kirsten Heimann, James Cook University, QLD., Australia “Algae for biodiesel and CO2 removal” Kirsten Heimann is the director of the North Queensland Algal Identification/Culturing Facility within the School of Marine and Tropcial Biology at James Cook University and leads a microalgal research team focusing on ecotoxicology and the development of microalgae for the commercial production of fertilizers, animal feeds, neutraceuticals, and biofuels. She has published extensively in diverse research areas in high ranking journals including Nature, Molecular Biology of the Cell, and Journal of Biological Chemistry. Kirsten’s research and teaching has won several awards, the most recent the Queensland Smart Women – Smart State Award for Research Excellence in 2008. Speaker / Panel Member 3 Professor Lucas van Zwieten, Department of Primary Industry, NSW “Biochar for energy production and carbon sequestration” Lucas van Zwieten (PhD) is a Principal Research Scientist with NSW Department of Primary Industries and Energy, and adjunct Professor at the National Centre for Rural Greenhouse Gas Research, University of New England. Research on biochar is internationally acclaimed through the 2007 United Nations association of Australia World Environment Day Award “Meeting the Greenhouse Challenge”. Work has been shown on ABCs Catalyst program (2007), a CNN “special report” in 2008, BBCs ecopolis in 2009 and ABCs Landline in 2009. Findings from his research have been published in the “Financial Review,” “Sydney Morning Herald” and “the Age” business sections. He is currently supervising 3 PhD students and manages over 200 field plots testing biochar in Australia, and is a project collaborator on the National DAFF biochar project administered by the CSIRO. Lucas also works on risk assessment and remediation of chemicals in the environment.