Dave Henry Email & Phone Number

Australia

Werribee, Victoria

Agriculture in Australia is undergoing a rapid transformation in response to a number of current market and societal changes. The growing pervasiveness of the internet, and the rapid adoption of digital technologies, is providing individuals and rural industries with vast amounts of information vital to improving operational efficiency. Exponential increases in computational power combined with new-found ability to harness this power through the use of data analytics, autonomous systems and… Show more Agriculture in Australia is undergoing a rapid transformation in response to a number of current market and societal changes. The growing pervasiveness of the internet, and the rapid adoption of digital technologies, is providing individuals and rural industries with vast amounts of information vital to improving operational efficiency. Exponential increases in computational power combined with new-found ability to harness this power through the use of data analytics, autonomous systems and artificial intelligence algorithms could provide major step changes in productivity and safety across the agriculture sector.In this role I am leading the development of research capability and opportunities in digital agriculture, establishing a research and technology pipeline to generate new research tools, enabling technologies for commercialisation, spanning discovery to near-market and commercial research.Specifically, my responsibilities include• Stimulating enhanced collaborative activity between agricultural, data and digital science researchers both within CSIRO and with partners. • Leading the development of research capability and opportunities in digital agriculture, establishing a research and technology pipeline to generate new research tools, enabling technologies, and/or technologies for commercialisation, spanning discovery to near-market and commercial research. • Making recommendations regarding research capability and opportunities in digital agriculture. • Liaising with external stakeholders from industry, universities, research institutes, government and relevant CSIRO Business Units to promote external investment in collaboration activities and projects in digital agriculture. Show less

Werribee, Victoria

Current projects:• Virtual Fencing - "Enhancing the profitability and productivity of livestock farming through virtual herding technology" funded by the Commonwealth’s Rural Research and Development for Profit program. • Digital Agriculture Services - New generation rural intelligence to better predict and manage agriculture investment and commerce. https://digitalagricultureservices.com/ • CSIRO strategic Digital Agriculture projects - suite of projects from livestock sensing… Show more Current projects:• Virtual Fencing - "Enhancing the profitability and productivity of livestock farming through virtual herding technology" funded by the Commonwealth’s Rural Research and Development for Profit program. • Digital Agriculture Services - New generation rural intelligence to better predict and manage agriculture investment and commerce. https://digitalagricultureservices.com/ • CSIRO strategic Digital Agriculture projects - suite of projects from livestock sensing through to artificial intelligence platformsSome recently completed projects:• Virtual Fencing - "Cost effective weed management using targeted sheep grazing technology” funded by the Commonwealth Dept of Agriculture and Water Resources..• SenseT Stage 2 Project "Delivery of real-time information solutions for intensively managed pasture based industries"• “A Digital Homestead”. Investigating how electronic services enabled by connectivity to the National Broadband Network can support greater productivity for farming enterprises. Focussed on the Northern Australia extensive beef industry.• "Evaluating options for remote automated monitoring of body condition score in cattle".• A SenseT Stage 1 project: "Pasture optimisation and decision support tools for the dairy and beef industries". Evaluating new technologies for monitoring cattle behaviour & productivity, and developing web-based decision support tools for farmers using real-time data streams to forward-predict pasture growth. • “Potential for information technologies to improve decision making for the southern livestock industries”. An MLA-commissioned project that reviewed ‘precision & remote' technologies for southern beef & sheep grazing industries. Show less

Melbourne, Australia

My appointment at Dairy Australia was a 3-year secondment from CSIRO. My position was as the Program Manager of the Feedbase Portfolio within the on-farm productivity and delivery group. Key responsibilities included:• Leadership role in developing and implementing feedbase and animal nutrition strategic and investment plans, including getting broad ownership with key stakeholders as required.• Research innovation, design and implementation of practice change in… Show more My appointment at Dairy Australia was a 3-year secondment from CSIRO. My position was as the Program Manager of the Feedbase Portfolio within the on-farm productivity and delivery group. Key responsibilities included:• Leadership role in developing and implementing feedbase and animal nutrition strategic and investment plans, including getting broad ownership with key stakeholders as required.• Research innovation, design and implementation of practice change in industry.• Leadership role in the ‘Feedbase & Animal Nutrition’ program within Dairy Moving Forward, which is the Dairy Industry’s response to the Primary Industries Ministerial Council (PIMC) initiative to develop a National R, D & E framework to encourage greater collaboration and promote continuous improvement in the investment of R, D & E resources nationally.• Establishing and maintaining key relationships across all parts of the industry, including farmers, service providers, milk companies, extension agencies, R&D providers, education sector, state and federal government, other Research and Development Corporations• Communicating, engaging and influencing key industry stakeholders• Assisting in industry emergency response• Facilitating and driving the capture of information and knowledge from projects, and embedding it into the ongoing business of key end-users• Bringing together, and implementing change in, a diverse range of stakeholders around a common area of interest. Show less

Perth Area, Western Australia And Then Geelong, Victoria

During my time as Project Leader in CSIRO’s Division of Livestock Industries, I had a number of roles and responsibilities in both science leadership and capability (people) management:1. Stream Leader “New Products and Services”, Agricultural Sustainability Initiative (2007- )The Agricultural Sustainability Initiative (ASI) brought together capabilities from 7 Divisions across CSIRO to deliver to production x environmental x social outcomes. With the ASI Leadership team, I was… Show more During my time as Project Leader in CSIRO’s Division of Livestock Industries, I had a number of roles and responsibilities in both science leadership and capability (people) management:1. Stream Leader “New Products and Services”, Agricultural Sustainability Initiative (2007- )The Agricultural Sustainability Initiative (ASI) brought together capabilities from 7 Divisions across CSIRO to deliver to production x environmental x social outcomes. With the ASI Leadership team, I was responsible for developing science innovation and science quality, business development and planning, and project delivery. 2. Capability Stream Leader, CSIRO Livestock Industries(incl. Project Leader of “Pastures from Space”) From 2004-2007, I was the leader of a research stream in CSIRO “Integrating Livestock Business Systems”. Our aim was to deliver a suite of near real-time information tools to the extensive livestock grazing industry that underpinned tactical and strategic decision making for productivity, social and environmental benefit. I was responsible for the scientific leadership of projects in the major temperate, Mediterranean and tropical zones of Australia and the management of capabilities in specialised field and laboratory facilities. The ‘Flagship’ project within the portfolio was the Pastures from Space project which developed cutting-edge spatial information tools and remote sensing products.Key Science innovation and project roles• Development, delivery and adoption of quantitative remote sensing tools for extensive agriculture• Harnessing cutting-edge information technologies in agriculture, eg integrating wireless sensor networks with earth observation to enable high spatial and temporal real-time monitoring• Spatial risk analysis of livestock disease threats, including modelling the likely spread of incursions using complex systems techniques• Spectroscopy and imaging to measure and understand plant biochemistry and function Show less

Perth, Western Australia, Australia

This Postdoc position at CSIRO was my first after completing my PhD at Melbourne University. It was formally a joint position across three domains - plant physiology/chemistry; entomology & livestock production. The background to the research project was that the plant breeding industry had been selecting new varieties of pasture plants for improved resistance to insects, in this specific example, Redlegged Earth Mite resistance of Subterranean Clover. However the selection for improved… Show more This Postdoc position at CSIRO was my first after completing my PhD at Melbourne University. It was formally a joint position across three domains - plant physiology/chemistry; entomology & livestock production. The background to the research project was that the plant breeding industry had been selecting new varieties of pasture plants for improved resistance to insects, in this specific example, Redlegged Earth Mite resistance of Subterranean Clover. However the selection for improved resistance was through field observations and there was no fundamental understanding of the underlying mechanism of resistance. Further, there was concern that selecting and breeding for improved insect resistance was negatively affecting livestock performance.Hence this study was designed to better understand the biomechanical and/or biochemical basis for resistance to RedLegged Earth Mite, and whether selection for this trait was having an influence on livestock performance.In addition to building my capacity in plant chemistry, physiology & agronomy, entomology, and livestock intake and performance, a key requirement was communicating with and influencing a range of experts both within and external to the organisation. Show less

Phd, Agricultural Science

Bachelor Of Agricultural Science

Education record