By Professor Owen Atkin, Director of the Agrifood Innovation Institute (AFII), Australian National University

Australia’s agricultural story has always been one of innovation. From the early adoption of dryland cropping to precision agriculture, we’ve learned to adapt and evolve in one of the most variable climates in the world. Yet the challenges facing agriculture today are unlike any before, and they can’t be solved using traditional approaches to research and development.

Climate resilience, ecosystem health, food-system sustainability, global trade fluctuations and policy are deeply intertwined. Meeting these challenges requires new ways of working that bring together the best of science, technology, social and cultural understanding. This is where interdisciplinary innovation becomes not just valuable, but essential.

The future of Australia’s agrifood sector depends on our ability to see the big picture. Productivity will always matter, but the demands placed on the sector have shifted. Farmers are now navigating pressures around emissions reductions, biodiversity, supply-chain transparency and workforce shortages. How we produce food and fuel is also changing, with new opportunities to harness Australia’s strengths in renewable energy and feedstock supply to drive a revolution in biomanufacturing and meet international requirements for low-carbon liquid fuels.

At the recent Preparing Nature and Society for a Hotter World Symposium that Agrifood Innovation Institute co-hosted, these tensions were front and centre. Scientists, social researchers and industry leaders came together to discuss how heat stress is impacting crops, livestock and people, and how our responses must be integrated across science, policy and social sciences. It was a powerful reminder that multidisciplinary collaboration is challenging. Researchers from different disciplines speak different professional languages, value different types of evidence, and often work on different timeframes. But when we persist, when we find that common ground, that’s when the real breakthroughs happen. The Symposium showed how social science can help interpret the human and behavioural dimensions of climate adaptation, while biophysical research provides the technical foundation. Together, they form a more complete understanding of what resilience in Australian agriculture truly means.

Australia’s research and development sector is world-class but under strain. In 2025, the Commonwealth Government launched a Strategic Examination of Research and Development to review how the system can better deliver long-term national impact. We all know that investment in R&D in Australia has fallen, from 2.25% of GDP in 2008 to 1.68% in 2025, well below the OECD average. Business investment has weakened, and universities face growing financial pressures. Short-term funding cycles, typically lasting 2 to 5 years, reward incremental progress over bold, high-risk research. This volatility makes it difficult to plan, retain talent or build long-term collaborations with the industry.

Meanwhile, translation pathways from discovery to impact remain fragmented. These structural and cultural challenges mean that interdisciplinary work, which takes longer to establish and often defies simple metrics, is especially vulnerable. Yet it’s precisely this kind of research that Australia most needs right now. If we want transformative solutions, we must invest in the full R&D system, including mechanisms that encourage collaboration across disciplines and sectors, and ensure the indirect costs of research are properly covered and that we maintain investment in critical national infrastructure.

At AFII, we’ve learned first-hand that creating interdisciplinary teams isn’t just about mixing expertise. It’s about building trust and dialogue among disciplines. When biologists, engineers, economists and social scientists collaborate, they bring different methodologies, terminologies and success metrics. The challenge lies in finding a shared purpose and aligning incentives. But when that shared direction is in place, the impact can be significant.

One of the key lessons from the interactive sessions at the Preparing Nature and Society for a Hotter World Symposium was that solutions emerge not from compromise but from convergence, when disciplines retain their integrity while working toward a shared outcome.

Adapting to a hotter world can’t be achieved simply by scientists working in isolation to develop satellite-based early-warning systems and novel crops with dramatically improved heat tolerance. Rather, communities need to be consulted by social scientists to ensure that research targets their on-the-ground needs. One example from the Symposium was Mark King's input, a dried fruit farmer from Wentworth in NSW. For Mark, one of the highest priorities will be ensuring that townships have access to clean drinking water during periods of drought and extreme heat, a challenge when rivers are not flowing and are overly nutrient-rich or algal. Listening to farmers like Mark will be crucial in ensuring that research addresses the needs of communities living in areas most affected by extreme heat. This intersection of social and technical innovation is where the future of agrifood research lies. It’s also where AFII has positioned itself as a connector, translator, and catalyst.

To make collaboration easier, the Australian National University has invested in Innovation Institutes, including AFII. We act as a single-entry point for government and industry to access the full interdisciplinary capabilities of the university. We bring together expertise from across science, engineering, economics, the social sciences, and policy to tackle long-term agrifood challenges, from improving crop resilience and lowering carbon emissions to enhancing the transition to new energy systems, and addressing biosecurity and One Health risks. Our structure is deliberately designed to break down silos and create a new culture of research at the ANU. Instead of connecting with a single research group or faculty member, partners can engage through us to help coordinate across disciplines. This makes it easier for industry and government to access the expertise they need, and for researchers to collaborate in new ways.

To deliver real impact, interdisciplinary innovation must be matched with mission-style investments — long-term, outcome-focused funding aimed at national challenges. In recent years, ANU and partner universities have championed the idea of a National Resilience Sovereign Innovation Fund. This mechanism would support large-scale, interdisciplinary research programs lasting 10 years or more. One example of what this could look like is the proposed National Mission for Crop and Community Resilience, a collaboration among ANU, the University of Western Australia, the University of Adelaide, and the University of Queensland. This mission aims to bring together biological, technological and social expertise to address crop productivity, climate resilience and regional community wellbeing. Such initiatives demonstrate how combining cutting-edge science with social insight can create not only more resilient crops but also more resilient communities, ensuring benefits flow from the lab to the land.

Australia’s R&D system is at a crossroads. The Strategic Examination of Research and Development recognises that our innovation ecosystem, from funding models to institutional structures, must evolve to support collaboration across disciplines and sectors. We need funding frameworks that reward teamwork, long-term partnerships and translational impact, not just publication counts. We need national infrastructure that supports shared facilities and data access. And we need cultural change within academia and industry, to see interdisciplinary collaboration not as an add-on, but as the default. At AFII, we believe universities have a critical role to play as connectors within this evolving ecosystem. By bringing together science, technology, social insight and policy, we can help Australia build the resilient, inclusive and sustainable agrifood systems the world will need in the decades ahead.

When I look at Australia’s agrifood sector, I see extraordinary potential. We have world-class researchers and dynamic industries. What we need now is the courage to work differently, investing in systems that value connection over competition and long-term vision over short-term returns. Interdisciplinary innovation isn’t easy. It demands patience, humility and persistence. But it’s also where the future will be built, not in the spaces between disciplines, but at their intersection. That’s where transformation happens.