Tony Bartlett - 'The role of collaborative forest research in enhancing livelihoods in the Asia-Pacific, with a focus on projects involving the use of non timber forest species.

Tony will describe tree research projects in the Asia-Pacific including developing plantations of sandalwood (Santalum species) in North Queensland and Vanuatu and the domestication and commercialisation of the high value Canarium nuts (Canarium indicum) in Papua New Guinea. (Canarium indicum is an indigenous tree throughout the South Pacific, producing edible nuts as well as timber. The nuts are little known in international markets, but there is strong domestic demand in Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.)

Tony Bartlett is the Forestry Research Program Manager with the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) in Canberra.  In this role he manages a program of forest research projects involving Australian and developing country partners aimed at improving livelihoods through sustainable forestry. The ACIAR forestry program has projects in Laos, Vietnam, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and Fiji. Tony has a Master of Science from Oxford University and a Degree in Forest Science from the University of Melbourne. He has worked in forestry for more than 35 years, including forest management jobs in Victoria, the ACT, forestry and natural resource management policy roles with the Australian Government, and has worked on forestry assistance projects in Nepal and Vanuatu. He has experience in native forest management, fire management, plantation management, natural resource management, large-scale forest restoration, as well as with community forestry and management of tropical forests.