
Cane Farmers: Going the Distance
150 cane farmers are participating in a project to boost productivity and water quality
Healthy waterways underpin our lifestyles and livelihoods. When waterways thrive, so do we.
Cross Sector Responses to Waterway Health
13 April 2023, JCU Smithfield Campus
Managing water is a challenge shared by many stakeholders in the Wet Tropics. And where there are shared challenges, there are often shared solutions. The Shared Solutions Forum on 13 April at the JCU Cairns campus (Smithfield) will bring together people from different sectors to explore and share solutions for managing waterway health challenges in the tropics.
Sessions for the forum will include:
The event program includes an impressive line up of speakers, from Traditional Owners to behaviour change scientists, civil engineers and hydrologists.
Keynote speaker Dr Steve Davis from the Everglades Foundation will talk about water management challenges in the Florida Everglades and the solutions being implemented.
Tickets
Tickets can be purchased through Eventbrite.
*One complimentary ticket is available per WTW Partner organisation. Email hannah.okane@terrain.org.au with the details of this person (name, organisation, email address and any dietary requirements).
Download resources
COVID Protocols for participants
JCU Cairns, Smithfield Parking Map

150 cane farmers are participating in a project to boost productivity and water quality

Read about some of our region's rare and unusual native fish species

Banana farmers making land management changes to improve water quality to the Reef

Martine joined the Wet Tropics Waterways team as a Science Technical Officer in early 2024. She is an environmental scientist and ecologist and has worked on water quality and aquatic ecology projects as a consultant and in private industry for over 20 years. She is using her experience in statistical programming and database development to develop new systems for the Report Card.

Richard has been the Science Technical Officer for Wet Tropics Waterways since 2016. His role involves producing the annual results for the waterway health assessment of the wet tropics region using data from a wide range of sources, to present as scores and grades, as well as developing new indicators to address knowledge and monitoring gaps. He works in collaboration with technical staff at other regional report cards.
Richard has a background in freshwater ecology research projects and environmental assessments with CSIRO, University of Queensland, Queensland Government and as a consultant. For a long time he’s been interested in freshwater aquaculture and continues this interest through farming freshwater crayfish, alongside other farming activities.

Simon has over 30 years’ experience advocating for waterways across academia, government and the private sector. He started out in marine botany with a fascination for seagrass, mangroves and macroalgae, and has gone on to lead major environmental initiatives both in Australia and overseas. He has established report cards in eight countries.

Rowan is a conservation scientist with a background in wildlife science and tropical ecology. She holds a Bachelor of Wildlife Science from the University of Queensland and has recently completed a Master of Tropical Biology and Conservation at James Cook University.
Rowan brings experience in science communication, with a strong interest in connecting people with conservation outcomes. In her role with Wet Tropics Waterways, she supports initiatives that combine scientific knowledge with community outreach to help protect the Wet Tropics and Great Barrier Reef catchments, and to strengthen collaboration between researchers, stakeholders, and the wider community.