What do you get when you combine one of Australia’s most diverse natural areas with cutting-edge technology and an innovative approach to teaching and research?
Introducing the University of New England’s School of Environmental and Rural Science, where staff, students, and industry leaders come together to learn, share, and discover solutions for a better world.
The brand new ‘Agricultural Education Building’ contains flexible teaching wet laboratories, specialised research laboratories, lecture theatres, tutorial and meeting rooms, specialised temperature controlled and sound proofed rooms, academic and administration offices, postgraduate spaces, and the multi-disciplinary Natural History Museum.
Welcome to the School of Environmental and Rural Science (ERS) at the University of New England (UNE) – one of the largest and most respected research centres for agriculture and environmental science in Australia. With our innovative approach to teaching and research, we explore the science and management of ecosystems, agriculture, food production, sustainability, geology, and civil and environmental engineering – producing high-level graduates that are fully equipped to rise to the challenge of feeding a growing global population while sustaining the Earth’s incredible biodiversity. Our dedicated academics, Ph.D. and undergraduate students work every day to achieve our goal: ‘Feed the world, Save the planet’. For further information: ers@une.edu.au • une.edu.au/ers
Ancient trees touch the sky and the sounds of native birdsong fill the air in the great swathes of National Parks and State Forests surrounding Armidale, the home of our main campus. This privileged location assists with the teaching and research into our environment and numerous ecosystems – with the enormous variety of landscapes, ecosystems, and wildlife on offer inspiring staff and students alike.
New England High Country Dr Gerhard Koertner Oxley Wild Rivers NP, near Walcha NSW
Oxley Wild Rivers National Park, surrounding Armidale, is part of the spectacular World Heritage Gondwana Rainforests of Australia and contains at least fourteen waterfalls, including the highest waterfall in NSW. The rich biodiversity found in the park includes several rare and threatened species of both plants and animals.
We’re passionate about the future of farming
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That’s why we’ve created the new, state-of-the-art Animal Husbandry Precinct – part of the multimillion dollar ‘Integrated Agricultural Education Project’ (IAEP). In order to provide an exceptional learning environment for students and researchers, the University of New England has heavily invested into world-class teaching and research facilities for the agricultural and environmental sciences – making us the best choice in Australia for agricultural study. Our courses and teaching methods are structured to be flexible and suit everyone’s lifestyle, and we welcome students from Australia and around the world, who take part in our highly regarded oncampus and online learning programs.
There are few universities in the world where geologists, engineers, geneticists, agronomists, zoologists, botanists, soils scientists, and ecologists work together on the big challenges that face our planet. The School of Environmental and Rural Science at UNE is one of those rare places looking at the science and management behind feeding the world, whilst ensuring excellent environmental outcomes. With a highly multidisciplinary approach to teaching and research, some of the best lecturers and scientists drive forward the science, as well as the application of those sciences in developing novel ways to produce food and fibre, secure and understand biodiversity, and ensure that we have a sustainable planet.
Undergraduate students experience small intensive class sizes, within a vibrant college campus setting. Postgraduates are provided with state-of-the art research facilities. Researchers experience an unprecedented link between science and industry through our collaborations with business and stakeholders. All experience the benefit of large overseas research and training projects, providing a broad worldview of the complexities of issues affecting the planet.
Professor Aron Murphy Head of School School of Environmental and Rural Science University of New England Armidale, NSW 2351 Australia ers@une.edu.au
With over 150 staff, 140 Ph.D. students, and 1,300 undergraduates, the School is a major centre in Australia for teaching and research in Agriculture and Environmental Sciences. School of Environmental and Rural Science
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Rural Science Dr Mark Trotter in the ‘control room’ UNE Kirby SMART farm
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Providing food and fibre for the planet’s growing population is vital, and demands graduates who are capable of understanding and integrating whole agricultural systems. Our research and teaching of Rural Science is focused on many aspects of agriculture, agronomy, and management of the rural environment, with established strengths in agricultural, soil and plant sciences.
A 3-hour drive from Armidale allows you to see 90% of the food types produced in Australia, and areas of the highest biodiversity.
Australia’s oldest university outside of a capital city, the University of New England is located in Armidale, New South Wales – a sophisticated town in a picturesque rural setting, surrounded by four extraordinary National Parks. Since its foundation in the 1930s, UNE has had a reputation for being one of Australia’s greatest teaching and research universities, and is proud of its long history and traditions.
90 Brisbane
Armidale
Sydney Beef
Wine
Sheep meat
Rice
Sheep wool
Grains
Oranges
Cotton
Apples
Dairy
Bananas
Sugar
National Parks
Marine Reserves
State Forests
PHOTO: A/Prof Karl Vernes
PHOTO: Prof Brian Sindel
PHOTO: Prof Brian Sindel
PHOTO: Dr Paul McDonald
To achieve global food security in our changing world, agricultural production will need to increase by 50% over the next 40 years. To achieve this goal whilst maintaining our natural environments and biodiversity will be an enormous challenge. At ERS, we provide customised short training courses, undertake research in development
issues, provide expert consultancies, and act as an executing agency to manage complex international collaboration programs. We also assist international organisations and agencies to develop investment and action strategies. We offer guidance and scholarships to help our higher degree researchers get experience in international development.
Our researchers and students often travel to exciting and exotic places to undertake their research and teaching.
Where ERS research takes place International students and HDR: country of origin
The research and courses related to agronomy and plant science at UNE encompass the study of plant diversity, weed management, cotton and grain production, structure and function, and ecology with other organisms. Scientists at UNE are currently investigating variation in the root growth of grain crops using micro-computed tomography. This method creates images of root systems responding to isolated patches of nutrients. Photo: Dr Richard Flavel
The Cotton Hub at UNE delivers crossdisciplinary work on the issues affecting production of sustainable cotton. une.edu.au/cottonhub
The NCW Beadle Herbarium at UNE is an internationally recognised collection of over 100,000 preserved plant specimens, housed in a purpose-built facility with excellent stereomicroscopes and specimen imaging equipment. 12
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Agronomy: Glasshouse Michael Faint, Glasshouse Manager
The Glasshouse Complex is an important teaching and research facility, consisting of two large glasshouses with controlled temperature bays to meet specific environmental conditions.
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Environmental Science Dr Sarah Mika Gwydir River, NSW
From Australia’s vast wetlands to its towering peaks, the beauty of the natural world is all around us. The Environmental Sciences at UNE is a diverse and exciting area of study that aims to understand and improve our natural environment, with projects and courses ranging from ecology, river restoration and ecosystem management to geographical information systems (GIS), conservation and many others – equipping graduates with the skills and knowledge they need to have a real, tangible impact on our world. 14
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Engineering Rex Glencross-Grant Armidale Dumaresq Council’s Wastewater Treatment Plant We provide the decision-makers of the future with the necessary skills in Civil and Environmental Engineering for planning and construction in an environmentally sensitive manner. Our teaching and research include infrastructure and project management, environmental impact, pollution management, hydrology and water resources, surveying, remote sensing, materials and concrete technology, and structural analysis and design.
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Trilobite (Redlichia takooensis) by Prof. John Paterson. Emu Bay Shale Konservat-Laerstätte, Kangaroo Island, SA
Palaeoscience and Earth Science Our Palaeoscience and Earth Science students and researchers explore our planet’s geological and prehistoric past, and the cataclysmic processes that shaped the Earth. ERS is also home to the Palaeoscience research team (the largest of its kind in the country), where our academics cover almost every facet of palaeontology and palaeoanthropology – from microfossils and dinosaurs to giant arthropods and sabre-toothed cats.
Palaeontology Fossil: jaw of a Gorgosaurus (by Dr Phil Bell) Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada
FEAR lab The primary interest of The Function, Evolution and Anatomy Research (FEAR) Lab is to improve the understanding of relationships between shape and function in living and fossil animals. They use sophisticated computer based 3D modelling (Finite Element Analysis) and geometric morphometrics to predict and analyse mechanical behaviour in skulls and other biological structures. In addition to providing detailed information on how animals are adapted to particular behaviours and predictions for behaviour in fossil species, the Fear Lab applies these techniques to answer a wide range of biomedical questions. Other areas on which they have published, and maintain an active interest in, include vertebrate palaeontology, extinction of the Australian megafauna and marsupial carnivore phylogeny and biogeography.
Palaeoscience Associate Professor Stephen Wroe FEAR lab, UNE
Western pygmy-possum (Cercartetus concinnus) Prof Fritz Geiser Various locations across southern Australia 20
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Ecology (Echidna survey) Volunteer Bastian Betz with Dr Gerhard Koertner Tuggolo State Forest, near Walcha
With our unique access to a wide range of biodiversity hotspots including rainforest, savannah, and estuarine and marine environments, UNE is the perfect place to study animals. Our students conduct regular fieldtrips to amazing research locations over the course of their studies.
We share our planet with many incredible creatures. Zoology is the field within biology that studies the animal kingdom, and UNE is the only University in Australia to offer a Bachelor of Zoology degree.
Our Zoology course integrates parasitology, physiology, behaviour, taxonomy, evolution, and distribution. Our students and researchers study all animal taxa, both living and extinct, from parasites and birds to insects and mammals. They investigate the structure and function of animals, from hibernation to migration, and from predation to thermoregulation. Extatosoma tiaratum > School of Environmental and Rural Science
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Parasitism is by far the most common way of life on this planet - it has independently evolved multiple times in many different lineages of life, and all types of organisms are infected with parasites of some sort at some stage of their lives. To overlook parasites and how they influence ecosystems is to ignore a major part of what makes nature what it is. Despite the ubiquity of parasitism, most research on parasites have focused on just a few species which are of human medical and agricultural interest. But there are many other parasites species found in the New England region and surrounding areas which are often overlooked. They are found in snails, shrimps, insects, and many other animals in the wild, but their effects on the ecosystems are unknown. My research investigates the ecology and evolutionary biology of parasitism, focusing on where various parasites are found, what kind of animals they infect, why do some animals have more parasites than others, and how parasites impact their hosts and what effects this has on the rest of the ecosystem.
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Parasitology Dr Tommy Leung Various locations around New South Wales
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Rural Science Catherine Marriott UNE SMART Farm
I whole heartedly believe that it was my time at UNE and Robb College in particular, that set me up for where I am now. My time at UNE gave me leadership skills, an international scholarship, all the sport I could handle, loads of great lectures and practical work, a social life that was thriving and the capacity to engage in and actively contribute to a team. Most importantly, the people that I lived and studied with have given me the most amazing network of really strong, contributing and driven people. I come across Rural Science Graduates in board rooms around the world. Attending UNE and Robb College set me up with skills that I now use every day in my career and life, it gave me resilience, courage, independence, a thirst and passion for improving rural Australian industry and a determination to create positive change for Australian Agriculture.� Catherine Marriott 2016
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Tullimba is UNE’s worldclass feedlot research facility, designed to provide research and training opportunities, as well as enhance the international competitiveness of the Australian beef industry.
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The property is approximately 740 hectares in area, located 40 Km southwest of Armidale (NSW). The feedlot was established in 1994, one year after being purchased by the University, and is licensed to carry over 1000-head. The areas of research conducted at the facility include feed efficiency, meat quality, animal performance, feed intake, and feedlot waste management. The property’s significant irrigation areas allow fodder to be utilised by the feedlot. Tullimba promotes greater cooperation between geneticists, nutritionists, and meat scientists, and is designed to provide reliable and rigorous data collection, whilst maximising industry confidence.
Juvenile Hereford Mr Colin Crampton (manager) Tullimba Station, UNE
ANIMAL SCIENCE As humans, we interact closely with other animals – often relying on them for food, labour, recreation, and companionship. Our Animal Science course focuses on the biology and husbandry of domesticated animals – including farm and companion animals such as cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, chickens, dogs, cats, and horses. Our modern teaching and research facilities house the latest technologies on campus, with easy access to the large rural properties owned by the University. The hallmarks of Animal Science at UNE are a close integration with industry and a strong research culture. UNE currently hosts two major Cooperative Research Centres in Animal Science (Sheep and Poultry). The research of Animal Science at UNE incorporates the study of production efficiency, carbon emission management, integrated animal health and welfare, animal husbandry systems, animal behaviour, welfare and disease control, and product quality through quantitative genetics and genomics. School of Environmental and Rural Science
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Soil is the most complex biomaterial on the planet. A healthy and productive soil secures organic carbon from the atmosphere and from plant life. This promotes the accumulation of organic carbon, reducing erosion, and increasing fertility.
Plant roots are the ‘hidden half ’ of plants, exploring the soil pore space and extracting nutrients for growth. Roots bind soil together, forming unique rhizospheres and improving functions.
Soil organic matter
Roots
The inner space of soil acts as the habitat for the greatest biodiversity on Earth; the reservoir of the largest volume of fresh water provides the necessary fertility for plant and animal production.
Through sustainable agriculture and ecosystem management, our students and researchers work with these natural processes, optimising agricultural outputs whilst securing long-term productivity. The research at UNE focuses on identifying and quantifying these processes, as well as improving the management of natural resources for current and future needs.
Soil Science A/Prof Karl Vernes Mt Kaputar, NSW Spores from the truffle fungi Cortinarius maculobulga a new species of truffle from Mt Kaputar, NSW.
Soil particles clump together to form aggregates, held together by clay, organic matter, roots, and soil microorganisms. Soil aggregates enhance soil structure, preventing erosion and soil loss. Aggregates also contribute to nutrient and water retention, promoting soil health and fertility.
The School of Environmental and Rural Science offers a range of undergraduate and postgraduate degrees. Students have the opportunity to focus their degree within a specific field, or combine their studies with units offered by other Schools across the University. More information on specialisations available within the School may be found on our website: une.edu.au/ers-degrees
Undergraduate • Agribusiness • Agriculture • Agricultural & Resource Economics • Agrifood Systems • Animal Science • Engineering Technology • Environmental Science • GeoScience • Rural Science • Zoology
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Combined and Double Bachelor Degrees • Agriculture/Business • Agriculture/Laws • Environmental Sc./Laws • Science/Laws
Bachelor Honours • Agriculture • Environmental Science • Science • Geoscience • Zoology
Postgraduate Coursework • Graduate Certificates • Masters • Agriculture
Postgraduate Research • Master of Science • Master of Environmental Science • Master of Rural Science • Doctor of Philosophy
• Environmental Science • Ag & Resource Economics • Environmental Science & Management • Scientific Studies
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une.edu.au/ers @ERS_UNE fb.com/sERS.UNE
PHOTO: Ms Sue Jaggar