CSIRO and land research in Papua New Guinea 1950–2000: part 2: post-Independence
Gael Keig A I , Robin L. Hide B , Susan M. Cuddy C , Heinz Buettikofer D , Jennifer A. Bellamy E , Pieter Bleeker F , David Freyne G and John McAlpine HA Honorary Fellow, CSIRO Land and Water, Black Mountain, ACT 2601, Australia.
B Honorary Senior Lecturer, School of Culture, History and Language, ANU College of Asia and the Pacific, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia.
C CSIRO Land and Water, Black Mountain, ACT 2601, Australia.
D Formerly CSIRO Land and Water, Black Mountain, ACT 2601, Australia.
E Honorary Senior Fellow, School of Agriculture and Food Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Qld 4072, Australia; formerly CSIRO Division of Water and Land Resources, Black Mountain, ACT 2601, Australia.
F Formerly CSIRO Division of Water and Land Resources, Black Mountain, ACT 2601, Australia.
G Formerly Chief Land Utilization Officer, Department of Agriculture and Livestock, Papua New Guinea.
H Formerly CSIRO Division of Water and Land Resources—deceased author.
I Corresponding author. Email: gael.keig@gmail.com
Historical Records of Australian Science 30(2) 100-111 https://doi.org/10.1071/HR18025
Published: 25 January 2019
Abstract
Following Papua New Guinea (PNG) Independence in 1975, the new administration approached Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) directly concerning the need to address issues related to food security and village-based agriculture. A subsequent series of collaborative research projects between CSIRO and PNG government departments built upon the existing survey information to provide PNG with one of the earliest national-level, computer-based resource information systems, with widespread applications, particularly in agriculture, forestry, environmental management and planning. Part 1 of this historical review discussed the evolution, conduct and outcomes of the CSIRO integrated surveys over the period 1950–75, while Part 2 describes the subsequent research projects that arose from the surveys and concluded in 2000. In addition, the legacy of CSIRO involvement in land research in PNG is examined in relation to advances made both within individual scientific disciplines and in other relevant technological fields, and to operational challenges and structural change within the organisation.
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