In Australia, we rely on people from all walks of life to help keep an eye out for pests, weeds and diseases - not just trained scientists and government officials.
To better understand how DAFF can support community engagement for biosecurity general surveillance our Social Sciences team in ABARES is collaborating with the Centre of Excellence for Biosecurity Risk Analysis (CEBRA).
General surveillance programs involve engaging people from all walks of life in the monitoring and reporting of pests, weeds and diseases.
The project is sponsored by the Chief Environmental Biosecurity Officer and supported by a steering group of department and key partner staff across biosecurity sectors (animal, environment, marine and plant.
Phase 1 involves interviews and focus groups with department staff as well as staff from our close partners, such as Animal Health Australia, Plant Health Australia and Wildlife Health Australia.
These interviews and focus groups explore how DAFF is already contributing to implementing and resourcing general surveillance programs, and what experiences staff have had in terms of what does and does not work. The information is used to identify options for how general surveillance community engagement endeavours could be better informed to ensure the design, implementation and resourcing of these programs deliver outcomes that are cost-effective and fit for purpose.
Phase 1 will produce a situational analysis that includes potential opportunities for improvement, and a stocktake of DAFF-supported general surveillance community engagement activities that we have undertaken or supported in the last 5 years.
For more information contact the project team.