Smartened Up

Andrew Mathieson
THE knowitall tag sits uncomfortably with most, especially when a notable award is up for grabs to prove the point.
Dr David Henry admits to an uneasiness from topping the Bulletin magazine’s Bayer Smart 100 after the finalist proved his significant contribution to Australian innovation.
A nervous grin arises on the face of the Waurn Ponds scientist and the eyes roll back into his head at the mention of the accolades.
“It sort of makes me sink in the chair but it’s nice to be recognised,” David sheepishly responds.
“I don’t think of myself as being smart, just lucky to have good people around me with good science and to be in the right place at the right time.”
The 38yearold’s life is pasture agronomy, taking on the dual responsibility of senior research scientist and stream leader with CSIRO Livestock Industries.
But despite David’s qualifications, it’s still a mystery to him how he made the list.
“There was no nomination as far as I know,” David recounts.
“I just got a call one day from them.
“We do a lot of media things with the project and this award has got a lot of attention, so I’ve wondered whether that has captured their imagination, too.”
The project David speaks about is a pasturesfromspace program out of a Geelong laboratory.
The team has utilised satellite coverage to observe and measure realtime pasture growth.
Farmers now have a better grip on stock management issues, with the analysis service accessible over the internet.
In laymen’s terms, farmers can know work out how much grass is in their paddocks for their production or the environment.
David has found that the sciencefiction technology has “captured the imagination of the public”.
“We’re not just doing science for science sake but we’re getting it out there, having it used and being some benefit,” he explains.
“The smart stuff is the addon, delivering all that to farmers and land managers who can actually use it.”
The scientistcomebusinessman also has to sell the cuttingedge technologies to agriculture, with flying between Perth, Rockhampton, Armidale, New Zealand and back home to Geelong just another part of the deal.
“You have to get funding, satisfy the customers and do good science,” David acknowledges.
“You may be smart but you still have to see whether there’s a market out there.”
Despite growing up in the city, David always wanted to work with animals.
Hard as it is to believe, he failed to obtain good enough grades to be accepted into veterinary science.
Nevertheless, David bit his tongue, grit his teeth and completed an agricultural science degree with honours and later a PhD in pasture agronomy.
There are no regrets now.
“The thing I like most about agricultural science is I can use my science skills that actually make an impact,” he says.
“To me, that’s what it’s all about.”