WEBINAR SERIES | Shaping the Future of Australian Plantations
Forestry Australia invites you to register for our webinar series, Shaping the Future of Australian Plantations, where leading experts explore the key factors shaping Australia’s plantation sector, including market dynamics, policy innovations, and technological advancements.
When you register, you’ll get:
- Recordings of Sessions One and Two
- Details, links and joining instructions for the final webinar, Session Three
RFP CPD: 3.0
RECORDING WEBINAR 1 | The evolving plantation estate: Market dynamics and opportunities
Date Recorded: Tuesday 29 July Duration: 1.5 hours
Plantation Forestry in Australia
Luke Bulkeley | Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF)
Luke’s presentation covered the history of plantations in Australia, as well as the current state of play, including the Australian Government’s Support Plantation Establishment Program.
How plantations will solve the housing crisis – with a bit of help
Tim Woods | IndustryEdge
Tim’s presentation explored how plantations are fundamental to addressing Australia’s housing crisis, and why support is needed across the supply chain—from seed to house warming. He highlighted where work is needed, where value can be created, and the opportunities to improve.
RECORDING WEBINAR 2 | Expanding possibilities: Policies, innovation and big picture thinking for a thriving plantation future
Date Recorded: Thursday 21 August | Duration: 1.5 hours
Successes and challenges in expanding the plantation estate
Di Hallam | Australian Forest Products Association (AFPA)
Growing Our Plantation Estate: Opportunities in Regional Victoria
Melanie Cook | Hancock Victorian Plantations (HVP)
Melanie’s presentation explored strategies to grow and better utilise the plantation estate—creating local opportunities to achieve carbon and nature repair goals, boost domestic market share, and contribute to sustainable housing. She also discussed key enablers of investor confidence, including clear establishment pathways, sovereign capability, and biosecurity coordination.
Recent and Future Innovations in Softwood Plantations – Some Perspectives from Queensland
Ian Last & John Senior | HQPlantations
Ian and John’s presentation provided a snapshot of HQPlantations and highlight a range of innovations and initiatives being explored and implemented to realise the organisation’s vision: to grow plantation value for generations.
WEBINAR 3 | Support Plantation Establishment Program & The Art of Growing Houses
Date: Thursday 4 September| Time: 12:30pm – 1:30pm | Duration: 1 hour
Support Plantation Establishment Program – Progress to Date
Taylor Duke | Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF)
Taylor’s presentation will provide an update on the Support Plantation Establishment Program. The Australian Government is providing around $74 million in grant funding over four years (2023–24 to 2026–27) to support the establishment of new long-rotation softwood and hardwood plantation forests. The program aims to help the sector respond to growing demand for domestically sourced timber.
The art of growing houses: what’s happened, what needs to happen, and what’s getting in the way of increasing Australia’s structural wood production capability?
Pat Groenhout | Greenwood Strategy
Pat’s presentation will explore the apparent stabilisation of Australia’s plantation area and the recent growth in long-rotation plantations for structural wood. He will discuss why this is happening, what’s required to maintain positive momentum, and the barriers that still need to be overcome.
Registrations (Inc. GST):
Forestry Australia Member: $20 | Non-Member: $120 | Student members: Free
Registrations close: 10am, Wednesday 3 September
Luke Bulkeley
Luke is the Director of the Plantations and Strategy team at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, which leads the delivery of key forestry and forest products policies and programs. Luke is a graduate of the University of Canberra and ANU Forestry School, and has been working in, below, and around forests his entire career.
His early career with CSIRO focused on the genetic breeding of Australian hardwood and softwood forestry species for plantations. Luke’s work during the 2019–20 bushfires was comprehensive, including his role in the ACT’s dedicated bushfire recovery team. He is a member of Australia’s National Biosecurity Response Team.
Tim Woods
Tim Woods has deep experience in the fibre, forestry and wood products supply chain in Australia and Southeast Asia.
As head of IndustryEdge, Tim drives a data-focussed approach to solving complex problems and explaining markets and industries. He is a sought-after speaker and presenter, aiming to deliver insights that support decisions and drive meaningful outcomes.
Pat Groenhout
Pat is an experienced forest industry executive, recognised for his strategic and innovative approach to complex challenges.
He has held executive and CEO roles in some of Australia’s largest forestry companies and has a deep understanding of the entire forest and forest products supply chain. Pat combines specialist forest industry expertise with strong stakeholder engagement and networking skills.
He also provides organisational business planning advice. He is a skilled facilitator with a sound understanding of the policy, strategic, and commercial imperatives of the forest and wood products sector.
Taylor Duke
Taylor is an Assistant Director in the Plantations and Strategy team at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, which leads the delivery of key forestry and forest products policies and programs.
Since joining DAFF in 2018, Taylor has worked across multiple international and domestic forestry policy issues, including reviewing and implementing reforms to Australia’s illegal logging laws, participating in bilateral and multilateral forestry discussions and negotiations, and most recently, designing and managing the Support Plantation Establishment grants program.
Melanie Cook
In 2024, Melanie made the move from leadership roles in the energy sector into the timber industry, taking up the CEO position at HVP Plantations.
HVP manages an estate of 240,000 hectares across Victoria—around 170,000 hectares of this land is pine and eucalypt plantation. HVP’s plantations extend from Gippsland in the east, to the border with South Australia in the west, and up to the northeast of the state.
Melanie holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, and Mathematics) from the University of Melbourne.
Dr John Senior
John is the Silvicultural Scientist at HQPlantations, where he has worked for the past five years on research to improve plantation productivity and value.
He leads several internal research projects and contributes to collaborative FWPA-funded initiatives, with a focus on forest nutrition, silviculture, and the effects of nursery practices on seedling quality and field performance.
John holds a PhD in community and ecosystem genetics and completed postdoctoral research in Sweden on how forest management influences soil communities and processes.
Ian Last
Ian is the Science Manager at HQPlantations, Queensland’s largest plantation grower. He has over 40 years’ experience in plantation management and research, primarily focussing on sub-tropical and tropical softwoods.
Following various operational roles throughout Queensland and a period in forest policy in Brisbane, Ian has led HQPlantations’ research team (and its predecessors) for the past 25 years. This includes internal research programs as well as collaborative projects with a wide range of partners.
With thanks to our 2025 Webinar Program Sponsors:
