There are around 6,500 different types of Australian native foods, but there are many barriers to First Nations people commercialising them. The good news is that 40% of the land mass has been returned to Traditional Custodians, and now with a formalised commercialisation and export strategy for native foods, the opportunities for Indigenous producers are endless.

AI applications are revolutionising the way we create. But these creations rely on ideas conceived by humans who are not always given appropriate credit. It is likely that generative AI systems will soon only be allowed to be trained on work in the public domain or under licences, which will affect everyone who integrates generative AI into their work.

We have had many wake-up calls in recent times. Bushfires, floods, war, and the COVID-19 pandemic all exposed the cracks in our food supply systems. More Australians have experienced food insecurity in the past few years than ever. Dr Rachel Carey wants to make our food supply chains much more resilient to future shocks and stresses.

Plants have been used as traditional medicines around the world for centuries – even millennia. With the technology we have now, Dr Tien Huynh can uncover the science behind how they work. Drawing on her Vietnamese heritage, she is particularly interested in plants from tropical Asia – including the gấc fruit (Momordica cochinchinensis).

On the 3rd of July, the record for the average global air temperature was broken. The northern hemisphere’s summer reminds us that extreme heat events may be just around the corner. A 50°C day, which climate scenarios gave small comfort was still some time off, could happen any time. How prepared is Victoria’s food system?