2017 finished on a high with the Graduation of FGC PhD graduate Dr Kyle Reynolds. I had the pleasure of getting to know Kyle as an undergraduate student when he participated in a student trip to Switzerland that I coordinated. Kyle enjoyed that trip so much he joined us again the next year on a trip to the US. During these trips, it became clear to me that Kyle had a real passion for science and was already showing strong leadership skills. During his PhD, Kyle underwent enormous growth and demonstrated by the end of his PhD that he has the capacity to be an independent researcher. It has been a privilege to watch Kyle develop, as it is to see all of our students develop into independent researchers. We wish Kyle all the best in his current role as a postdoctoral fellow at CSIRO and look forward to hearing about the important contributions that he will make to the grains industry in the future.

There were a number of other proud moments throughout 2017 including the 2017 Australasian Grain Science Association conference in Christchurch where our students and researchers made a big contribution to the program. I was so proud of how our team conducted themselves at the conference and the high quality of their presentations. I was particularly proud of Esther Callcott who received the best student presentation award for her outstanding talk.

It has been pleasing to see centre members travelling and engaging with collaborators and other stakeholders. Shiwagini Rao has certainly been working on her frequent flyer miles with visits to the Philippines and Curtin University in 2017. Associate Professor Waters and I have enjoyed our continued interactions with local breeders and other collaborators. I had the opportunity to attend the Australian Agronomy conference in Ballarat where it was great to see Graham Centre members Professor Jim Pratley and Dr John Angus acknowledged for their contributions. I also had the opportunity to join the Australian Business Week in India delegation in New Delhi. Even though the second half of the program was cancelled due to flooding in Mumbai, I was still able to develop an improved understanding of the complex Indian pulse market. We even managed to find canola oil processed in Wagga Wagga on the shelves of an online supermarket.  It was great to see Rachael Wood mixing with the politicians at Parliament House to promote rice research, while Siong Tan and Randy Adjonu both gave excellent presentations at the Australian Oilseeds Federation Forum.

Finally, it was nice to come together as a team to celebrate at our end of year function. One of the benefits of being part of the FGC is the friendships that are forged through collaboration and teamwork. It was great to see some of those friendships further developed in a more relaxed environment. I think the highlight for most might have been the “dance off” between myself and Associate Professor Waters. I’m hoping that video doesn’t make it to YouTube!