Former cotton scientist Dr Nicola Cottee has returned to her research roots, joining CRDC's Innovation team.
Nicola has a long-standing association with CRDC, the industry and cotton research. She completed her CRDC and CSIRO-supported PhD into the heat tolerance of cotton at the Australian Cotton Research Institute in Narrabri in 2009.
Since then, she has worked as a postdoctoral fellow with CSIRO, as a research direction & stewardship policy officer with Cotton Australia, and most recently, as a senior technical advisor with the NSW Environment Protection Authority.
Nicola is based in Sydney, and has joined the CRDC team part time as an R&D Manager, or, as the role will be known from July onwards, an Innovation Broker.
CRDC Executive Director Ian Taylor said Nicola brings extensive cotton experience to CRDC, further strengthening CRDC's team.
"We are delighted to welcome Nicola to the CRDC team as we prepare to start investing under our new Strategic RD&E Plan 2023-28. One of the core pillars of our new plan is People, and our goal under this pillar is to continue to develop our world-class researchers," he said.
"Nicola is a perfect example of this: a former CRDC-supported PhD scholar, who went on to work as a researcher, policy officer and technical advisor, bringing her experience and skills back to CRDC to lead a portfolio of investments.
"Nicola's strong network and experience will be of great benefit to CRDC and the wider cotton industry."
The three pillars of the new CRDC Strategic R&D Plan 2023-28 are Paddock, People and Planet, aligning with the Australian Cotton Industry's Sustainability Framework.
The Plan will commence on 1 July, and CRDC General Manager, Innovation Allan Williams will lead its implementation. He will be supported by Nicola and her fellow Innovation Brokers, Susan Maas, Dr Merry Conaty, Elsie Hudson, Stacey Vogel and Rachel Holloway.
The CRDC R&D Manager role is being renamed Innovation Broker to better describe the role under the new Plan: a broker of research innovation investment.
