Key Facts:
- The 2026 Forestry Australia Symposium will be held at the Rex Hotel in Canberra from 7-9 October 2026, with registrations now open.
- Award-winning journalist and Monash University Professor Stan Grant and Dr Simon Longstaff AO, Executive Director of The Ethics Centre, will deliver keynote addresses at the event.
- The Symposium's theme is *The forestry story: Strategies for improved awareness, social licence and effective engagement*, focusing on how the sector can build trust with communities, Traditional Owners, policymakers and the media.
- Forestry Australia CEO Jacquie Martin emphasised that social licence cannot be taken for granted, and that genuine connection, trust, accountability and long-term stewardship of Australia's forests are essential.
- The three-day programme will include plenary and concurrent sessions, keynote and invited speakers, networking functions, and a day of field trips.
Award-winning journalist, author and Monash University Professor Stan Grant will deliver a keynote address at the 2026 Forestry Australia Symposium in Canberra, with registrations now open for the three-day event in October. Stan Grant will headline the program as keynote speaker, with Dr Simon Longstaff AO, Executive Director of The Ethics Centre, also delivering a keynote address as part of a program built around the theme The forestry story: Strategies for improved awareness, social licence and effective engagement. Held at the Rex Hotel, Canberra, from Wednesday 7 to Friday 9 October 2026, the Symposium builds on the success of Forestry Australia's 2025 Conference in Adelaide and the 2024 Symposium in Ballarat, bringing the forest science and management community together to examine how the sector can articulate its values and engage constructively with the broader Australian community. The program will examine how forestry can build trust with, local communities, Traditional Owners, policymakers, the media and the wider public, while demonstrating the accountability, transparency and shared vision for Australia's forests on which its social licence depends Forestry Australia CEO Jacquie Martin said the program reflects a commitment to open and constructive engagement: "Forestry has an important story to tell, we also have a responsibility to listen, build trust and engage respectfully with the people and communities around us," Ms Martin said. "Bringing thought leaders such as Stan Grant and Dr Simon Longstaff AO into the conversation with our forest management community provides an important opportunity to challenge our thinking, consider our current approaches and reflect on how we can strengthen positive and authentic engagement into the future." "Social licence is not something our sector can take for granted. It depends on a genuine connection, trust, accountability and a shared commitment to the long-term stewardship of Australia's forests. "We encourage everyone with an interest in Australia's forests, and the role forestry plays in supporting environmental, social, cultural and economic outcomes, to join us in Canberra for this important conversation." Keynote Speakers • Stan Grant: A Wiradjuri, Kamilaroi and Dharrawal man, Stan Grant is one of Australia's most respected journalists, with a four-decade career across television, radio and print. A former senior CNN correspondent who has reported from more than seventy countries, he is a three-time Walkley Award winner and the bestselling author of seven books on world affairs, philosophy, theology, political science and Indigenous history. He is Professor of Journalism at Monash University and Director of the Asia Pacific arm of the Denmark-based Constructive Institute, which works with media organisations, citizens, advocacy groups, faith-based organisations, thought leaders and political figures to improve the quality of public discourse. • Dr Simon Longstaff AO: Dr Simon Longstaff has been Executive Director of The Ethics Centre for 30 years, working across business, government and society on questions of ethics, governance and corporate responsibility. He holds a PhD in philosophy from Cambridge University and is an Adjunct Professor of the Australian Graduate School of Management at UNSW. He was made an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in 2013 for distinguished service to the promotion of ethical standards in governance and business, and to philosophy. The 2026 Symposium is a focused three-day gathering, with two days of plenary and concurrent sessions followed by a day of field trips. The program will feature a range of keynote and invited speakers, alongside several social functions to support networking and collaboration in an informal and relaxed environment. Registrations for the 2026 Symposium are now open with full event details and sponsorship information available through the conference's dedicated website: www.forestryconference.com.au.
About us:
Forestry Australia is an independent, not-for-profit professional association of more than 1,100 forest scientists, managers and growers who work in native forests, plantations and provision of environmental services. Its members are committed to the principles of sustainable forest management and applying these principles to generate environmental, social and economic outcomes in all types of forests and land tenures.
