Dr Wayne Hancock is Adjunct Senior Lecturer and researcher with the Australian Centre for Pacific Islands Research. He has a background in farming and formal education in horticulture, agriculture and plant genetics. Wayne's work in this area and R&D has taken him across Australia, Asia and Africa. With his Masters research based on his work in Malawi, Wayne continued in academia and international development before completing a multi-disciplinary PhD at Southern Cross University (SCU). This focussed on the release of the first genetically modified crop in Australia, Ingard Cotton, and covered the genetics behind the development of the crop, the IP and protection involved, and the economics of use. Wayne has spent many years in Malawi, China, Sudan, Ethiopia, Mongolia and Myanmar with his project work in agriculture, water and the environment. He has recently returned to Australia and SCU with ACIAR work and consultancies and R&D in Myanmar, Malawi, China, Fiji and Vanuatu.