NEXUS project: exploring profitable, sustainable livestock businesses in an increasingly variable climate - milestone report 2

We developed a set of normative principles for the climate methodology, farm systems analysis, economic methodologies, and greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation and carbon accounting frameworks. Our Communications, Monitoring and Evaluation (CM&E) has been developed collaboratively with MLA Program Managers and has been used as an exemplar for other NEXUS project partners. We have made significant progress on our Involve and Partner approach. However, the project has not been without disruptions due to the COVID-19 pandemic: the University of Tasmania and State Governments have imposed restrictions on intra-state travel, preventing our first meeting with the Regional Reference Group or RRG (a group of industry experts comprising SALRC members, farmers, service providers and researchers from the project team). In light of such restrictions, we have postponed our first meeting with the RRG to September 2020 and have instead shortlisted a number of case study farmers that may participate in the project. When these farmers are selected in May 2020, we will proceed with the biophysical and economic modelling of the case study farms under current and future climates. In the coming months, we will continue to develop our Involve and Partner approach, and will conduct carbon accounting and financial analyses of selected case study farms. Assuming the travel restrictions due to COVID-19 are removed by September, we will engage the RRGs and begin a process of people-centric design and iterative participatory research to define and refine potential adaptation options.