Climate change mitigation through genetic improvement – A deeply worthwhile challenge in the spirit of John Vercoe

It is an unexpected and considerable privilege to have been asked to deliver the John Vercoe Memorial Lecture at this Conference. John Vercoe contributed to livestock development both in Australia and globally, through research that was rigorous, insightful, and practical, and more broadly through his commitment to effective multi-disciplinary collaboration and leadership. That commitment meant that problems that were complex or even wicked (Wittel et al. 1973) at the time became tractable and yielded insights that could be implemented by breeders and farmers, and established solid foundations for further progress. Further, he did not shy away from challenging orthodoxy – the push to introduce and use Bos indicus genetics in Northern Australia in the face of considerable industry opposition being an outstanding example. Similar courage will be required in tackling climate change, given how deeply embedded in human activity the drivers are of that change and the inevitable extent of vested interests confronted.

This paper addresses the challenge of climate change mitigation through genetic improvement, focussing on animals (but acknowledging that genetic improvement of plants is also targeting methanogenic properties) attempting to highlight elements of how we can tackle that challenge drawing on inspiration from John Vercoe’s practical philosophy. The paper does not attempt a review of all activity, research, publications etc with any detail; rather, to consider how genetics can contribute to tackling climate change, to outline key challenges in doing that, and suggest how our genetics community can contribute – in very positive ways.