Who We Are

About Us

Agricultural Innovation Australia Ltd (AIA) is a not-for-profit public company established to facilitate joint investment and collaboration in the big, cross-sectoral agricultural opportunities and challenges.

We are governed by an independent, skills-based Board.

Our founding members are Australia’s 15 Rural Research & Development Corporations.

We work with a range of partner organisations both from within and outside the agricultural sector.

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What We Do

We identify, develop, and attract investment into cross-sectoral initiatives that drive sustainability, productivity and profitability.

As a single point of contact for cross-industry strategies of scale, we make it easier for investors to navigate and partner with Australian agriculture. Our scope encompasses the agricultural, fisheries and forestry value chains, including input supply, production, processing and export.

See our initiatives

Our Core Values

01

Creative

We encourage diverse thinking and take time to understand the problems we are trying to solve through a discovery process. We are flexible in our approach but always looking at the ‘bigger picture’.

02

Courageous

We take risks and are not afraid of failure. We embrace new ideas, use novel approaches and seek external thinking and partners.

03

Connected

We bring people, ideas and funding together. We are approachable and make it easy for our partners and stakeholders to work with us. We develop extensive networks and relationships across agriculture and the innovation landscape.

The Team

Sam Brown headshot

Sam Brown

BAgrSc GAICD

Chief Executive Officer

Born and raised on a mixed farming operation in the Riverina of New South Wales, Sam has a deep appreciation of the issues and challenges faced by the agricultural sector.

Sam graduated from the University of Melbourne with a Bachelor of Agricultural Science. He worked for six years across a range of divisions and regulatory authorities within the now Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, where he gained exposure to both federal and state legislative development and policy issues across a range of controversial issues including; single desk reform, equine influenza and industry structural adjustment programs.

As CEO of LiveCorp for nine years, Sam led the delivery of research, development, and extension services, as well as raised the international profile of Australia’s livestock export industry.

During his time at LiveCorp, he successfully engaged, developed and managed a network of domestic and international commercial and diplomatic relationships.

He has extensive experience in strategy development, research and project design, corporate affairs, crisis management and stakeholder extension and adoption planning.

Sam Brown headshot

Sam Brown

BAgrSc GAICD

Chief Executive Officer

Sarah Castellanos head shot

Sarah Castellanos

BA CertGovNFP

Senior Manager, Marketing & Investor Relations

Sarah has over 25 years' experience developing and implementing strategies to help companies and individuals market and communicate effectively.

She has worked across a broad range of industries and sectors including IT hardware, software, consulting, financial services, government, academia and most recently, agriculture.

Throughout her career, Sarah has developed product, marketing and communications strategies for unique and challenging scenarios that require creative and adaptive approaches.

She has significant experience in managing strategic partnerships, stakeholder relations, brand, communications and strategy development.

Sarah graduated with a Bachelor of Arts majoring in media and communications and holds a Certificate in Governance for Not-for-Profits.

Sarah Castellanos head shot

Sarah Castellanos

BA CertGovNFP

Senior Manager, Marketing & Investor Relations

Annabelle Van Klaveren head shot

Annabelle Van Klaveren

BBus CPA

Finance and Business Services Manager

Annabelle has over 20 years' experience in accounting and finance, developing and implementing financial reporting systems and key operational processes to enable effective business decision making and forecasting.

She has worked across a broad range of industries and sectors including not for profits and charity, IT services, recruitment and training, and most recently, agriculture.

Throughout her career, Annabelle has worked in small and large enterprises, has developed and integrated financial systems, provided cashflow and budget analysis, managed audits and participated in cross-functional projects.

She has significant experience in strategic business decision making, managing staff, payroll and HR processes, financial management of large events, audit and risk analysis and financial and statutory reporting.

Annabelle graduated with a Bachelor of Business majoring in accounting, with a marketing specialisation and is a CPA member.

Annabelle Van Klaveren head shot

Annabelle Van Klaveren

BBus CPA

Finance and Business Services Manager

Agi Reefman Headshot

Agi Reefman

BAPsych LLB

Consultant

Agi is a specialised consultant, with expertise in strategy, innovation and product development.

She has experience managing and accelerating start-up businesses, building and advising new and evolving businesses, optimising resources and operations, and developing strategies.

Agi's area of specialty is in developing business and digital strategies and helping organisations effectively leverage technology to realise their strategic goals.

She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Bachelor of Laws degree.

Agi Reefman Headshot

Agi Reefman

BAPsych LLB

Consultant

Liesel Alexander head shot

Liesel Alexander

BCompt CPA GAICD

Company Secretary

Liesel is a specialist consultant with over 20 years of financial, compliance, governance and leadership experience. She brings a valuable combination of international commercial and RDC experience to AIA.

Liesel’s international background and her recent role as Chief Commercial Officer & Company Secretary for LiveCorp, one of Australia’s 15 rural Research and Development Corporations (RDCs), bring together commercial, financial, and agricultural contexts to answer the unique challenges and opportunities across AIA and Australian agriculture.

She has significant experience in strategic business decision-making, governance, compliance, financial management, risk analysis and financial and statutory reporting.

Liesel graduated with a Bachelor of Accounting Science and then attained her membership to the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants in the UK. She added the CPA qualification in Australia and went on to complete the Advanced Leadership Program before becoming a member and graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Liesel Alexander head shot

Liesel Alexander

BCompt CPA GAICD

Company Secretary

Paul Kotz

Paul Kotz

CSPO

Head of Product & Design

Paul specialises in turning agricultural and environmental research into impactful software products. He has the rare distinction of digitising the Australian National Greenhouse Gas Inventory twice.

A Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO), Paul works with AIA's Development team to deliver continuous improvement and rapid iteration on the AIA Environmental Accounting Platform.

Paul keeps a strategic eye on future research developments, market movements and legislative changes to ensure the AIA EAP is ready for what's next.

Previously as Group Lead of the CSIRO HandPrint initiative, Paul led cross-business unit collaborations to translate CSIRO research into interoperable tools that enabled sustainability across the Australian agricultural value chain.

Paul Kotz

Paul Kotz

CSPO

Head of Product & Design

Our Purpose

AIA’s purpose is to promote the research into and development of Australia’s national agricultural resources and increase the productivity, profitability and sustainability of the agricultural value chain by:

01

Identifying

Identifying nationally significant cross-sectoral opportunities.

02

Strategies

Developing strategies that facilitate a collaborative approach to investing in research and development, and the adoption of new knowledge and innovation required to realise those opportunities

03

Investment

Raising and acquiring funding and resources from members, government and third parties and managing that funding and those resources to implement company strategies.

Frequently Asked Questions

What type of initiatives do you invest in?

AIA’s Strategic Plan identifies eight priority areas across agriculture, fisheries and forestry, including:

  • climate
  • biosecurity
  • sustainability
  • traceability
  • natural resource management
  • energy
  • waste and circular economy
  • digital and data.

Take a look at our current initiatives.

Does AIA provide grants?

No. AIA does not provide grants or grant funding.

AIA facilitates public and private sector investment into cross-sectoral agricultural initiatives.

I have an idea that will benefit Australian agriculture, who can I talk to?

Read our assessment criteria first.

If your idea or proposal meets these criteria, we'd like to hear from you. Send us a message via our contact us page.

Make sure you include:

  • the challenge or problem your idea would solve
  • who the problem-owner is and why
  • which agricultural, fisheries or forestry sectors it will benefit
  • how it aligns with AIA's strategic priority areas.
Is AIA a rural Research and Development Corporation (RDC)?

No, AIA is an independent, not-for-profit company established by Australia's RDCs.

AIA does not operate like an RDC and does not have a funding agreement with the Commonwealth.

Where does AIA's funding come from?

AIA is a not-for-profit company and does not have a pool of funds available for investment.

AIA develops strategies and initiatives which it must attract investment into.

This investment can be from AIA's members, rural Research and Development Corporations, other public or private investors, or commercial entities.

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