The snow gum summit will happen at Dinner Plain in north eastern Victoria over 3 days in mid February 2025. This is a listing of the speakers presenting at the forum. These profiles are as the presenters appear in the program.
Stephen Curtain
Stephen Curtain feels at home when laying back under the gnarled trunk of an ancestral snow gum, looking up, hands on soil.
He feels immensely positive about a future where humans can help Nature, Mother Earth, Country repair and thrive to rebalance with simple, (eco)logical knowledge, practice informed by knowing, being and doing. From working as a guide to being guided on alpine mountains to Antarctica, Stephen with others listens to, observes and shares Nature's solutions and wisdom to re-health people and planet in a calmer, slower way.
As an ecologist, film maker and teacher, Stephen is fortunate to work with NGOs Regenerate Earth, ECOS Australia and a network of First Peoples, microbiologists and (under)grounded friends and colleagues internationally as voices for Nature, reflecting and empowering knowledge to regenerate healthy Country.
With colleagues in India, Stephen produced a Climate-Calming Natural Farming film - a blueprint for communities everywhere to recool, rehydrate, renutrition and rebalance land Country, sky Country and water Country.
Sarah Lynch
Anthony Sharwood
Anthony Sharwood is a Walkley Award-winning journalist and the author of three recent books on the Australian high country: From Snow to Ash (2020), The Brumby Wars (2021) and Kosciuszko: The Incredible Life of the Man Behind the Mountain (2024).
Mike Edmondson
This affable guide comes with some serious cred, doubling as an award winning landscape photographer and professional cross country ski instructor.
The mountains, snow and the bush have been part of his life since he could walk. Despite growing up in Wollongong, Mike recalls piling into the family's old two-cylinder Bradford for skiing trips or bushwalks in Kiandra, Mt Franklin, Smiggins Holes, Perisher and Thredbo.
"When I was a little my parents placed me in a makeshift wooden fruit box on handmade skis and towed me through the hills, sleeping under shady snow gums along the way," he says.
The family of six often skied between Smiggins Holes and Perisher Valley at night, carrying their weekend supplies in loaded packs on wooden skis with leather boots and cable bindings.
From age 10 Mike was tackling the big runs near Watsons Crags before taking on the physical and mental demands of cross-country ski racing. The family bond with the mountains grew deeper as they supported each other with family and individual marathon ski crossings over the Main Range from Perisher to Kiandra.
A lifetime of scaling Australia's highest peaks has forged a special connection with the mountains but Mike's always make it home to Jindabyne to recuperate and plan for the next adventure.
Dozens of tents and sleeping bags are hanging up to dry in each room of his home.
It was inevitable that one day Mike would pick up a camera to document the pristine environment he thrived in. His love of photography still burns strong 30 years, two books and dozens of postcards later.
His new career started finding traction after completing an Applied Science degree in biology and ecology at nearby Canberra, which paved a way for Mike to eventually live and work in the mountains.
"It's all about an appreciation and love of the Alps that comes from being part of them. This is where I’ve come from - the trials and joys which nurtured my passion for the high country."
In the early 1980s Mike owned and operated the Paddy Palin franchise Outdoor Adventure shop in Jindabyne, using his skills behind the camera to market the business.
Mike believes many of us have lost touch with our natural environment and hopes his images& his guided bushwalks & snow camping adventures serve as a catalyst in re-establishing links with nature.
"Feeling love and a connection for each other and the environment is the first step to finding peace, happiness and compassion in a world plagued by conflict and environmental degradation."
Mike invites you all join him for an unforgettable K7 Adventure. Whether you enjoy hiking Australia's ten highest peaks in summer, snowshoeing, skiing or spilt boarding the backcountry, there's something for everyone.
For the less adventurous there are always his shorter sunset and snowgums photographic tours.
His wide range of photographs can be viewed and purchased online but if you want to see the real deal go to his display in the hallway of the Jindabyne visitor’s centre. Or join an unforgettable winter or summer adventure In Kosciuszko National with Mike.
Checkout Mike's work and trips at www.mikeedmondson.com.au
Simon Watson
Simon Watson is the Principal Scientist - Forest and Fire Ecology in the Victorian Government Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action. Simon moved from academia to the Victorian Government in 2018. He has led and contributed to an extensive body of research investigating the effects of fire and land management on biodiversity and conservation of species.
His work in Government focuses on ensuring that Victoria’s forest and fire management are based on the most up-to-date science, including identifying and defining research programs and the development of policies and activities for the application of scientific knowledge in land management.
Simon’s research publications can be viewed at https://scholar.google.com.au/citations?user=_pKjT9sAAAAJ&hl=en
Suzanna Venn
We collected empirical data across a range of early life-history recruitment stages of snowgum, Eucalyptus pauciflora subsp. niphophila to determine how recruitment may limit range expansion at alpine treeline. We estimated canopy-stored seed, seed rain, soil seed bank germination and tracked the survival of naturally occurring seedlings down 30 m into the sub-alpine woodland. After wildfire, naturally occurring seedlings were tracked and compared between burnt and un-burnt sites, above and below treeline. Field germination and seedling survival was assessed via seed and seedling transplants above and below treeline and in experimentally warmed plots using open-top chambers. Germination potential was assessed in the laboratory under different warming treatments. Seedling frost resistance was also assessed from transplants above and below the treeline. We incorporated this empirical recruitment data into the LANDIS-II framework, specifically parameterised for the study region to simulate snowgum stand dynamics and disturbances and then estimated the probability of snowgum range expansion over set time periods and environmental scenarios. The change in elevation after 20 years of simulations, where the probably of snowgums occurring was 50%, indicated only a 2 m shift in elevation. However, in different areas of the treeline, there was a simulated shift 8 - 40 m in elevation after 100 years. The migration rates per year for snowgum across diffuse treelines between 1640 m and 1890 m where snowgum currently exist show similarly very small increases in elevation (0.5 – 1.0 m), but only when fire disturbance and climate change are included in the models. In-filling within diffuse snowgum stands near treeline is more likely, rather than an upward migration of the alpine treeline.
Bio
Dr Susanna Venn is an Associate Professor of Plant Ecology at Deakin University. Her research focusses on the processes that drive vegetation patterns and plant regeneration across alpine landscapes. She plays an executive role in managing the Australian Mountain Research Facility and uses this infrastructure in combination with manipulative experiments to investigate plant responses to drought, warming, fire and reductions in snow. Susanna chairs the Australian Institute of Alpine Studies, is a member of the Victorian Government’s Scientific Advisory Committee and the Global Mountain Biodiversity Assessment.
Matthew Brookhouse
Topic 1.
Wood-borer mediated decline and dieback is now widespread throughout high-elevation snow-gum woodlands in the Australian Alps. Evidence indicates that the wood-borer taxon associated with the phenomenon is endemic and has a long-standing role in stand development. Current observations indicate that role has recently changed from a latent to an irruptive state. Although the ultimate drivers of the alps-wide outbreak and localised irruptions remain unclear, field and laboratory-based studies of the wood-borer taxon and affected trees are narrowing the possible explanations. This talk will focus on what recent research has taught us about the wood-borer associated decline in snow-gum stands and highlight the next questions and current research underway throughout the alps.
Topic 2.
Although not fully resolved, current understanding of both the wood-boring longicorn and snow-gum taxa implicated in decline of high-elevation woodlands offers a small number of likely ultimate drivers. Based on these drivers and projected change in climate and fire behaviour, a set of possible futures and management responses are interpretable. This talk will integrate what we currently know and can reasonably infer from research on wood-borer mediated decline in snow-gum woodlands to outline a set of current and emerging responses.
Bio
Dr Matthew Brookhouse completed a BSc (Forestry) Honours at ANU in 1997 and returned to the ANU in 2003 after six years designing and implementing growth and yield studies, and forest inventory protocols in Victoria's native forests. After receiving his PhD (2008) and two postdoctoral research projects focussed on the use of forest structural complexity for landscape planning and dendrochronological reconstruction of river flow in Victoria, Dr Brookhouse commenced a dual appointment between the Research School of Biology (Farquhar Lab) and Fenner School and conducted research aimed at understanding water use in regenerating mountain ash forests and [CO2] responsiveness in commercial forest species. He is now a Senior Lecturer in the Fenner School and teaches environmental research methods with a focus on helping students connect theoretical inferential statistics with their application. Dr Brookhouse is a principal investigator in the collaborative research efforts focused on understanding wood-borer induced dieback of snow-gum woodland in the Australian Alps.
Phil Zylstra
Australia's snowgum country has deep fire scars from colonisation. The mountains live with the legacy of this conquest, and it feeds the fires today. The forests have inbuilt defences that could perhaps weather the dry winds and lightning of climate change, but management efforts could undermine these entirely if they are not properly informed, not well-enough divorced from past mistakes.
Dr Zylstra explores the natural controls that Snowgum country places on fire and offers insights on ways that we can join forces with the mountains to fortify them against the coming firestorm.
Bio
Building on a lifetime of love for the mountains and years of fire management and remote area firefighting in the Snowies, Dr. Phil Zylstra uses complex analyses of fire histories and cutting-edge modelling techniques to answer core questions about fire and its place in the mountains.
Tom Fairman
Snow gum forests, and other associated sub-alpine forests like Alpine Ash, have been impacted by frequent and severe bushfires in the last 20 years, and climate change projections suggest they are likely to be impacted by more fire in the future. In this context, how do we think about the future management and adaptation of these landscape to ensure their health and resilience? In this presentation, Tom will discuss the current thinking around adaptation options in forests like snow gum forests, including concepts like the "Resist Accept Direct" framework which is increasingly being applied in conservation landscapes locally and globally.
Bio
Tom is a forest scientist whose research interests relate to the role of fire in landscapes with a focus on compounding disturbances and shifting fire regimes, and the consequences that this has for ecosystem health and resilience. He completed his PhD in forest and fire ecology in 2019, focusing on the impact of short-interval severe.
Matt Ruchel
Bio
Matt has worked in non-government environmental policy areas in the state, national and international arena for more than 30 years. He's held senior positions in leading international and national conservation organisations and local Victorian government. His exceptional strategic planning skills and experience is invaluable in coordinating staff and campaigns, as well as liaising with government, industry and a range of interest groups.
Topic
Land managers must be adequately funded and have the right policy settings to allow them to deal with multiple threats: invasives, fire, climate change, visitor pressure. VNPA perspectives on fire policy.
Karl Just
Bio
Karl Just is a botanist and zoologist with over 18 years experience in the ecological industry. He runs his own consultancy and is a director of the Western Region Ecological Network (WREN) and Nooramunga Land & Sea, not-for-profit organisations committed to ecological restoration.
Blurb
Eucalyptus pauciflora ssp. pauciflora is the most widespread of the Snow Gums. In Victoria, the taxon is not only found at higher altitudes in eastern Victoria but is scattered across the lowlands and foothills south and north of the Great Dividing Range. Most of the lowland or foothill populations are relatively small and scattered, with this distribution suggesting that they are remnants from a more continuous population that likely existed across these areas during the last ice age (25-10,000 years ago).
In 2021, we completed a survey of Eucalyptus pauciflora ssp. pauciflora across the Macedon Ranges Shire to the north-west of Melbourne. This region was found to support the largest population of the taxon ever documented in Victoria outside of the eastern highlands. In this presentation, the health and viability of these important populations is discussed.
Dr Leah Moore
Australian National University Fenner School of Environment and Society
Dr. Leah Moore is a critical zone geoscientist with expertise in land and water management, specializing in the biophysical characterization of landscapes to understand water movement through a range of substrates, the effects of vegetation and infrastructure on landscape processes, and the impacts of climate and land management changes. She has collaborated extensively with federal and state agencies, and NSW National Parks, contributing to strategic catchment management. Her leadership roles include Past President of the Australian Regolith Geoscience Association, member of Soil Science Australia, and active member of a number of international geoscience organizations. Her work integrates advanced geoscience research and education strategies, interdisciplinary expertise and practical problem-solving, to inform sustainable land and water management. She is presently commissioning the rainwater, surface water and groundwater monitoring array for the Save Our Snow Gums program and coordinating the team analysing alpine soils at the SOSG field sites. Findings from these applied programs will inform parallel plant physiology, carbon flux and insect studies in the SOSG project, and hydrologic and other modelling arising from this body of work.
Kate Carmichael
Topic: Climate Change Projections on the Australian Alps and how community groups can be part of the solution
Climate change is having profound impacts on Snowgum communities already, but what can we expect from the future? In 2024 Protect Our Winters Australia alongside the Australian Mountain Research Facility at the Australian National University and the University of Innsbruck released a report titled 'Our Changing Snowscapes: Climate Impacts and Recommendations for our Australian Alps'. This session will explore the climate change impact projections presented in that report as well as put forward the key question posed from this work - where to from here? The second half of the session will explore how community advocacy groups such as POW Australia and Friends of the Earth and many others at this forum can contribute to climate action to help save our Snowgums both at the local level and federally. The presentation will be followed by a Q+A with POW Australia volunteers.
Peter Jacobs
Bio
Peter Jacobs has worked in and around the Australian Alps for many years. He has been a senior protected area manager, consultant, Landcare enthusiast and is currently Executive Officer for the Victorian Deer Control Community Network. Peter has direct experience with the more recent mega fires in the alps, and the vast ecological impacts and recovery. Peter in also chair of the World Commission of Protected Areas Mountains Specialist Group.
Can the alpine peatlands experience help protect Snow Gums from fire?
Alpine peatlands have been subject to frequent and intense fire in recent years. There is concern for their recovery and ongoing condition should this situation continue. In 2016 the Alpine Peatlands Fire Risk Mitigation Planning Project was undertaken to improve the management of alpine peatlands in eastern Victoria, by aiming to reduce the impacts of fire and fire control activities. Peter was the consultant project coordinator.
The project studied factors that influence susceptibility, flammability and fire intensity that led to analysis and prioritising alpine peatlands for protection. A report “Mitigating the Impact of Fire on Alpine Peatlands” was developed along with guidelines for incident management teams during bushfire response that outline strategic and tactical actions or options to avoid or reduce the impact of fire on alpine peatlands. Most importantly Forest Fire Management now has an official work Instruction “Management of Alpine Peatlands Values During Fire” for directing fire response planning .
While the intention is to protect all peatlands from fire, the principle was to give the highest priority for protection from fire to those peatlands that provide the best chance of maintaining landscape scale function and resistance stability and protecting high natural and societal values.
Is it feasible and wise to learn from the process for alpine peatlands to produce something similar for snow gum ecosystems that are now at risk from frequent fire?