In his role as Director, Owen is passionate about expanding the career options of young researchers, particularly in the agriculture industry. He is also committed to building stronger relationships between ANU, CSIRO, industry and government.
In March 2019, Owen was named the ANU Vice-Chancellor’s Entrepreneurial Professor in recognition of his work in creating an innovation ecosystem in Canberra that develops cross-disciplinary solutions to agricultural problems.
Owen has worked in the Netherlands, Australia and the United Kingdom, and has held several high-profile Fellowships and grants. He is an Editor for New Phytologist – one of the world’s highest ranked plant science journals – and was Head of the Division of Plant Sciences at ANU before becoming Director of CEAT.
A major focus of Owen’s research is understanding how changes in the environment affect the processes that underpin plant growth, both in crops and natural ecosystems. Owen heads the Atkin Research Group within the ANU Research School of Biology.
Image credit: ANU Robertson School of Biology