About Us

This is an important independent funding body offering unique opportunities for water resource management.

The purpose of the Peter Cullen Trust is to:

• Spot new talent and support early career researchers and people 'who can speak' for the rivers with clarity and credibility,
• Promote informed exchange and debate on important water-management issues,
• Build capacity in science and policy for water management,
• Build links between the scientific and political communities in order to promote effective management of our river systems.

The Peter Cullen Trust will strengthen the bridges between science, policy and stakeholders in water-system management.  Its goals are to enable scientists to work effectively with policy makers, and policy makers to understand scientists’ thinking, by facilitating learning, communication and connections between these groups. 

In achieving its goals the Trust is partnering with other organisations to fund and facilitate joint funding of  capacity-building programs and to develop and support cross-fertilisation of ideas among program participants, via a community of practice.

The climate, water and energy challenges facing Australia will place enormous pressures on policy makers, on political and industry leaders, and on the scientific community. We are already facing critical human capacity gaps — for example in water planning and in irrigation systems. Our water science is stretched. We face a huge communication and learning challenge, for policy and for science. While the water challenges on their own are formidable, the responses to them will need to be integrated with science and policy around climate, carbon, energy and food to a much greater extent in the future.

We need a new generation of scientists and policy makers who are not just expert in water management in a dry and drying continent, but are able to work across the complex interactions between climate, water, energy and food. If we can develop such a cadre of professionals, they will be a great strategic asset for Australia.

The Trust is registered as a Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) so all donors can claim income tax deductions for gifts made to the Trust.