AgriFutures Australia is seeking applications from appropriately skilled individuals and organisations for the management of the project A systems thinking approach to Australian agriculture.

Submissions close 12 noon AEST Thursday, 3 July 2025.

Background

Australia’s research and development (R&D) system is internationally recognised for its collaborative and industry-aligned structure. Central to this system are the Rural Research and Development Corporations (RDCs), which operate under a co-investment model combining industry funding with government support. This approach ensures that research is grounded in real-world challenges and delivers practical benefits for rural industries, while also aligning with broader national priorities. The RDC model has and continues to play a pivotal role in fostering innovation across agriculture through its focus on applied research and stakeholder engagement.

Despite these achievements, a significant gap remains in how the agricultural innovation system operates—particularly in the application of systems thinking and the facilitation of multisector collaboration. Australia now faces increasingly complex and interconnected challenges—such as food and water security, climate adaptation, energy transition, and regional resilience—that cannot be effectively addressed through traditional, sector-specific approaches. These systemic issues demand fresh thinking and integrated innovation systems capable of spanning multiple sectors and disciplines.

A systems thinking approach offers a powerful framework for addressing these challenges. It enables a more holistic understanding of how agricultural systems intersect with environmental, technological, social, and economic dynamics, and supports the development of coordinated, integrated solutions with long-term impact. By moving beyond siloed efforts and fostering inclusive, cross-sector collaboration among government, industry, academia, and communities, agriculture can play a central role—not only as a beneficiary of innovation, but as a catalyst for transformative change across the national landscape.

This project will explore how systems thinking can be embedded more effectively in Australia’s agricultural innovation ecosystem. It will build on the strengths of existing R&D structures, such as the RDCs, while identifying practical opportunities to strengthen multisector collaboration and co-investment. The project will examine how agriculture can more deliberately align with and contribute to broader national objectives, and where strategic partnerships—with sectors such as energy, health, technology, finance, and education—can unlock greater innovation potential and shared value.

Critically, this work will generate actionable and practical recommendations to advance the innovation system. By embedding systems thinking into research design and implementation, and enabling inclusive partnerships that reflect the complexity of today’s challenges, this project will help position Australian agriculture at the forefront of efforts to build a more resilient, sustainable, and future-ready national innovation system.

This project will guide the Australian agricultural sector to engage in innovative approaches by adopting systems thinking. By fostering multi-sector collaboration, it will help address the complex, interconnected challenges facing agriculture and rural communities in a sustainable way. This approach will position agriculture as a central driver of broader societal, environmental, and technological change, facilitating partnerships with industries beyond the sector. The project will provide insights that enable agriculture to tackle current and emerging challenges through collaborative, cross-sector solutions.

The primary audience for this work includes AgriFutures and fellow Rural Research and Development Corporations (RDCs), as well as key government bodies, such as the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF). Other relevant departments will also benefit depending on the priorities the work uncovers, particularly those involved in environmental sustainability, regional development, and innovation policy. These stakeholders will gain a deeper understanding of how multi-sector collaboration and systems thinking can address the pressing challenges facing agriculture. In addition, it is expected that broader industry stakeholders, including private sector partners, agricultural producers, and other sectors connected to agriculture, will also benefit from the insights and findings of this project. The identification of cross-sector collaboration opportunities will support industries in aligning efforts and resources to drive innovation and sustainability across the Australian agricultural landscape.

Download full guidelines here

Service requirements

Objective 1: Global scan of innovation systems

• Conduct a global scan to identify and analyse innovation systems where agriculture is a central driver of change.
• Focus on both successful and unsuccessful implementations to inform Australia’s innovation architecture.
• Key areas include identifying countries with mature innovation frameworks, examining cross-sector collaborations and analysing policy settings.
• Deliverables include a synthesis of global best practices, strategic insights for Australia and recommendations on policy levers and infrastructure investments.

Objective 2: Mapping Australian Agricultures most pressing systemic issues and their intersection with national priorities

• Map agriculture’s most complex challenges and their intersection with national priorities.
• Identify opportunities where agriculture can act as a strategic enabler of systems change.
• Focus areas include identifying systemic challenges, analysing enabling conditions and prioritising areas for catalytic innovation.
• Deliverables include a systems map, prioritised analysis and guidance on operationalising multi-sector collaboration.

Objective 3: Identify key stakeholders and collaboration opportunities

• Map the ecosystem of stakeholders that agriculture must collaborate with for systemic innovation.
• Focus on identifying industry partners, government entities, corporates, community organisations and First Nations stakeholders.
• Deliverables include a strategic stakeholder map, analysis of public-private partnership models and a catalogue of self-organising innovation ecosystems.

Additional requirements

• Extensive stakeholder consultation and co-design are required across all objectives.
• The provider must deliver stakeholder engagement activities such as webinars, briefings and workshops.

Timeline

How to make a submission

Applications for this Request for Quote must be submitted online using the application in K2.

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Users must create a K2 account before submitting a proposal. To set up a secure account before submitting a proposal, please visit the login page below to access our new user or new company request forms.

Usernames and passwords will only be issued while the applicable round is open.

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Terms of reference

AgriFutures Australia uses standard form contracts and agreements for projects and research procured by AgriFutures Australia. These contracts and agreements set out the terms on which AgriFutures Australia will engage successful applicants to carry out the project.

Applicants must be familiar with the contracts and agreements before submitting a response and are advised to seek legal advice beforehand.

These contracts and agreements have been developed to reflect AgriFutures Australia’s statutory and other procurement responsibilities.

If you require any amendments to the standard agreement, please complete the statement of non-compliance for each of the relevant clause. AgriFutures will then assess those requests.

Applicants will be taken to have agreed to all clauses in the Research Agreement that are not referred to in a statement of non-compliance. The extent of any non-compliance will be a factor in AgriFutures Australia’s evaluation of the application.

If you require further information regarding these contracts and agreements please, contact:

Stephanie-Kate Bratton
Legal Counsel, AgriFutures Australia

Contact

If you have any questions about the RFQ process or requirements in the management services, please contact:

• Jane Knight, Senior Manager, Rural Futures
• Ulicia Raufers, Senior Manager, Rural Futures