The Australian government’s Defence department has announced the launch of the Safeguarding Australia through Biotechnology Response and Engagement alliance (SABRE) at the inaugural Australian Defence Science Technology and Research Summit (ADSTAR)
The department said SABRE offers opportunities by bringing together different perspectives of biotech from Australia’s universities, research institutes and small medium enterprises (SME) and connecting them with the needs of the Defence and National Security sectors.
Defence chief scientist Tanya Monro said the aim of the new alliance was to break down silos and improve cooperation between academia, industry, training, defence and national security
“SABRE will lead to the right questions being asked by the right people under the right framework,” Monro said.
“This will ensure that defence and the national security sector capitalize on new opportunities arising from biotech research and development conducted within Australia’s research and industry sectors.
“SABRE, with its national focus, will draw together the right capabilities and capacities which currently exist in the biotech sector and support new horizon research into tangible outcomes,” Monro said.
Human performance and decision making; genomics, bioinformatics and synthetic biology; and agriculture and biosecurity will be the three initial themes under the framework established through SABRE.