Dr. Darren Kriticos is a Senior Principal Research Scientist with CSIRO, working in Health & Biosecurity and Agriculture Business Units, and is an Honorary Professor at the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Queensland. Darren is an ecologist whose research is centred on developing and applying ecological models to study invasion biology and pest management under current and future climates. His broad interests span a range of applied ecological questions in fields as diverse as biosecurity, climate adaptation, food security and food safety. Darren believes strongly in the value of developing and applying generic solutions to solving ecological modelling problems. This is reflected in his efforts to develop CLIMEX and DYMEX Version 4, and the collaborative CLiMond climate data repository for bioclimatic modellers. His present efforts are focused on developing real-time pest forecasting systems to enable the agricultural sector to better manage pests, weeds and diseases.