A Year in Papua New Guinea

We have just finished our second week at work and I think my role is becoming clearer.  I've written my work plan and it covers surveying the scientists on their attitudes and issues with scientific publishing, delivery of assistance in varying forms based on their responses and assisting with the relaunch of the PNG Journal of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (in hiatus for the last decade or so).  I've been invited into the Research and Publication committee and have reviewed a recently submitted paper.  We visited the Department of Agriculture and Livestock farm at Erap, out past the airport on Wednesday to look over a piece of land NARI is interested in leasing.  I didn't realise it but although Lae itself has incredibly high rainfall through the year, as you head inland along the Highlands Highway this quickly reverts to a wet season-dry season situation.  The land at NARI is not therefore typical of most of the PNG lowlands.  Hence the need for mor...

Extensive snow cover over Tamworth on the flight up to Brisbane. With no issues or delays we arrived in Port Moresby via Brisbane on Sunday 3rd August, late afternoon, were met by Margie and Jonathan from AVI and were soon checked into the excellent Airways Hotel.  Our room had a small balcony overlooking the airport so always something to look at there with planes of all shapes and sizes coming and going.  The hotel pays homage to the famous DC3 aircraft that saw so much service in New Guinea post WWII.  There is a complete plane suspended at the 7th floor restaurant and pieces of DC3s can be found in all sorts of odd places in the hotel from the reception desk to meeting room doors. I can't fathom how they got this DC3 up here. The door to our meeting room with a panel from a DC3. We were five as we had been joined in Brisbane by Michael, Sam and Anthea.  Michael and Anthea will be volunteering in Goroka and Sam is with us in Lae - joining Ringisai who has been in ...