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TropLinks, Northern Australia’s leading organisation in the promotion, commercialisation and export of Tropical Expertise, has strengthened its already extensive experience, with the appointment of Business Development Specialist, Brett Henderson, based in Townsville, North Queensland.

Brett joins TropLinks from his previous role as Regional Manager with Austrade, where he was responsible for the entire North Queensland Region.  He has previously established Exporters Networks in Victoria and Queensland and led trade missions into the PNG the South Pacific, United States, Canada and New Zealand.

Developing his understanding of innovation and commercialisation, Brett became Regional Manager for AusIndustry (Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research).  In this capacity, he had identified the need for companies to pursue innovation in a strategic manner. This led him into collaborating with like-minded people in North Queensland, and as a founding member, created the Tropical Innovation Awards.

TropLinks CEO, Graham Poon says “We are very pleased to announce the appointment of Brett Henderson to TropLinks.  His experience and drive will be of enormous benefit to the organisation.  His insight and advice will be invaluable, as we strengthen the organisation’s objective to develop members’ capacity to commercialise and export Tropical Expertise to international tropical markets.”

Commenting on his appointment Brett said “Northern Australia is an exciting place to be right now, and will undoubtedly be an economic driver into the future. We have the knowledge, experience, products and services that can be utilised as a competitive advantage in areas such as agriculture, health and the environment. I look forward to this challenging role in commercialising and showcasing our tropical expertise to the world.”

“Troplinks welcomes individuals and companies to become members of Troplinks. If you have a product or service that is well suited to the tropical environment please contact us directly” said Mr Poon.

Brett Henderson can be contacted on 0421 761 838.  Alternatively, for further information about TropLinks, please visit www.troplinks.com or contact Jodie Dollery, Office Manager on 07 4041 0955, e-mail: jodie.dollery@troplinks.com.

At its recent AGM on 18 November, 2010 TropLinks welcomed three new board members, adding to its already
extensive reserve of tropical expertise.

In announcing the appointments today, the newly appointed President of TropLinks, Mr Geoffrey Plante, said the
appointments of Dr Geoffrey Garrett, Dr Ian Watson and Mr Frank Dallmeyer, will bring a breadth of skills and
experience relevant to the company’s objectives and plans for the continued growth of tropical economies in
Northern Australia.

Dr Geoffrey Garrett AO, held the position of CEO of CSIRO for eight years and will take up the position of Queensland
Chief Scientist from mid-January 2011. Dr Garrett is a recipient of the Centenary Medal for services to Australian
science, and served on the Prime Minister’s Science, Engineering and Innovation Council in Australia for eight years.
He is also a founder of the Global Research Alliance, a group which brings together some of the world’s most
significant R&D organisations, spanning five continents.

Dr Ian Watson is based in Townsville with the CSIRO, and has a background in agricultural science and rangeland
ecology. He is Program Leader for CSIRO’s Tropical and Arid Systems Program, as well as being the CSIRO Site Leader
in Townsville and Director of the Tropical Landscapes Joint Venture (TLJV), a partnership between James Cook
University and the CSIRO.

Mr Frank Dallmeyer started his professional career in Germany and for 14 years worked in various international
management positions at Draeger Safety in Germany, Malaysia and Australia. Following his move to North
Queensland in 2004, Frank joined Townsville Enterprise as Economic Development Manager and 2IC. During this time,
he developed a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and opportunities that present themselves to
Government authorities and private enterprises in the tropical regions of Australia. In 2007, Frank established
Tropical Energy Solutions Pty Ltd, to provide energy system design and construction services for tropical
environments.

The new appointees will join re-elected board members – Mr Geoff Plante, Ms Debra Burden, Professor Sandra
Harding, Mr Brad Webb, Mr Mario Pennisi and Dr Ian Poiner.

The Executive Regional Director for DEEDI in the North, Mr Peter Mellor, welcomes the appointment of Mr Geoff
Plante as President, and the new members joining the board. Mr Mellor says he is looking forward to assisting
TropLinks achieve their objectives. TropLinks has been collaborating with the Department of Employment, Economic
Development and Innovation (DEEDI), on a number of significant tropical expertise initiatives being facilitated by
DEEDI officers in the Townsville and Cairns Service Centres.

The new board of directors will continue the work of retiring members, Professor Peter Andrews, Dr Andrew Johnson
and Mr Ron Tong, in attaining the organisation’s objective to develop members’ capacity to commercialise and export
Tropical Expertise to international tropical markets.

TropLinks CEO, Mr Graham Poon says he is looking forward to working closely with the newly appointed board.
TropLinks is currently pursuing projects in Fiji, Solomon Islands, Guam, Maldives, Papua New Guinea, Philippines,
Japan, Kazakhstan and Libya. Future projects are to include trade missions to targetted international markets such as
Guam, Papua New Guinea and the Pacific. Commercialisation of Tropical Innovation will also be a key focus.