More than 150 individuals unite under common mission: improve outcomes associated with environmental watering in the Murray–Darling Basin (Basin).

The One Basin Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) was proud to deliver the CEWH’s Flow–Monitoring, Evaluation, and Research (MER) Program’s 2025 Annual Forum – the first in its role as Knowledge Exchange (KE) Provider for the program.

Held from 3-4 September at the University of Canberra, the event brought together Flow-MER scientists, water managers, First Nations communities, and policy leaders to share insights, lessons, and innovations in environmental water science and adaptive management. 

Flow–MER, the CEWH’s on-ground science program, works in partnership with scientists, water managers and communities across the Basin to undertake monitoring in key river systems across the Basin. The program enables the CEWH to adaptively manage Commonwealth environmental water and demonstrate evidence-based outcomes, while also meeting legislative reporting requirements. 

One Basin CRC has been contracted as the Flow-MER KE Provider from 2024-2029, responsible for supporting Knowledge Exchange and First Nations MER under the current phase of the program.

Working with partners from Alluvium Group, the Knowledge Exchange team designed, planned, and delivered the two-day Annual Forum, with the 2025 event focused on facilitating network building and collaboration between Program practitioners and CEWH, showcasing Program-level findings, and testing new ideas for how MER can improve environmental water outcomes.

The program featured inspiring presentations, interactive sessions, and valuable discussions focused on improving our understanding of how rivers, wetlands, floodplains, and the plants and animals depending on them are responding to Commonwealth environmental water.

Session were diverse in topic and rich in content, from the opening plenary ‘Celebrating 10 years of Flow-MER evaluation synthesis’, to a First Nations-led panel on ‘Being a voice for Country’, to presentations on ‘Emerging tools, technologies, and techniques in environmental water MER’, to a panel discussion on ‘How CEWH utilise Flow–MER in its operations and policy’.

Other highlights included a keynote address from Dr Hugh Robertson (Department of Conservation, Aotearoa/New Zealand; Chair, Ramsar STRP), who reflected on the importance of science-based decision making in restoring our wetlands globally and First Nations partnerships in environmental management; as well as the closing address from Dr Simon Banks (Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder), whose forthright and genuine remarks bookended the event.

The CRC team were also proud to lead sessions showcasing new program topics and themes under the new program. The CRC’s Geoff Reid, Flow-MER KE First Nations MER Lead, chaired two key program sessions – the panel and plenary sessions ‘Being a voice for Country’ and ‘First Nations knowledge and science in Flow-MER’ respectively, while Annabelle Dick, Flow-MER KE Knowledge Exchange Lead, chaired the plenary ‘Science communication & citizen science in Flow-MER’.

The forum highlighted how science, people and policy can come together to support a healthier, more resilient Basin, and the importance of relationships and collaboration in the Flow-MER Program.

The forum also underscored the importance of the science informing adaptive management in the Basin, and why environmental water delivery managers rely on a strong evidence base to support decision-making.

We thank our partners and participants for their energy and expertise in making the event a success.