Weed problems in the Asia-Pacific region are becoming increasingly difficult to manage. Most countries in the region are faced with a dilemma.  On the one hand there is a higher risk of exotic weed introduction, the result of a major increase in travel and trade.  On the other hand, many of these countries are attempting to reduce the reliance on herbicides for weed management, for economic, environmental, health and sustainability reasons.  It is in this context that biological control has an important role to play in the region, either as a management tool in its own right or, increasingly, as part of an integrated weed management strategy.

In Australia, many tropical weed problems are associated with extensive agricultural activities and biological control is often the only feasible means of control. As a result, considerable effort has been devoted to weed biological control, with considerable success.  For an example of a successful project to control Harrisia cactus, click here.  

It is now generally recognised that Australia is a world leader in the development and implementation of practical weed biological control. During the past decade, CSIRO Entomology and the Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Mines have been involved in a number of collaborative projects on weed biological control with neighbouring countries in the Asia-Pacific region, largely funded through the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR).

However, having the will to collaborate and increase effort in biological control of weeds is one thing, to achieve practical implementation is another matter. It involves the cooperation of a number of key players and spans a range of disciplines, from taxonomy and ecology to political and socio-economic science.  An important reason for establishing the series of international courses in Biological Control of Tropical Weeds was to enhance the international research effort in this field.

The first course, in 1993, was organised by the Cooperative Research Centre for Tropical Pest Management and involved experts in the biological control of weeds from The University of Queensland, CSIRO Entomology and the Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Mines.  

The course has been designed for scientists and managers who are, or about to be, involved in the regulation, management or implementation of biological control of weeds but have limited experience in the area. The main aim has been to give participants a balanced understanding of the theory of weed biological control and a practical exposure to the procedures followed in a weed biological control program.

Participants on the courses received a set of notes and it is these notes which have been expanded and developed to form the basis of the textbook (i.e. Biological Control of Weeds: theory and practical application, edited by Mic Julien and Graham White, 1997) and this CD.  To date, 70 participants from over 25 countries have attended the five courses, with major funding coming from ACIAR, the Crawford Fund and GTZ (Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit).